Contrary to the impression made by many digitally born Chinese internet giants, many companies in traditional industries are digitally immature, and that immaturity was exposed in the pandemic. Even though many of them were able to quickly “jump” online, thanks to the apps and services provided by the internet giants, they soon realized that being able to work remotely and sell through online channels is far from enough. They realized that, in the core functions like manufacturing, operation, and organization management, they were operating far from the digital frontier.

Note: % of respondents saying their companies have taken all the necessary actions in the respective areas. Source: Accenture Business Continuity Measures Survey, N=123, April 2020

As companies enter an extended period of uncertainty, the digitally mature ones are going to enjoy many advantages over their less advanced peers. Among the most important are superior operational resilience and innovation agility.

In 2020, 11% of the firms we surveyed qualified as “Digital Transformation Champions”, up from 9% in 2019. These companies invest decisively in scaling up new tech-enabled businesses while driving continuous transformation of the legacy business and now derive over 50% of their current revenues from new business activities begun in past three years.

The pandemic, in particular, has highlighted how being digitally mature makes companies more agile and better positioned for growth.

If the benefits of digital maturity are evident, achieving it is less straightforward. By analyzing and synchronizing the Champions’ best practices, we suggest that companies should prioritize six areas for improvement.