Digital transformation of SMEs starts with culture, not software

This blog was born out of a discussion between Andrea Ferramosca, Smart Manufacturing Lead at Syscons, and Jessica Cintola, Marketing Manager at Syscons, to delve into how much the digital maturity of people is decisive in starting a Digital Manufacturing project.

This is a topic that is as topical as ever, especially for many Italian manufacturing SMEs, where digitization is often perceived as a kind of "invasive advertising": e-commerce, ERP, Cloud ERP, MES, MES in the Cloud, Artificial Intelligence... a growing wave that has swept the boundaries of sectors hitherto reluctant to innovate. The enterprise begins to question itself, often driven more by "if everyone is doing it..." than by an initially structured plan. Asking the first questions is not the CEO, but figures such as the Production Manager or Innovation Manager, who experience inefficiency every day and glimpse the benefits of the change being talked about.

At that point, these figures confront the CIO and COO, and the classic, (and understandable) fears come into play: "The product I am going to select, is it the right one?", "Is it really worth it?", "What is the appropriate investment?"

Here the need arises, but the direction (again, understandable) is unknown. It often starts with a seemingly simple request, "We need an MES."

The paradox of technology: it doesn't start with software

The market offers hundreds of solutions. Larger companies already have experience, are usually looking to replace an existing system with an even better performing one, and know exactly what KPIs they want to improve and perhaps, what product they want to implement. But for those starting from scratch, like many SMEs without even an ERP, the question to ask is a different one:

What is the outcome they really want to achieve?

It is then a matter of understanding together with the company the real "pain points."

• Too much data in Excel and you can't get value from it
• Turnover is high and operators struggle to adapt
• You want to calculate OEE to improve quality, reduce downtime

The first analysis to be done is not technical, but cultural: what is the digital maturity of people in the company? Only from there can the right tool be proposed.

Change management: the most critical aspect of transformation

In my more than 20 years of experience, change management is the critical issue within a project.

Until yesterday, people worked a certain way. From one day to the next a new system arrives that claims to drive operations, change processes, monitor everything. Months are invested in development (8, even 12), and usually only the last two weeks are devoted to training users in the field. The result? The monitors in the factory are there, but no one looks at them.

Transformation needs to create need and awareness, not just technology. It needs internal company communication, HR support, change marketing. One company told us, "We changed everything, but we lost the incumbents, the good ones. They didn't know how to do their jobs anymore."

That's why it's critical to help companies right from the start, in their change and simplify, with user-friendly interfaces, systems that guide the operator, continuous reskilling. This is the only way to tackle change without fear of making mistakes.

Consulting before the product: why choosing an MES is the last step

Our approach always starts with a question: where does the company stand in the culture of data and efficiency?
In some cases, you have to start from scratch: there is not even a management system for bills or invoices. That's fine. But here you don't need software (right away), you need strategic consulting upstream.

In other cases, the need is much more advanced: the company has hundreds of people, knows its KPIs, has lost control of processes and wants a system that can be integrated, expandable. In that context, the culture is there, and you work right away on software selection and integration.

So the real transformation is in people

Change is not just a technological event, but more importantly a cultural one. Digital transformation does not start with the choice of a management software or MES, but with the ability of the company to understand what it wants to improve and to accompany its people in the change.

A good partner does not sell (only) software. It helps companies mature the vision, understand their goals, and then select the right solution. The right software comes later. Culture, awareness and mindset change are needed first.

You can find the original article on the Impresoft Group website.