From startups to industry giants, today’s biggest success stories all have one thing in common: a business model with an openness to innovation and a well-orchestrated digital team to execute.
That may be easier said than done though, since this requires organizations to fully embrace digital transformation and organizational change. Still, adding digital capabilities to your business opens up doors to so much more than just a few streamlined processes — it can transform your organization for the better.
Digital tools like automation, artificial intelligence, and other innovations that can accelerate growth are all valuable parts of a digital transformation. However, you may find that you need an entire team to integrate new technology and digitalization into your company.
That’s why we’ve developed this complete roadmap to building your own digital transformation team.
Looking to hire game-changing talent? Combining AI-powered sourcing technology with a robust community of over 20,000 vetted industry leaders that refer us to top candidates, we can connect you with elusive professional and executive talent 6–8x faster than traditional recruiting firms.
What Is a Digital Transformation Team?
As more and more of our everyday lives become interconnected with digital and tech-driven solutions, it’s become increasingly clear that businesses need to follow suit to keep up with the evolving demands of today’s complex consumers.
However, implementing digital tools and systems into your business smoothly, effectively, and without hurting the customer experience can be a challenge.
Undergoing a successful digital transformation requires a dynamic team of innovative talent uniquely equipped to facilitate and execute every aspect of tech-driven processes. They’ll ensure that all stakeholders, from your customers to your employees, can easily buy into the tools, technologies, and systems that will help you meet your business goals.
This is especially true if your company isn’t in the tech sector. You will likely need to hire visionary executives and high-performing professionals to handle your digital transformation initiative(s).
This might sound like a ton of work, especially if you’re an expansive enterprise business, but upgrading your business model and processes with new technology is truly transformative when done well.
With tools like machine learning, remote work capabilities, and AI-powered automation, you can increase productivity, collaboration, efficiency, and functionality across your entire company.
Are Businesses Really Focused on Building Digital Teams?
Yes. And if they’re not, they should be.
As mentioned, much of our lives are headed in the direction of digital and tech-driven solutions (if not already), and businesses are no different.
Companies are becoming more efficient than ever before, and they’re building digital-driven teams to help unlock even more innovations, solve more complex problems, as well as achieve:
- Optimized operational efficiency
- Increased customer satisfaction
- Better data-based insights and data-informed decision-making
- Improved communication and collaboration
- Increased agility, flexibility, and scalability
What does this all boil down to?
These things all have the power to save your company time and resources, which is absolutely paramount at a time when businesses are navigating economic uncertainty and market volatility.
A little food for thought: Digital teams, by their very nature, also allow for remote or hybrid work, which can increase employee satisfaction and lower your overhead costs.
So, How Do You Structure a Digital Team?
The size and structure of your digital transformation team will greatly depend on your organization's size, current digital status, and ultimate goals.
While the structure will vary, you can think about building it around these central ideas:
- Team Members: On average, most digital teams include 12–20 people, divided fairly evenly between tech and business/operational backgrounds.
- Environment: When it comes to the structure and work environment, you’ll need to decide if you want a centralized in-office team, a fully remote team, or a hybrid setup.
- The Right Roles: Once this is determined, you can decide what roles you need to fill (more on this below!), where you’ll find talent, and how to set up your new team members for success.
Creating an outline for how your digital team will work and communicate can empower them to overcome hurdles on their own — without losing time to communication breakdowns.
Innovation Starts With the Right Digital Team Members: 8 Key Roles To Consider
Do you want to be a business that uses digital technology to address current needs and encourage innovation in the future?
Then this starts with people.
You can’t begin your transformation journey without your digital team, but you also won’t make any progress without the right members. In fact, failing to address key roles or hiring the wrong candidate can stop your transformation in its tracks and cause low buy-in from the rest of your team.
Here are eight essential roles to consider for your digital transformation team.
1. Chief Digital Officer or Chief Technology Officer
A Chief Digital Officer is the person who bridges the gap between business needs/goals with new technology. That may sound simple, but their role involves finding tools that mesh well with your business model, scaling and implementing them without harming the customer experience, and keeping processes up to date.
Their primary goal is to drive the company’s digital transformation. To do this, they’ll stay at the forefront of industry news to identify emerging trends, oversee the implementation of new digital technologies, and spearhead data-driven initiatives.
Similarly, your company may opt for a Chief Technology Officer. A CTO’s goal is to develop and execute the company's vision and strategy in a way that aligns with the overall business objectives and existing technologies.
