Updated 04 / 09 / 2024 – Can we change business practices without changing mentalities first? When it comes to the digital transformation of the company, 63% of employees think that their company does a poor job of explaining its digital strategy (Abilways Digital / TNS SOFRES 2015 study). However, an imposed transformation is not always understood or accepted. Because new tools are not enough to change mentalities. We must therefore start by working on the corporate culture and proceed with a progressive and global digital acculturation.

Digital acculturation: what are we talking about?

Very schematically, acculturation is, according to Larousse, "the adaptation of an individual or a group to the surrounding culture". In business and with regard to digital transformation, acculturation involves 3 essential and complementary dimensions:

• Informing employees about what can be done with digital tools
• Train them to use these tools
• Make them aware of the issues that arise with digital technology

Digital acculturation, why?

According to one survey Beeshake, 98% of employees believe that it is essential to be digitally acculturated. And 40% of employees see training as the best way to spread a digital culture.

The pitfall of digital transformation is to accumulate digital tools thinking that the usage will take care of itself, and that these tools will naturally accelerate collaboration and efficiency in your teams. You must first and foremost consider your corporate culture. Because new tools alone are not enough to anchor new uses. The digital acculturation phase therefore allows you to ensure that the transformation takes place in the best possible conditions.

On the other hand, the digital acculturation phase allows put employees back at the heart of your business project, and to give meaning to your transformation. You thus ensure that your transformation plan generates more support.

Digital acculturation, how?

Digital acculturation requires a phygital device, that is to say thatit requires both a digital device and face-to-face moments. For the digital part, you can use your existing LMS. You can also use a tool dedicated to acculturation, which will allow you to:

• developing each other's skills, but also sharing knowledge between employees
• raise awareness through content, and align all employees on a common language
• engaging employees in the transformation process

Concretely, the success of acculturation requires a clever mix of dissemination of educational content, quizzes and challenges, feedback, and finally, spaces for sharing between learners.

On the face-to-face side, it is essential to plan participatory moments that mobilize the collective intelligence of your employees to serve your transformationThese moments of sharing can take many forms: brainstorming sessions, lunches, workshops, etc.

[Read also: Digital transformation strategy: which method to adopt?]

Digital acculturation, the first building block in an internal transformation process

Do you know the method? Digital Transformation Seed ? At the origin of this methodology, there is a simple observation. That it is essential to deploy a unifying, entertaining and intuitive device to successfully support the change in corporate culture. Acculturation is the first step of this method to successfully achieve the digital transformation of your organization.