NEC recommends two major approaches to overcoming these challenges and successfully implementing DX. One is the traditional waterfall approach where a DX agenda and roadmap for the entire company and each functional area are established; followed by conceptual planning, solution planning, and a transformation preparation phase; and then finally the execution and establishment of that transformation. The other approach is to promote agile change through a series of verifications and updates, similar to the lean startup approach used in new business development after the DX agenda is finalized. Depending on the nature of the DX theme, either a waterfall approach or a lean startup approach will be necessary. For example, for customer experience transformation or new business development, a lean startup approach is used because it is necessary to proceed while verifying value, but a waterfall approach can be used for mission-critical areas such as system construction.

NEC offers a suite of DX offerings that incorporate these approaches to solve the challenges facing customers in promoting DX. One of these is Future Creation Design—a DX offering provided by the DX Consulting Service to accelerate digital transformation through NEC’s four design services: Business Grand Design 60 Days, Experience Design 60 Days, Technology Experiment, and Service Branding Design 60 Days. All these services aim to leverage the power of DX to develop businesses and re-engineer business processes.

One example of this transformation is MWS Christalite Methodist Home (CMH) in Singapore. In 2022, the non-profit organisation worked with NEC to digitalize much of its administrative work and processes that were manually carried out, such as patient details that had to be manually taken down and entered into a computer system. This change led to improved efficiency and smoother workflow.

During a 3-day workshop with NEC, CMH staff were also inspired to think out of the box and develop ideas to improve their day-to-day challenges. One solution born from this was having a laptop connect to a blood pressure machine to capture the data for easy documentation and to reduce errors.

As this example shows, digital technologies have already made a significant impact as enablers today but intangibles such as corporate culture and change management are still crucial in determining which organizations succeed and which do not. NEC will continue to deliver valuable solutions to customers through DX offerings designed to help organizations achieve success in DX and continue to thrive in a post-pandemic world.