Flashback to your early school days \u2013 let\u2019s say 3rd<\/sup> period math class to be exact. (Apologies in advance if this image brings back as many bad memories for you as it does for me.) Your teacher enters the room and, without a word, writes some draconian math problem on the chalk board and then lays down the challenge to the class – the first person to solve the problem gets extra credit. \u00a0Now, replace the classroom with a conference room. Replace the math teacher with CEO\/CTO\/CDO (take your pick). Replace extra credit with saving your company\u2019s competitive advantage. And finally, replace the math problem with the Digital Complexity Paradigm equation you see below:<\/p>\n Tech complexity\u00b2<\/strong><\/p>\n Here we sit in January of 2022, and at the time of this writing, I can confidently say that digital \u2013 whether that be evolution or transformation \u2013 is never going to be as straight forward as it is today. And I say this knowing full well that digital today is not straight forward; if it were, everybody would be getting it right (and spoiler alert, many are still not getting it right). And to the chagrin of many, it is just going to keep getting more complex \u2013 think of Web 3.0, the advances in adoption of AI & ML, 5G, IoT, AR, VR\u2026the list goes on.<\/p>\n It is crazy to think that while we have been hearing all these buzz words for a few years now, we are not yet to the full practical application and mass adoption of these \u201cnext horizons\u201d, whether that be in support of the enterprise, driving operations, as part of digital commerce, so on and so forth. The technical complexity of digital is simply going to continue to get more and more complex. If that is where the story ended, it would still be a significant mountain to climb.<\/p>\n But of course, it doesn\u2019t end there, and that leads us to the next component\u2026<\/p>\n Speed to Market<\/strong><\/p>\n We can\u2019t look at digital and digital complexity without considering speed to market. Nobody is out there pounding on their chest that they got digital \u201cright\u201d, but oh yeah, it took a long time and the competition was faster. Speed is no longer a luxury or an option; it is a necessity, as speed to market is a key determinant of success in the digital age. Many of you might remember the old public service announcement pointed at teen drivers \u2013 \u201cspeed kills\u201d. Well, with digital, the opposite is true, as you all know \u2013 lack of speed kills. The legacy of digital initiatives that failed simply because of being late to market is long and distinguished, and it will continue to grow.<\/p>\n So, we will all violently agree that digital is complex, and, of course, it has to be delivered fast. But wait, we are not done yet\u2026<\/p>\n Product Quality<\/strong><\/p>\n Oh yeah\u2026quality. Everyone\u2019s favorite word. Digital is not just a factor of speed – it must<\/u> be done \u201cright\u201d\u2026if not done great. There has never been a time when quality has been more important. (A simple Google search on \u2018digital transformation failures\u2019 is a simple proof point of this statement.) With business outcomes so intertwined with customer value, and customer value so dependent on the customer experience, it can easily be argued that product quality stands as an equal with innovative technological features and the ability to get those features into the hands of end users quickly. Yet is still being disregarded as organizations put an inordinate amount of focus on the first two components of the equation.<\/p>\n So, what does this equation prove? Simply put, digital evolution and digital transformation are technologically complex. They need to be delivered fast with great quality and the only way to achieve success is with a directly proportionate amount of Digital Assurance expertise. (Digital Assurance is a set of quality engineering practices to ensure smooth interactions between the many components of Digital Ecosystems – encompassing platforms, processes, data and people.)<\/p>\n Now let\u2019s get back to that broom topic. Why is it relevant and how it does it relate to the digital complexity paradigm? Well, like any good cliffhanger, you will have to come back for Blog #2 in this series when I break down the first element of the equation \u2013 \u201cTech complexity\u00b2\u201d.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.cigniti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Digital-Complexity-Paradigm.png\")
So let\u2019s break down the Digital Complexity Paradigm equation into each of its individual components so I can relate why it is relevant to every organization doing any form of digital AND why the solution to this problem is such a challenge for many organizations.<\/p>\n