This role is responsible for leading the technology team and driving innovation to create cutting-edge solutions that enhance the company’s products and services. The CTO also oversees the management of IT infrastructure and cybersecurity measures, while continuously monitoring new technologies to maintain a competitive edge in the market.
2. Chief Innovation Officer
Within a digital team, the Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) helps cultivate an atmosphere of creativity and progressive strategies that align with the company’s digital transformation initiatives.
The CIO will lead research and development endeavors, staying on top of the latest industry advancements to boost the organization's competitive standing. They work closely with the CTO and CDO to ensure that any new innovative technologies are smoothly integrated into the company’s existing/developing digital ecosystem.
3. Digital Transformation/Digital Strategy Manager
While the Chief Digital Officer is concerned with meeting business needs through digital tools, the Digital Transformation Manager is the one who leads initiatives on the ground floor.
The Digital Transformation Manager is a dedicated role that’s a combination of a project manager and a digital strategy expert. They keep transformation projects on track while solving functionality issues that inevitably come with new technology.
4. Data Analysts/Data Experts
If your digital transformation leaves you with a product or process that is hard to use and harms your overall customer experience, then the entire effort may all be for naught. That’s why the work of a Data Analyst is a key role on your digital team.
Data Analysts create, use, and report on systems that gather data from your key metrics. That could mean gathering data on anything from how efficiently your warehouse fulfills an order using a new tech system to how your engagement on social media has fared after a rebrand.
Regardless of what your business does, you won’t know the true impact of your digital transformation without a Data Analyst to put things into the right context and suggest further improvements.
5. User Experience (UX)/UI Designers + Web Devs
While the Data Analyst reports metrics and informs strategy, UX/UI Designers implement responses to those metrics into your digital tools to improve their performance and enhance user satisfaction and interactions.
Think of them as the backbones of your tech and digital initiatives. Designers and web devs are responsible for designing, building, and maintaining websites, web applications, and more. They work together to create user-friendly interfaces and ensure seamless functionality, using programming languages like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, and their highly specialized, technical skill sets.
6. Digital Marketing Specialist(s)
In today's digital landscape, where businesses and customers are predominantly online, having a Digital Marketing Specialist on your innovative team is crucial. These professionals play an important role in understanding the macro environment and evolving digital trends to effectively reach (and engage) the business’s target audiences.
Digital Marketing Specialists identify the unique selling points of products or services and craft compelling messaging to connect with consumers. They use various digital marketing tools, including social media, SEO, and content marketing to ensure your company’s offerings reach the right audience at the right time.
In short? They’ll help you meet your customers where they are — online.
7. Cybersecurity Specialist(s)
Your company is undergoing a digital transformation. The last thing it needs is a digital security issue.
While digital and tech-driven solutions are the norm today, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s full-proof. Any business undergoing a digital transformation needs a cybersecurity specialist to keep its new technology from becoming a liability.
A cybersecurity expert who can respond to and prevent future cybersecurity issues is a must for any modern business.
Why?
Cyber threats and attacks have become more sophisticated and prevalent, posing significant risks to organizations of all sizes. So far in 2023, there have been over 600 reported cyber attacks on businesses, affecting over 466 million records. With the number of attacks increasing by the year, having a Cybersecurity Specialist on staff isn’t a luxury — it’s a must.
8. Engineers
This crucial role involves designing and constructing functional, efficient, and scalable digital products and solutions. Engineers are indispensable on a digital team due to their technical expertise and problem-solving abilities, which the team (and leadership) can leverage to make better, more data-driven decisions.
Engineers have the technical skills needed to bring innovative ideas to life, develop software applications, and maintain digital infrastructure. Collaborating with designers and marketers, engineers play a pivotal role in transforming the team's vision into tangible results, ensuring seamless and user-friendly digital experiences.
The Talent You Need Today, To Build Tomorrow
If your company is ready for successful digital transformation, you’ll need a digital team by your side. The success of your initiative depends on finding powerful executives and team members with the right talent, skill sets, and experience to help you achieve your goals.
At Hunt Club, we understand the unique challenges of building a digital team. Luckily, it’s exactly what we excel in. By combining specialized recruiters, AI-powered sourcing technology, and a robust community of over 20,000 vetted industry leaders that refer us to top candidates, we can connect you with innovative professional and executive talent faster than traditional recruiting firms.
