Learning the Language of Digital, Fast
As a 21J, having recently started my core courses at INSEAD, there is no question that we are learning how digital has had a profound impact on business. You only have to look at the companies that are surviving and thriving in the COVID pandemic to understand the power of digital strength on a company’s fortunes.
The US Department of Commerce released data recently showing that e-commerce penetration had jumped from 16% to 27% in the first eight weeks of lockdown, whilst the share prices of big tech companies have soared over the past six months.
Given the significance of digital to global business, I was excited to see that INSEAD Careers Development Centre has partnered with Exactimo, a provider of digital training and tools, to help business school students increase their digital confidence, influence and employability.
Frederic, Exactimo’s founder who started his career at Google, first came to campus in February at the request of the Career Development Centre, to deliver his digital bootcamp to over 120 students. He has followed this up by providing access to his new online course, How To Digitally Audit Any Company, to INSEAD students across all campuses. I was able to follow the whole course in P0, before I officially started classes.
This course has really provided me with precious insights on how to digitally audit any company and changed my mindset toward career-building.
It’s packed full of insights, frameworks and tools as well as rich resources on the world of big tech, such as a detailed breakdown of Google's business model and guides on why regulators are paying such close attention to Amazon.
Having a background in commercial aviation (I was a pilot for China Airlines) with a deep interest in the world of business, I am still in a discovery process as to my next step.
Before coming into INSEAD, I assumed that I would be pursuing a management consultant career, which highly matches my career assessment outcomes, but I am exploring other paths as well.
“How To Digitally Audit Any Company” not only focuses on digital auditing, but also provides a solid foundation on business intuition, which I found extremely helpful in preparing myself for the MBA courses.
What’s clear is that digital is the new language of business and all business students need to be digitally fluent, irrespective of which business function or industry they’re in or want to work in.
For instance, digital skills are increasingly important for the big management consultancies like McKinsey, BCG, Bain and Accenture as they all have large and growing digital practices. Strategy and transformation assignments are now grounded in digital, using the dynamics of the internet to innovate and improve efficiency. These projects are often about growing the top line, and improving the ways companies acquire and retain customers in core or new markets.
The journey at INSEAD so far has been brilliant and I am excited at the possibilities ahead!
