The problems in traditional workplace culture aren’t new. Today’s compartmentalized workplace has its roots in the mechanization and standardization of the industrial revolution, when workers were regarded very differently than they are today.

But the slowness and lack of cooperation and communication brought about by silo’ed departments, top-down management, and poor customer understanding come into sharp focus when held up to the agile autonomous workflows espoused by the DevOps culture.

The digital revolution is not hyperbole

“The way most companies are set up has a lineage going back a couple of hundred years” said Chris Marsh, research director of workforce productivity and compliance at 451 Research LLC. Marsh spoke with theCUBE to discuss how digital technology is forcing companies to reevaluate their organizational structure. His team’s 2019 report, “Voice of the Enterprise: Workforce Productivity & Collaboration,” focused on the technologies shaping the workplace of the future.

Calling the advances currently underway a “digital revolution” may seem over the top. But it is apt considering the breadth of change new technology is creating, according to Marsh. “[It] is such an interesting time at the moment because a lot of that [traditional culture] is breaking down relatively quickly,” he said.

theCUBE alumni bring an inside perspective

For the past 10 years, theCUBE has been taking the pulse of the tech industry through one-on-one interviews with professionals in the field. This gives us insight into trends that underlie those capturing the headlines as we question experts living at the forefront of the change sweeping across business.

2019 was the year where digital transformation took the headlines. According to Forbes magazine, more than $2 trillion was spent on digital transformation in the past year. The vast majority of companies are still in the early stages of their journey. But, out of the 20 to 30% that have completed the transformation process, 60% have also undergone a cultural transformation.

Matching this statistic, changes in workplace culture is a topic that trended throughout theCUBE’s 2019 coverage. As companies enter the cloud computing age, they are finding that transformation is not only about adopting new technology. It’s about changing the way a company works.

“We call it the open-source way,” said Jim Whitehurst, chief executive officer of Red Hat Inc. “It’s meritocracy and how you get people to work together in collaboration.”

Whitehurst spoke to theCUBE during an interview at Red Hat Summit, in which he discussed how old-school tech companies, such as IBM and Microsoft, are realizing the importance of embracing both collaborative ways of creating software and a collaborative workplace culture. This mirrors the change happening across the corporate landscape as businesses big and small realize that adopting new technology is forcing previously very separate departments — such as marketing and information technology — to work together.

Culture eats strategy for breakfast

Workplace behavioral changes brought about by digital transformation are the biggest problems reported by companies undergoing digital migration. Thirty-three percent of respondents in a McKinsey survey cite cultural barriers as the number one challenge to meeting digital priorities, with lack of understanding and lack of talent coming second and third, respectively. Lack of infrastructure trailed behind in fourth place.

Introducing new technology into the workplace means investment in re-skilling employees. But, more than training on the technical aspects of the new tools employees are required to adapt to the new mindset of working in a more streamlined, collaborative manner.

“It starts with the team,” said Phil Finucane, former chief technology officer of Express Scripts Holding Co. “I’ve moved from being very technology-centric to somebody who says, ‘OK, I have to start with getting the team right and getting the culture right if we’re ever going to be able to get the technology to a good place.’” Finucane spoke with theCUBE during the Mayfield People First Network event in September 2019.

Also attending Mayfield People First was Beth Devin, managing director of innovation network and emerging technologies at Citigroup Inc. In her interview with theCUBE she advised executives to consult a Tech Whisperer to help them keep up to date with the changing culture.

Implementing new technology without the associated cultural change “is just going to be a clumsy version of what you used to do, with a new name on it,” she stated. “Tech transformation is not simply about updating old systems; it is about establishing a holistic new vision.”

Change is a risky business; not changing is even riskier

Routine is comfortable. So, it’s not surprising that employees express resistance and fear when introduced to new technologies such as robotic process automation. An oft-cited McKinsey report stated that 70% of attempted transformations fail, and lack of employee involvement and support for the process was a major cause.

“Employee experience is a critical board-level topic,” said Maribel Lopez, founder and principal analyst at Lopez Research LLC. “The biggest challenge now is figuring out how do we define that and what tools do we need in the organization to make that happen.”

Speaking with theCUBE during the Citrix Synergy event, Lopez discussed how companies need to re-think their cultural organization and provide employees with the same ease of interaction with technology at work that they have come to expect in their personal lives.

Tools for transformation

Introducing new workplace tools is an important part of that cultural change. For example, robotic process automation streamlines workflow by performing routine tasks, freeing employees to take on more creative workloads. A side effect is increased understanding and collaboration between departments as the workflow process becomes more transparent.

“I never thought that there would be a tool that could really change and affect [workplace] culture the way it has,” said Abraham Snell, senior IT analyst of infrastructure at the Southern Co. who spoke with theCUBE during AnsibleFest 2019. “Automation helps my job in ways that are not technical. It helps me work better with other teams.”

Changing culture in the workplace maybe a challenge. But not changing can be even more costly. Skilled employees are at a premium, and attracting and retaining top talent is a constant challenge. A survey from Brandon Hall Group showed that 95% of organizations make bad hires each year. And disengaged employees “phoning it in” at work cumulatively cost $7 trillion in lost productivity, according to global survey by Gallup Inc.

“If you’re being recruited by five different firms, and they’re all offering the same pay, what’s your differentiator?” asked Mitch Gudgeon, co-founder and chief executive officer of TalentFit. Interviewed at theCUBE’s studio in Palo Alto, California, Gudgeon talked about the importance of culture as a factor in the hiring process.

“Culture can be a differentiator,” he said. “It can be a competitive advantage.”

Be prepared: Cultural changes ahead

The pitfalls of a poorly planned digital transformation are many, and even the biggest companies can fail. However, theCUBE’s interview alumni of 2019 have given important insights into the ways these pitfalls can be avoided. Smart strategists will anticipate the cultural changes that come hand-in hand with transformation, making sure that employees, from the warehouse to the C-suite are aware and prepared.

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