Dr. Philipp Ramin (Founder and CEO, Innovation Center for Industry 4.0, Regensburg)
from the handbook Digital Competence and Future Skills
In the foreword to this book, a perception gap between ambitious digital experts and a much larger group of people in companies and organizations all over the world, who understand little of substance about digital transformation has been emphasized. Building on this, this chapter sheds some critical light on the role of management in the context of digital transformation.
Although this chapter may read as a presumptuous frontal attack on management floors, the author's reflections are in no way intended as such. Rather, it is about a subjectively honest analysis of the complex fabric of digital transformation. Studies and articles are often written about the future of work and how "leadership" should develop in the future. Often, however, one supposedly simple question remains unanswered: are today's leaders even qualified for the tasks of tomorrow? Learning belongs on the strategic agenda, because today and in the future only learning companies are ultimately able to deal with the complexity and volatility of our continually evolving (business) world. The learning company starts with management and includes the entire organization.
The handbook Digital Competence and Future Skills provides comprehensive insight into the future of competencies and learning and the transformation of business. For the first time, leading companies from a wide range of industries around the world provide concrete insights into their comprehensive approaches to transformation, competence management, culture change, and learning and development. In addition, leading scientists and institutions use the latest research findings to assess where we are today and what is to come in the future.