Each month, through our partnership with Harvard Business Review, we refresh our resource library with five new HBR articles we believe CIOs and IT leaders will value highly. Check out the curated pieces below, available to readers through the end of the month.

The 4 tiers of digital transformation 

Embracing advancements in digital technology does not equate to digitally transforming your business. Without a comprehensive assessment of what digital technologies can offer, it’s hard to fully capture the value of digital transformation. Consequently, many businesses make ad-hoc business decisions about the use of digital technologies and end up struggling to be competitive despite substantial investments. Download this article from Mohan Subramaniam to gain an introduction to four distinct tiers of digital transformation, each of which meets different strategic objectives and allows companies to maximize the value they capture from digital technologies.

Download: “The 4 tiers of digital transformation“

Before saying “yes” to a job, consider company culture 

What’s one of the most important aspects to consider before jumping into a new role? The culture of the workplace. Whether you’re entering the job market for the first time or you’re shifting into a new career or position, make sure you get a feel for company culture before you make the jump. How does the organization collaborate, communicate and interact? Is the work environment inclusive, flexible, and innovative? These are the questions you want to keep in mind during the interview process to determine if the culture is the right fit for you. One good measurement is how the company has evolved since the pandemic. How did they handle the shift to hybrid work? And how have they recovered from the massive disruption in general? Read this report to determine the best questions to ask to uncover what the company culture is like. Once the interview process is complete and you’re considering saying “yes” to a new job, you want to be confident in your next move.

Download: “Before saying “yes” to a job, consider company culture“

How to do hybrid right 

The pandemic forced companies to rapidly adopt virtual work technologies – and there are advantages to this new normal. Employees have been pleased with the flexibility offered to when, where, and how they work. Leaders have been presented with a chance to reshape what the hybrid model looks like now that they’ve seen what’s possible. Find out how to make this transition successful by designing hybrid work arrangements that consider human concerns, according to professor Lynda Gratton. 

Download: “How to do hybrid right“

Why do so many strategies fail 

The markets have been flooded with radical, attractive new business models as of late, and the same corporations that have dominated the markets for decades have been shaken up. But some of these folks are able to attract millions of customers and raise vast amounts of capital initially, only to fail at fending off imitators. What’s missing is a holistic strategic approach. Strategy is more than where you position yourself competitively; it requires making carefully coordinated choices about which opportunities to pursue to create long-term value. Entrepreneurs can be blinded by what looks like a golden opportunity without thinking through how to monetize and capture the value. Harvard Business School adjunct professor David J. Collis shares the complete strategy landscape to find out how to realize value over time.

Download: “Why do so many strategies fail“

Build a better dashboard for your agile project 

Successful agile projects are created from solid, reliable data. But getting ahold of that data can sometimes be a struggle – sitfting through a ton of unusable information to find the gems. Honeywell and its Senior Manager of Analytics Agnel D’Cruz aim to address this problem. Along with associate professor of analytics and information systems Stephan Kudyba, they answer the question: “how can project managers build useful dashboards to help companies make decisions?” Download this report to discover a few design principles that can help project managers meet their goals.

Download: “Build a better dashboard for your agile project“

Also read:
IT leadership in the next normal

The next normal has arrived, and CIOs play a central and critical role in whether organizations thrive in this reality. This research from Harvard Business Review Analytic Services identifies four focus areas for CIOs and  IT organizations, based on interviews with CIOs and CTOs from Abbott, Adobe, Equifax, Johnson & Johnson, Qualcomm, Raytheon, Toyota Financial Services, and University of Alabama at Birmingham, and other tech executives. Download this report to learn the 10 new leadership rules these executives are embracing.

Download: “IT leadership in the next normal”