It’s not hard to see that the business landscape is evolving faster than ever, driven by rapid technological advancements and shifting customer expectations. Organisations across all industries are therefore eager to adapt rather than risk obsolescence. Digital transformation has emerged as the cornerstone of this evolution, empowering businesses to redefine how they operate, driving growth and offering customers the best experience possible.
In 2025 the need to craft and implement a robust digital transformation strategy has never been greater, although according to global consulting firm Boston Consulting Group (BCG), approximately 70% of digital transformation projects have failed to achieve their potential. While 30% of surveyed executives enjoyed successful implementation, 44% realised only some value, and a shocking 26% considered their efforts a failure – this is about making sure you have a plan. A digital transformation strategy provides a roadmap for embedding digital innovation at the core of an organisation, helping it remain competitive in an increasingly digital-first world.
In this article, we will offer a clear and practical case for digital transformation, focusing specifically on how to manage your data and information digitally. We’ll provide a step-by-step guide tailored to your business’s unique needs, helping you start or enhance your digital journey. From understanding your current data, ensuring secure and timely access, and enabling 24/7 access to information, to improving information security and aligning technology with your operational goals—we’ll walk you through each aspect.
Whether you’re a small business, a local council, a law firm or a large corporation, having a well-defined digital transformation data strategy is essential. It will help streamline operations, enhance customer satisfaction, and ensure long-term growth. Additionally, by embracing digital transformation in 2025, your organisation will be better equipped to navigate emerging challenges, optimise how you manage information, and seize new opportunities with confidence.
Table of contents
- What is a digital transformation strategy?
- What is the difference between digital transformation and a digital strategy?
- Why is it so important to develop a digital transformation strategy?
- Making a business case for a digital transformation strategy
- Who should be involved in developing a digital transformation strategy?
- Steps on how to build a digital transformation strategy
- Key metrics for information management impact
What is a digital transformation strategy?
There is a common misconception that digital transformation is simply about adopting new technologies. In reality, it’s a holistic process that rethinks how an organisation operates, serves its customers, and competes in the marketplace through digital tools and strategies. It impacts every facet of a business, from operations and workflows to customer engagement and corporate culture.
At its core, digital transformation involves integrating technology into all areas of a business to deliver value more effectively. This could be as simple as turning a manual mailroom into a digital one, which enhances security and ensures that mail reaches the right department at the right time. Or it could mean digitising active paper files to improve access, save on storage costs, and streamline information flow. It might also involve improving workflows for managing information, like using barcode tracking to monitor physical files and know where they are and who has them. These are all examples of how digital transformation can bring meaningful improvements without the need for large-scale, expensive projects.
A successful digital transformation strategy is one that is people-focused. It’s about understanding the specific challenges you face and equipping your teams with the skills and mindset needed to leverage technology effectively. Digital transformation doesn’t always require replacing outdated systems—it can often be achieved through small changes that have a big impact. Centralising people and processes is key to obtaining buy-in at all levels, from top executives to frontline employees.
Additionally, digital transformation enables organisations to be agile in a fast-changing environment. By embracing technologies that address immediate needs and rethink existing processes, companies can boost agility, reduce costs, and drive revenue.
What is the difference between digital transformation and a digital strategy?
Digital transformation is a comprehensive, organisation-wide process that redefines how a business operates by integrating digital technologies. It focuses on transforming systems and processes to build a more innovative, efficient and customer-centric company culture. Ultimately a digital transformation is a holistic long-term shift aimed at fundamentally changing how value is delivered.
Digital strategy, on the other hand, is a targeted, actionable plan that outlines how a business will use specific digital tools and technologies to achieve defined objectives. It is tactical and goal-oriented, often addressing areas like operations or customer service.
In the case of digital strategy vs digital transformation, digital transformation is about “changing the business” on a structural level, while a digital strategy is about “achieving specific goals” using digital methods. One is a broad, strategic overhaul whereas the other is a focused roadmap for leveraging technology to meet objectives.
Why is it so important to develop a digital transformation strategy?
Developing a digital transformation strategy framework is critical for navigating sector-specific challenges while ensuring efficient project and resource management. By aligning digital initiatives with a clear roadmap, organisations can overcome obstacles, avoid common pitfalls, and maximise investments.
Every industry faces unique hurdles when embracing digital transformation. Our research into councils highlights challenges such as outdated legacy systems and a fragmented approach to data management. They also suffer from access to budgets. We recently helped Hounslow Council test the digital waters by digitising just its planning records as they needed to be accessed by multiple people and from anywhere London Borough of Hounslow – Restore Information Management.
