The involvement of employees in the digital transformation is very difficult for many companies, especially SMEs. Resources are scarce, ideas have to be reviewed and evaluated and in the end the employees also want to be incentivised for this. Results are usually achieved very little and are not really supported by the management.

This is exactly the challenge we were able to meet in this project. The reason for this was as simple as it was simple: we had introduced a few digital initiatives ourselves and now had to watch them get lost in day-to-day business and get in the way of other projects. We all wanted the same thing: to take our pilot projects seriously and to create the necessary resources for them!

We have therefore drawn up a concept for a “digital incubator for SMEs” and presented it to the management. Instead, the individual departments brought the “digital plants” in the company to the division heads, who then presented the concepts in a joint meeting with the management. What sounds so simple and banal, however, requires intensive moderation and preparation, which in this case was taken over by our Founder & Lead Consultant Stefan Mrozek. In addition, ideas could also be submitted directly to him.

Through the creation of standardized templates and valuation principles, all concepts were equally evaluated and acknowledged by the management. Healthy competition quickly developed among the areas, which led to a noticeable increase in the number of ideas submitted. The best concepts were then provided with project managers, a time classification and resources and could thus be started in a protected environment: as in a small “digital incubator”. In addition, external specialists were called in as required to contribute the necessary know-how and thus build up the company. As impartial consultants and moderators, we have also agreed regular meetings with all project groups in which further expansion stages, support requirements and options for action were discussed.

This protected environment is what even medium-sized companies must finally dare to do: employees must be allowed to make mistakes and try themselves out. The integration into an overall concept and the coordination of the projects with each other also creates a very effective environment, which quickly produces initial results and can thus bring clearly measurable advantages for the company. In this way, small and medium-sized businesses can also benefit from the ideas of their employees.
You would like to start a “Digital Incubator” in your company? Please do not hesitate to contact us!