Digital transformation doesn’t have to be complex. The rightapproach can ensure technology investments deliver the resultsthat matter with confidence, ease and speed.

Demystifying
Digital Transformation
by Stuart Harris, Emerson

Digital transformation can have a profound
impact on business performance, but
knowing which technology investments
will truly move the needle isn’t always
easy for companies. In fact, when it comesto implementing digital transformation
projects, manufacturers and producers acrossindustries are feeling a lot of uncertainty andanxiety – and it’s not entirely unfounded.

Consider that less than 30% of digitaltransformation efforts are succeeding,according to research by McKinsey.
What’s more, only 16% of respondents
said their organizations’ digitaltransformation initiatives have successfully
improved performance while equippingthem to sustain changes in the long term.

Demystifying Digital Transformation2

This isn’t how digital transformation issupposed to work. Part of the issue is thatmany companies lack a focused plan for
their digital transformation initiatives. Our
research shows that while 90% of companies
recognize the need for a clearly definedroadmap, only 20% have one in place.
And without a plan to translate vision into
reality, digital transformation efforts canstagnate, if not outright fail. Research by
Gartner indicates that through 2021, digitaltransformation initiatives, on average, areexpected to take large traditional enterprises
twice as long and cost twice as much as
anticipated. Again, this isn’t how digitaltransformation should be, and we must not
accept this as inevitable.
Compounding the problem, new Industrial
Internet of Things (IIoT) solutions seem tohit the market every day with bigger, bolder
claims being made by an increasing numberof vendors – but with little support for thoseclaims in the form of real customer examples
with quantified results. For manufacturers

and producers looking to find practicalsolutions, it’s just more noise and more
uncertainty.

It’s all about adopting the rightapproach to digital transformation– one that’s rooted in practicality
and linked to a company’s desired
business outcomes.
So how can companies cut through thehype, select the technologies that will
tangibly improve operational performance,and deploy them effectively? It’s all about
adopting the right approach to digitaltransformation – one that’s rooted inpracticality and linked to a company’s
desired business outcomes. This enables acompany to confidently implement provensolutions, easily integrate those solutions
into its existing infrastructure and quickly
get real results and return on investment.
Think: confidence, ease and speed.
True digital transformation dramatically changes work practices, empowering
personnel with new insights and actionable information.

The Case for Digital Transformation

3

Look no further than the companies excellingin these key performance indicators (KPIs).
When compared to their average-achieving
peers, Top Quartile performers:

Before understanding how to move forwardwith your digital transformation initiatives,it’s important to understand why you should
move forward. At its most basic level, digitaltransformation can be defined as applying
technology to solve problems – but it’s somuch more than that.

empowering personnel with the knowledge

These areas are critical to operations, and• Experience two additional weeks ofproduction annually due to better plantreliability

True digital transformation happens
when real change is effected within anorganization. It’s a change that’s sparked byrethinking and optimizing processes and byreal performance improvement in these• Incur half the maintenance costs

Demystifying Digital Transformationand tools to do their jobs more effectively.
When this happens, a company can achievemeasurable performance improvements
in areas such as production optimization,reliability, safety, and sustainability.

areas can help a company maintain its
competitive edge and drive long-term
health and profitability.

• Have three times fewer safety incidents• Use about a third less energy

In other words, the majority of companies
have ample room to improve, and therewards for doing so can be significant. For
example, a typical refinery can experience
as much as $50-100 million in collective,
bottom-line annual savings by moving fromaverage to Top Quartile performance in theseKPIs. Digital transformation represents
an incredible opportunity to create thosesavings and propel operational performanceto new levels.

Demystifying Digital Transformation

4

A Practical Approach to Digital Transformation
Now that you know what you want from yourdigital transformation initiatives, you needa plan to make it happen – and that’s whereadopting a practical approach comes in.
There are four basic tenets of this approachthat can help you confidently determine
what technology investments to make, easily
implement targeted solutions, and quickly get
results from those solutions.

transformation initiatives. This ensures thesolutions you implement are directly linked
to the outcomes you want to achieve.

