Executive Suite: Lessons from ACG’s Digital Transformation

PERFORMANCE REVIEW //

Executive Suite

Company.com

Lessons from the Front Lines of ACG’s Digital Transformation

DAVID KRAMER

COO and Head of Product, Company.com

RYAN CLARK

CTO, Company.com

In case you haven’t heard, the Association for Corporate Growth is well underway with its digital transformation effort, aided by ACG endorsed partner Company.com. The new experience will launch in selected ACG chapters in the coming weeks.

ACG sat down with Company.com leaders who are fully involved in the transformation to see what lessons they could offer other middle-market companies considering going down the same path.

Q: What was your philosophy on digital transformation going into this project?

A: We feel that the most successful companies view digital transformation holistically. Equal parts human-centered and technology-driven, where the purpose is driving value and solving real problems.

Recognizing product management, user experience design and technology as having equally important perspectives across the three dimensions of people, process and tools provides the balanced input needed for successful digital transformation. And these diverse perspectives are all critical when managing risk.

Q: Speaking of risk, what were some of the challenges you’ve encountered, both expected and unexpected?

A: Partner dependencies come to mind (laughs). The Company.com digital experience platform acts as a technology conduit between ACG and their other technology partners—that’s how we’ve been able to accelerate this digital transformation from taking years to now only a few months. As a result, there is a dependency on the other partners, their technology, documentation, availability, etc., and that can be challenging. Some of those challenges were expected, others were unique to ACG partner technologies, and were therefore unexpected.

Q: What adjustments have you made to counter these challenges?

A: Basically, we stopped assuming anything and started questioning everything. Is this out-of-the-box technology, or is it customized? Is the documentation accurate? Was this created for a business case that no longer exists? Finding this information out up front is highly preferable to surprises mid-stream!

Q: What other advice would you give our readers considering digital transformation?

A: Don’t forget the human element, especially when it comes to change management. These decisions impact people depending on the technology to not only do their jobs but to improve their ability to perform on a daily basis. One thing that has helped us immensely is following decision-making best practices. That in itself is probably a whole other article though.

Q: Excellent. Any other final words of advice?

A: I would point you back to our philosophy going in. We have to constantly stay grounded in the holistic approach and bring our clients and partners along every step of the way. Because alignment is hard to obtain and even harder to keep. //

The Wrap-Up

RECAP OF RECENT EVENTS AND KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EDITION

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60 BACKSTAGE: MOVING THE NEEDLE ON DE&I IN FINANCE

Three panelists offer practical advice for how financial services firms can improve their diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Insights from the stories in this edition. It’s hard to become what you can’t see. And representation is very important as it helps junior attorneys, but also junior investors and entrepreneurs to see examples of what they can aspire to become.

DARIO DE MARTINO Partner, Allen & Overy