The legal sector also faces challenges in maintaining data compliance and understanding what information they have due to many acquisitions taking place and firms managing data in different ways. They also feel they are a little behind in having access to their information digitally. Our findings emphasise the importance of streamlined information governance. A strategic approach ensures digital initiatives meet legal and ethical standards while improving efficiency and customer service.
An ill-defined digital transformation strategy can delay projects, waste resources and ultimately produce lacklustre results. Without clear objectives, organisations risk scope creep, where projects expand uncontrollably to consume valuable time and resources. Similarly, failing to establish success metrics makes it difficult to evaluate progress or ROI, leaving teams directionless.
A well-structured strategy acts as a guide for resource allocation, timeline management, and stakeholder alignment. It ensures teams are focused, budgets are adhered to, and digital initiatives align with organisational goals. For example, identifying key priorities early, like upgrading council systems or securing legal data, enables precise planning and execution.
By addressing sector-specific challenges and emphasising clear project management practices, a digital transformation strategy empowers businesses to drive meaningful long-lasting change.
Making a business case for a digital transformation strategy
To secure buy-in from key stakeholders, it’s essential to highlight the practical and financial benefits of a digital transformation strategy. However, instead of going it alone, it’s important to work with experts like Restore Information Management, who can guide you through the process. A successful business case for digital transformation starts with understanding your current challenges and developing a plan that shows the tangible benefits, regardless of where you are on the digital journey.
Before diving into digital transformation, it’s crucial to understand what information you have and where it is stored. Knowing this will allow you to make informed decisions about the best approach for digitising your operations and ensuring that you can access and manage your data effectively.
The financial benefits of digital transformation include cost savings from automating routine tasks, which in turn allows your team to focus on higher-value work. For councils and legal organisations, the practical benefits are even more pronounced, with improvements in decision-making through real-time data, better customer experiences, and faster, more accurate service delivery.
By demonstrating how digital transformation can reduce long-term costs, improve service quality, and futureproof your organisation, you can make a compelling case to stakeholders. A well-crafted business case should include measurable KPIs that show how digital transformation will benefit the organisation, making it easier to justify the initial investment and gain commitment from decision-makers.
Who should be involved in developing a digital transformation strategy?
Developing and implementing a digital transformation strategy requires collaboration across various roles within a business. It only makes sense that the strategy must align with both organisational goals and sector-specific needs. It’s therefore crucial that the right stakeholders are involved from the start so that everyone is happy and on the same page.
Every industry faces unique hurdles when embracing digital transformation. Our research into councils highlights challenges such as outdated legacy systems and a fragmented approach to data management. They also suffer from access to budgets. We recently helped Hounslow Council test the digital waters by digitising just its planning records as they needed to be accessed by multiple people and from anywhere London Borough of Hounslow – Restore Information Management.
The legal sector also faces challenges in maintaining data compliance and understanding what information they have due to many acquisitions taking place and firms managing data in different ways. They also feel they are a little behind in having access to their information digitally. Our findings emphasise the importance of streamlined information governance. A strategic approach ensures digital initiatives meet legal and ethical standards while improving efficiency and customer service.
An ill-defined digital transformation strategy can delay projects, waste resources and ultimately produce lacklustre results. Without clear objectives, organisations risk scope creep, where projects expand uncontrollably to consume valuable time and resources. Similarly, failing to establish success metrics makes it difficult to evaluate progress or ROI, leaving teams directionless.
A well-structured strategy acts as a guide for resource allocation, timeline management, and stakeholder alignment. It ensures teams are focused, budgets are adhered to, and digital initiatives align with organisational goals. For example, identifying key priorities early, like upgrading council systems or securing legal data, enables precise planning and execution.
By addressing sector-specific challenges and emphasising clear project management practices, a digital transformation strategy empowers businesses to drive meaningful long-lasting change.
Employee engagement is critical to a people-focused digital transformation strategy. After all, it is the employees who will yield the most benefits from new digital technologies. Collecting feedback from a diverse range of employees could identify a host of practical considerations that must be addressed so that solutions are user-friendly and aligned with everyday operations.
Steps on how to build a digital transformation strategy
Start by assessing your current data landscape. This includes identifying what data you have, where it is stored, and its relevance to your business operations. It’s essential to define which documents and records need to be retained, digitised, or discarded. A well-structured information management foundation will help you make informed decisions about how to approach the digitisation and storage processes.
Start by assessing your current data landscape. This includes identifying what data you have, where it is stored, and its relevance to your business operations. It’s essential to define which documents and records need to be retained, digitised, or discarded. A well-structured information management foundation will help you make informed decisions about how to approach the digitisation and storage processes.
- Understand your data: Understand the types of information your business holds and classify them based on usage and compliance requirements.
