The Holy grail for private money is to find a business you can grow rapidly and of course profitably. One area of growth that private money (and everyone else) cannot ignore is the power of Digital Transformation. OK, that sounds a little like the start of a super-hero film but give this a moment.
Actually, a superhero doomsday setting isn’t that far off the mark. It’s without a doubt that a huge number of businesses are not prepared for the digital age. They don’t have a Alfresco digital strategy and they may learn to fail with greater frequency, faster as all areas of digital marketing and digital buying continue to be felt.
So what does that mean for private money firms? First and foremost, there are going to be some pretty good deals out there soon, but only for firms that understand the energy of Digital Transformation. Rather than just growing value through exchange and better management, prudent firms can target companies that can’t figure out how to transform their business or processes to reduce costs, gain more market share, and profit through digitization. Turning around these companies might be as simple as instituting a CRM system, or putting up a strategic transactional website to attract and convert more visitors. These are going to be the Private Money Rockstars in the coming years. But that is the future : it’s now that counts.
The private money firm that starts Digitally Altering now is going to be way over challenge. Look at the possibilities, the CRM, the strategic website, but look up, way up : two words: mission and vision. Think of the finest companies on earth and do you know what their vision is. Apple’s vision is to provide their customers with endless tech toys that all link together easily. Netflix is all about bringing you endless entertainment for a monthly fee : and glorious the cable companies along the way. U. S. Steel is : steel. Nothing fires up a company more than knowing who it is and where it’s going.
This is an area that Digital Transformation exceeds expectation at : altering a company through vision. And in this case the vision is not a core principle : but the idea that the core principle needs to be transformed. Digital Transformation is about taking a company and growing earnings while you move the company into the 21st century. And that is exciting! Not only does it mean employees enjoy their work more as you eliminate duplication and admin work, but it conveys to everyone a new sense of purpose. Digital Transformation is really about changing How a company operates and not necessarily WHAT it does. Steel is steel : but that doesn’t mean U. S. Steel can’t digitally transform.