Digital Dexterity - Emerging Technology Report

Fall 2015

DIGITAL DEXTERITY

EMERGING TECHNOLOGY REPORT

Presented to:

Professor Anne-Marie Croteau

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October 6th, 2015

1. Overview

As defined by Gartner, Digital dexterity is ‘‘a core employee cognitive ability and social practice that will define digital business success^[1].” It refers to the skills individuals have developed in the past decade which allow them to multitask by managing various devices and by using apps and web services in almost every aspects of their personal life including socializing, banking, training, researching, scheduling, etc. What businesses are looking into is how to take advantage of this new tacit knowledge, in order to transform the traditional workplace into a digital one.  

A digital workplace can be defined as a business strategy enabling employees to be more engaged in a modern environment and creating a more consumer-like experience by leveraging their digital dexterity^[2]. In terms of business transformation, it means allowing employees to have access to information whenever and wherever they need it; to use modern communication infrastructures; to have access to business applications; to allow personal contribution and to give access to smart machines^[3] and to data with applied intelligence^[4].

1. How companies are reacting to it and who are the early adopters?

In a recent survey from Avanade, 84% of the top executives and IT decision-makers being polled responded that email and social media alone are all that's needed for a digital workplace^[5]. We are therefore a long way away from general awareness of this major transformation. Either way, it is coming: Gartner held in May 2015 its first Digital Workplace Summit; companies like IBM and Deloitte have started to offer consulting services to their clients to customize digital workplace strategies; early adopters have already noticed the advantages of leveraging digital dexterity. Here are some examples of the leaders in the digital workplace: