ABeam DX Insight No.5 DX Vision & Scenario Formulation - What are the five benefits of "DX × Purpose Management"? -

With the rapid progress of online access and various irreversible changes in conducting business activities due to COVID-19, many companies are being forced to redefine their raison d'etre. Against this background, an increasing number of companies are carrying out initiatives with an awareness of purpose management.

The term “purpose” refers to your raison d'etre, or reason for existence. In purpose management, we aim not only to strengthen competitiveness within the industry, but also to define our own social value and establish a new position for ourselves in society.

First, there are two ways to define your company's purpose: “an approach that looks back on the past” and “returns to company origins and an approach that envisions the role that your company should play with an eye on the future”. While looking back on the role played in society in the company’s history to date, the company defines as its purpose a new raison d'etre amidst recent major environmental changes.

The perspective of DX itself also changes when conceptualization is carried out based on this concept of purpose management. As illustrated in the figure below, the perspective evolves from a conventional perspective of "technology starting point / productivity improvement" to "initiatives for purpose realization based on the creation of new social value."

By the purpose management × DX combination, the following synergistic effects are expected, further increasing the attention drawn by such initiatives:

1．Allows for a bold turnaround in DX strategy
While, for a bold directional expansion, it will be necessary to re-question necessity, by considering DX from a high perspective based on purpose, it will be possible to change the battleground and evolve the value provided.

2．Evolves the concept of competitiveness
The purpose management × DX combination evolves the concept of competitiveness into an approach of strengthening the company position by becoming unique in society, rather than strengthening the relative advantage of the company within the industry.

3．Guides the collection and selection of digital initiatives
While companies tend to get into situations in which, for example, the organization is made up of only specific functions or there are a large number of small-scale initiatives, by defining purpose as the guideline, it becomes possible to collect and select initiatives.

4．Contributes to the sophistication of digital business management in response to changes in value
While purpose management pays more attention to non-financial indicators such as ESG and human capital, the use of digitalization makes it possible to visualize such indicators and contribute to the sophistication of business management.

5．Attracts stakeholders inside and outside the company
In addition to contributing to branding to customers, the combination will lead to fostering a sense of unity among employees centered on purpose, adding incentives to attract excellent external digital talent and partners, and meeting long-term expectations from investors.

With the purpose management × DX combination, you can derive a new raison d'etre for your company as well as the path toward achievement. Until now, in a Japanese company, there were many areas in which implicit internal agreements were made, but in future management it will be necessary to consciously incorporate and position purpose as the core of management.