Evolution isn't just a biology term. In business, it's the difference between thriving companies and extinct ones.
Successful organizations know well-executed digital transformations enable them to experiment, create or strengthen their edges in changing markets, and remain resilient over time.
Aspiring to those goals is the easy part. But once you’re in the thick of it, leading an effective digital transformation initiative can feel both elusive and never-ending. McKinsey estimates 90% of all organizations are currently pursuing some form of digital transformation. But despite huge investments, the data suggests 70% of those projects fail to deliver positive results, wasting more than $2.3 billion globally each year.
So, how do you make sure your team is part of the 30% that truly evolve and thrive? We have some thoughts.
Most wasted digital transformation dollars and hours can be traced back to two things: bad advice and a lack of a clear roadmap. For leaders across healthcare, insurance, manufacturing, financial services, and beyond, unlocking new opportunities and staying competitive hinges on keeping these four strategic principles in mind at every juncture:
1. Customer experience is the strategy
In today’s experience-driven marketplace, customers expect more than the basics. They also demand transparency, personalization, and seamless engagement. Any new strategies or executions must embrace the reality that customer experience is a core strategic asset. Modern firms now center their strategies around turning the customer experience into a competitive advantage. This includes leveraging AI tools to create flexible, omnichannel platforms that track and deliver on precise customer preferences.
2. Architecture enables velocity
Legacy systems often hide inefficiencies and impede agility. On the flip side, successful digital transformations – particularly through enterprise reengineering – can significantly boost profits. This can be achieved by rethinking and optimizing functions like marketing and sales, your supply chain, operations, and customer support. Platform-based, modular designs set the stage for ongoing adaptation and agility. McKinsey also states that with the right architecture, the advantage over transformation laggards can widen by a factor of ten in metrics such as employee productivity, customer experience, or return on investment.
3. Modernization must be constant
Modern architectures — like microservices and cloud-native platforms — enable incremental delivery, rapid iteration, and greater resilience when it’s time for change. By moving away from monolithic systems and actively reducing technical debt, organizations can significantly expand their innovation bandwidth. Reimagining processes, technology, and culture is essential — not optional — from here on.
4. Collaboration is key
Your competitors aren’t going to make this easy for you. And digitally native startups spring up every quarter to fill unmet gaps in customer expectations. But the real competitive gap is structural. This means incumbents must evolve their systems holistically or risk being outperformed. However, developing effective strategies and tools is resource-intensive. Teaming with experienced partners accelerates the process enabling companies to reduce cost, complexity, and risk while increasing innovation.
Case study: EchoPark's blueprint for reinvention
EchoPark, the digital-first subsidiary of car sales giant Sonic Automotive, is a compelling example of how these four principles translate into real-world success. EchoPark didn’t just digitize the car lot. Instead, they asked, "How do we create a buying experience customers actually want to use?"
Used car sales in the U.S. is a tricky industry to conquer. Competitors in the nearly $2 billion market face an uphill battle due to low trust, inconsistent pricing, and painfully slow sales processes. For large operators like EchoPark, modernization isn’t just about plugging new technology into the process. It’s about rethinking how value is delivered.
Designing for trust through digital architecture
To answer these challenges, EchoPark partnered with Bottle Rocket Studios to design and build a new customer experience from the ground up. Their transformation began with strategic planning, mapping the customer journey, identifying friction points, and benchmarking against top digital experiences across all industries – not just automotive. The solution was a composable architecture built on API-first principles, allowing seamless integration with legacy systems while giving product teams the flexibility to innovate at the front end. Key features included transparent pricing, simplified navigation, and tools for both buying and selling.
The impact was immediate and measurable.
Online financing applications increased dramatically, and customers who bought online reported significantly higher Net Promoter Scores (NPS = 90) compared to those who bought in-store (NPS = 77). EchoPark stopped thinking like a traditional dealership and started thinking like a platform company. That change set the stage for continuous evolution based on user needs, data feedback, and agile development practices.
EchoPark's success underscores that true modernization is not about deploying new tools. It’s about creating new value. It's a blueprint for transforming legacy constraints into competitive strengths.
How you can prepare to evolve
Leaders looking to accelerate their company’s digital journey must start thinking about partnering with the right digital transformation experts to both speed and refine processes that might otherwise take years to develop in-house.
The path forward is clear: Embrace experience-led transformation, invest in flexible digital infrastructure, and reengineer for trust. That’s how modern businesses will not just survive, but thrive.
