For our first blog post we are going to show you 12 reasons why we desperately need change to continue to survive…

What change you ask?  

The world is changing – digitally speaking. There are many innovations all around us that we will outline in day 11 that you never would have thought about, but for now we will give you 12 reasons why we desperately need change; adapting to the digital innovations around us to continue to thrive and build upon. 

1. The high street is on the decline…  

As sad as this may be for many, small businesses rely on in store purchases. But the high street has been on the decline even before the pandemic. As many people are adapting to the use of mobile phones (even your grandma uses Facebook these days!) social media advertising is fuelled with investment; most companies who are making use of the online presence know the stats: 92 per cent of UK adults are forecast to own a smartphone by 2023. 

In recent news, Primark had lost out to a whopping £2 BILLION over 2020’s 1st pandemic ALONE… all because they have no e-commerce website! It seems such a rookie mistake for the fashion giant to not have an online presence in this day and age… Luckily they are not in administration yet… 

Many small businesses who still rely on the face to face interaction need not fear, as it is super easy and cheap to have digital change and build an e-commerce site – still having their in store interaction. The best of both worlds! 

2. The future of WORK: demand for roles within the digital technology sector has grown by 150% over the past 4 years (2015 – 2018)* 

During the current climate of the pandemic, many jobs have been or will be at risk due to the unfortunate lack of need for some roles. HOWEVER, in the digital sector there has been a HUGE increase of demand due to digital change; digital marketers, social media analysts, content creators and more are highly sought after to fulfil brand ‘s online presence; the competition to be the most seen online is high.  

‘But I have trained all of my life to do my specific role, this isn’t fair!’ 

Do not give up! There may be ways for you to mould your current role into a more digital stance by retraining. There are many positives to retraining; especially if you have been in a role for 10+ years and feel pretty stagnant. You can refresh your daily work life, learn new things and have something more exciting to go to each day; as they say, ‘If you always do what you’ve always done you’ll always get what you always got.’ 

* https://tinyurl.com/yyzr9nmk

3. Since the pandemic… EVERYTHING moved DIGITAL 

Most workplaces were shut, but many adapted to continue to work by the likes of…  you guessed it.. 

ZOOM. TEAMS. HANGOUTS. Or whatever platform you use…  

But this mandatory digital change has only sparked the question; can we work from home most of the time?  This saves people money, time and effort on their commutes, less busy public transport which right now is key for keeping distance.. 

Here are a few companies that are now switching to remote work long term: https://tinyurl.com/y2tylbm2

4. Web 2.0 – Briefly explained 

We are strongly within the web 2.0 realm now; user-generated content. Gone are the days where the web could only give you information but with no interaction. Web 2.0 refers to the ease of access, the abilities to collaborate, share and interact with information. Now, web 2.0 has evolved so much it is a referred to as a  ‘social web’  

There are little people who do not use a device in their daily life, whether it’s a laptop, tablet or mobile phone. Can you imagine a day without googling something like ‘who starred in the peaky blinders’ after you’ve just binge watched an entire season? Or then writing a status about it on your socials?  

The development of Web 2.0 has highlighted even more so why we need to adapt and participate; to reap the benefits. 

5. Industry 4.0 – Not just relevant to the Manufacturing Industry 

You may think:

“I have no idea what Industry 4.0 means.. but I don’t need to, I work in accounts?!”

But Industry 4.0 affects EVERYONE. Let’s explain… 

Looking at the 4 stages of the industrial revolution:  

Stage 1 –  Mechanism, Steam and Water Power 

Stage 2 –  Mass production lines and Electricity 

Stage 3 – Electronics, IT Systems, Automation and Robotics 

Stage 4 – SMART factory, AI, Real time data, and Machine learning 

The industry, manufacturing and construction are core parts of what keeps the world running. Without these sectors.. We wouldn’t have anything. The houses we live in, the bed’s we sleep on. The clothes we we wear and the foods we eat. Whether you are in HR, you work for the NHS, you’re a teacher or an Artist. All sectors of life REQUIRE the manufacturing and construction industry.  