2. Get the most from your data

Before you can take the actions that drive
improvement, you need the right data, andyou need to make sense of it. Most companies
already generate lots of data, but there areusually important gaps as well. Easy-to1. Start with a goal in mind
install, cost-effective sensors can supplement
Our experience, working with hundreds ofexisting measurement technologies to capturecompanies on their digital transformation
data that will serve as the basis for newjourneys, gives us a clear understanding ofinsights. You’ll want to apply the appropriate
the keys to success – as well as the common
level of operational analytics – intuitive, userpitfalls. Start byfriendly software withidentifying yourembedded domain
Start
withknownsolutions
tomost pressing
expertise that canknown
problems
asasureway
operational
quickly analyze datatoshow
resultsfrom
yourdigitalchallenges; thoseand provide actionabletransformation
initiatives.
areas that arerecommendations.
well recognized
Avoid generic analytics
as opportunities for improvement andtools and instead deploy solutions that are
where there will likely be a quick return on
designed to directly address your challenges.
investment. By contrast, do not start withFor example, prepackaged solutions thata list of IIoT technologies to apply, in theleverage foundational diagnostics to provide
hope that your operations teams will findinsights into asset health might be what you’resomething useful to do with them. Focus on
needing. More complex operational issues
the many familiar but nagging operationalcall for comprehensive software platforms
issues that rob operational performance.
that combine collaboration tools with
These issues can be broad, such as too much
artificial intelligence and machine learning to
unplanned downtime, or as specific as
determine root causes.
pressure relief valve problems. Determine
3. Empower your people
your specific problem areas and then apply
For all the talk about technology, digitalproven, scalable and secure IIoT solutionstransformation is ultimately about people.
that will directly address those issues. Start
IIoT technologies can dramatically changewith known solutions to known problems aswork practices for the better, but if thesea sure way to show results from your digital
5Demystifying Digital Transformation

Advanced operational analytics can help identify the root causes of problems
once considered too challenging for real-time analysis.

practices aren’t embraced and adopted byyour personnel, success is unlikely to happen.
The key here is empowering each worker
to do their jobs more effectively. This isaccomplished with technologies and services
that help personnel shift from routine
activities like data collection to more valueadded activities based on collaboration andbusiness-critical decision-making. Digitaltransformation empowers personnel acrossthe organization to optimize performance.

4. Multiply your successes
Applying proven solutions to specificproblems can result in immediate benefits,
and it’s an effective way to start your digitaltransformation journey, but once you’vedemonstrated success and seen ROI for a given
project, think bigger. Greater gains come from

scaling a proven success across your facility or
across the whole enterprise. For example, you
could take a continuous monitoring solution
for a set of pumps and easily apply it to all theimportant pumps that are in a typical refinery.
And for even bigger benefits, you could thenreplicate your initiative to other sites. For
instance, if your digital transformation projectis helping you realize a $50,000 annual benefit
on a single heat exchanger, you could rapidly
turn that into a $50 million annual benefit
by applying that same solution to 1,000 heatexchangers across your enterprise. Thisapproach allows you to start small and ensure
your investments are truly improving youroperations – and then rapidly expand yourdigital transformation efforts in a focused,
targeted direction.
Demystifying Digital Transformation

6The Right Partner Can Help
Digital transformation doesn’t happen
overnight, and there’s no solution that will
instantly make you a Top Quartile performer.
Rather, it’s a journey, requiring an ongoingcommitment to improving your operations
by empowering people to make more effective
decisions that will benefit your business.
However, that doesn’t mean you can’t quickly
realize results from your digital transformation
initiatives. By tying your technology investments
to your desired business outcomes and thendeploying the solutions that unlock insights
and provide actionable information, you can gettangible, meaningful results at each step along
your digital transformation journey.

A trusted partner can help you confidently implement provensolutions, easily deploy those solutions, and quickly get real results.

Having the right partner for this journey
can mean the difference between successand failure. A trusted partner can guide you,helping you select the solutions that meetyour specific needs and then implement
them in ways that deliver fast, sustainable
results so that you get rapid ROI. And a trusted
partner can meet you at any stage of yourjourney – whether that’s helping develop acomprehensive, strategic roadmap that createsa clear vision or executing a single point
solution that brings your vision to life.

solutions and is embedded in many of them.
During my more than 30 years at Emerson, I’ve
seen the benefits we’ve helped operations, acrossindustries, achieve – and we remain committed
to their advancement. That’s why we continue
to expand our Plantweb™ digital ecosystem – ascalable and secure portfolio of technologies,
software and services that enable digitaltransformation. As part of that effort, we’rebuilding the industry’s most comprehensive
portfolio of operational analytics, developing
new technologies that enable more effective
remote-working experiences, and offering
services that provide access to experts who
can supplement your workforce’s knowledge.
Working together, we can help you navigate yourdigital transformation journey with confidence,ease and speed.

Emerson is that partner. In addition todeveloping innovative technologies, we bringa mix of deep industry knowledge and domain
expertise that forms the foundation of ourTo learn more about how Emerson’s Plantweb
digital ecosystem helps drive measurable
performance improvement, visit Plantweb.com
to request a consultation.

About the author: As group president of Digital Transformation for Emerson, Stuart Harris leads
a business responsible for leveraging Emerson’s technologies and expertise to help drive businessperformance for key industries. His more than 30 years of international experience in automation
and asset management within the process industries includes leading strategic planning, globalmarketing, digital strategy and industry programs for Emerson’s Automation Solutions business.
Harris holds 10 U.S. patents for software, information integration and visualization.

Emerson is a trademark and service mark of Emerson Electric Co. ©2020 Emerson Electric Co.
All other marks are the property of their respective owners.

7Demystifying Digital Transformation