Design thinking, as a method, is a potential enabler for digital transformation in companies of varying sizes
Design thinking is a five-step method, with use cases ranging from solving customer problems to designing new products.
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A walk down Arundale Street in Mylapore, Chennai, in the 2010s could send your senses into overdrive. From Rayar’s Mess, the popular eatery, came the pungent scent of sambhar and the visual delights of steam breaking free from tumblers of South Indian filter coffee. Today, the repeated chirps and chimes of a mobile phone add to the scene. No, the owner of Rayar’s Mess is not receiving WhatsApp forwards. He is getting notifications from Zomato, one of India’s popular food delivery apps. In a recent news article published by the English daily The Hindu, Manoj Kumar, the fourth-generation owner of Rayar’s Mess, spoke about how the traditional eatery had changed its business model to embrace the digital transformation. His father had been reluctant but, looking back at the losses caused by the pandemic, Kumar believes the decision was the right one. “We are glad we moved to online orders in 2019,” he said.
The pandemic has not been the only “mess” to push businesses into taking another look at digital solutions. India’s demonetization program of 2016, for example, forced consumers and small merchants alike to find alternatives to cash transactions. The payment systems firm Paytm enjoyed a boost in the Indian market because of the program. According to Euromoney, Paytm’s numbers skyrocketed from 125 million users before demonetization to 280 million users by November 2017.
[This article has been reproduced with permission from ESMT. Views expressed are personal.]