Industry 4.0 is in progress, but we DESPERATELY need change to be embraced and encourage this stage as it moulds the future of everything as we know it.  

6. CASE STUDY – Toys R Us Collapse  

An entertainment giant in it’s day, but even the largest companies could fall into administration.. (Looking at the current news of Arcadia Group, who owns TopShop) 

• 

“Toys R Us has failed to innovate its business model, incorporate technology or adapt to changing consumer behavior” *https://tinyurl.com/y5phk5am 

In short, the large company made mistakes which only lived to serve lessons to others of what NOT to do. But many people can agree that their resistance to adapt to trends and behaviors resulted in an outcome that nobody wants. Thousands of jobs lost, 100’s of store closures. Which all could have been prevented.. 

7. The technology adoption cycle 

The new business disruptors are adapting to technology straight away, which is creating a GAP between the already existing businesses that are quite slow with jumping on the tech bandwagon.  

This ‘GAP’ which continues to increase the more innovating technology emerges, is only creating heavier competition… where eventually there will be no competition; the new disruptors are well ahead of the game and customers automatically steer to them. Leaving the businesses falling behind, non existent.  

Don’t be another case study… 

8. The ‘Resistant to Change’  

We all know this category of people can be a hurdle, whether you are one of them or whether you work with them. But how to we combat this resistance? 

From a workplace MD/CEO point of view; it’s all about change management. There are ways to approach the tech adoption subject to those more tricky employee’s… But you can speak to a specialist to get resources and advice! (Cough* HanaTech Cough*) 

If YOU fall into that resistance for reasons such as..  

• You don’t trust new tech.. It can fail 
• You don’t know where to start to understand, all seems too complicated 
• Ignorance 

There are many resources out there and examples of successful technology that are around your daily life that you don’t even notice.. And we trust them everyday. If you don’t understand, or know where to start then again.. Ask for help! There are business consultants out there (Cough* HanaTech Cough*) who are here to help you! 

And if you are the latter.. Unfortunately there isn’t a special potion for the ignorant, sorry. 

9. Who doesn’t want an easier life?! 

Technology has made so many parts of our lives much more easy, efficient and time saving.  

Things such as communication, payments, consumerism, information intake, knowledge and so much more has been made a breeze. We will go into innovations around us in day 11 but see here for 6 ways on how technology has made our lives easier: https://tinyurl.com/y3hlcxdm

10. The world is changing, whether you like it or not.  

The reality is, everything is becoming much more digital; even if you’re not a fan of it. But you can’t deny technology’s abilities and we desperately need change to continue to survive; how far we have come in such a short space of time is already rather impressive…  

See this cool illustrated video for the evolution of tech –https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DENG7Q7VRgo 

 From using a typewriter or hand writing letter to sending an email with the click of a button. Although, got to give it to the typewriter that it’s still pleasing to watch. 

11. The modern day ‘swiss army knife’  

In the 70’s, you probably wouldn’t leave your house without these 3 things: Your house key, some pocket change, and a casette player. Now, most of us don’t leave without our mobile phones.  

Mobile phones have become the swiss army knife; you can pretty much do anything on it from payments, to communication, to consumerism to even controlling the lights in your homes.  

A mobile phone is the necessity item that people carry around even over cash.  

So, from a business owner or marketing point of view, its VITAL to analyse behaviours; this is how you place your business in the competition.  

12. CHANGE is inevitable, so you may as well embrace it to overcome it 

Lastly, from a personal point of view, many people struggle with change in life, which is a completely normal process, but it doesn’t always have to be confusing and intense. Change is always going to happen, as this means moving forwards and progressing. If we all embrace it and become more open minded it benefits in the long run, making the change transition much easier to flow without any resistance. Why give yourself more unnecessary weight?  

We hope you enjoyed reading our 12 REASONS why we desperately need change … Keep an eye out for tomorrow’s post…