- Data retention: Determine what should be retained, disposed of, or archived to optimise space and reduce security risks.
Once you’ve identified the information to retain, focus on converting physical documents into digital formats. You can opt for full digitisation or implement a more gradual approach based on business needs. However, Organisations do not have to digitise all paper records as they may have initially thought if they are given the right advice. Paper-lite, on the other hand, is a popular strategy that involves digitising high-priority and highly active records while preserving a physical presence where it is most cost-effective.
- Full digitisation: If frequent access to paper files is common, consider digitising all records for better productivity and cost reduction.
- On-demand digitisation: For occasional access, digitising documents as needed will help manage costs and improve efficiency over time.
- Day-forward digitisation: Implement digital workflows for new documents and records while gradually digitising older ones.
Next, decide how to store your digital data securely. Evaluate different storage solutions based on your organisation’s needs and scalability.
- In-house storage: You manage your IT infrastructure but bear the costs of maintenance.
- Third-party data centres: These reduce operational burdens but may limit flexibility.
- Cloud storage: This offers scalability, remote access, and reduced maintenance, though it may provide less control over infrastructure.
Automate your workflows
Leverage automation to streamline your operations and reduce manual data handling. This will help in improving efficiency and error reduction.
- Automate processes: Use artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to automate document processing, approvals, and data routing, increasing productivity across teams.
The final step involves using advanced analytics to make data-driven decisions. This enables your business to identify patterns and trends, providing opportunities for future growth and optimisation.
- Advanced analytics: Use intelligent document processing and AI to categorise data and uncover hidden insights that can improve decision-making.
Digital transformation is not a one-off process. Continuously assess and optimise your digital strategy to stay ahead of emerging technologies and trends.
- Revisit steps as needed: As your business evolves, keep adapting and refining your information management strategy to maximise value and maintain a competitive edge.
A clear implementation plan is essential to avoid common pitfalls like scope creep or resource mismanagement. Your roadmap should include:
- Phases and milestones: Break the transformation into manageable stages, with specific milestones for tracking progress. This will help keep people focused and intentional about tasks.
- Resource allocation: Assign budgets, personnel, and timelines to each phase.
- Communication plans: Outline how updates and progress will be communicated to stakeholders to maintain transparency and buy-in.
You may see some overlap here with customer and employee journeys, so choosing the right digital tools and platforms is critical. Some things to keep in mind:
- Research and selection: Evaluate technologies that address your specific needs, such as document management systems for legal firms or CRM platforms for councils.
- Scalability and integration: Remain on the lookout for solutions that can not only integrate seamlessly with your existing systems but also grow with your organisation.
Before a full-scale rollout, test your strategy with smaller pilot projects. This is a smart way to gain some foresight when it comes to implementing larger, riskier projects.
- Proof of concept: Validate the feasibility and effectiveness of your initiatives on a smaller scale.
- Feedback loops: Collect insights from participants to identify and address any issues before full implementation.
Continuous monitoring and optimisation are vital for long-term success, as well as making a continued business case for any long-term changes or improvements:
- Track KPIs: Use measurable objectives to evaluate returns on your investment in a digital transformation strategy.
- Iterative improvements: Use data insights to refine processes and technology implementations.
When assessing the effectiveness of a digital transformation strategy, it’s crucial to focus on measurable benchmarks and metrics that align with the objectives of the transformation, particularly around information management. Evaluating these aspects ensures the strategy delivers tangible value and supports business goals.
Key metrics for information management impact
- Operational efficiency: Track improvements in information flow, such as reduced time spent retrieving or organising data and streamlined processes. This includes reductions in manual data entry, lower error rates, and faster decision-making due to better access to accurate information.
- User adoption: Measure how well employees and stakeholders are adopting new digital tools that support information management, such as document management systems or data analytics platforms. High adoption rates indicate the tools are effectively integrated into workflows.
- Data accessibility: how quickly and easily users can access the information they need, which is a direct result of improved data management systems.
- Return on Investment (ROI): For initiatives related to information management, such as the implementation of a new digital platform, measure the financial returns compared to the initial investment. This could include cost savings from improved data accuracy, faster processing times, or the reduced need for manual data handling.
These metrics should be tailored to reflect the specific goals of the digital transformation, with a focus on how information is being managed and leveraged across the organisation.
Restore Information Management specialises in digital transformation, helping organisations reduce their dependency on legacy platforms or inefficient workflows. Whether it’s through a new automated digital mailroom, a fully compliant and paperless document management system or an in-depth digital transformation audit – we can help you navigate the steps to going digital with ease and the utmost professionalism.
Interested in enlisting our team of digital transformation specialists? Contact Restore Information Management for general enquiries, or request a quote for our expert digital and information management services.