Another Reason Why DX Might Fail So Often

Digital transformation is an overused buzzword. So was big data. But there are lots of other candidates: agile, AI, disrupt, synergy, virtual and cloud. Buzzwords are perhaps annoying. What really matters is whether the concepts buzzwords represent actually deliver value.

On that score, digital transformation is going to disappoint, as prior big rounds of computing investment have disappointed.  

In Bullshit Jobs: A Theory, author and anthropology professor David Graeber offered a scathing explanation of why the application of computers to business processes delivered far fewer results than hoped for.  

Simply put, the workplace became riddled with useless work that technology should be handling, including some difficult, labor-intensive jobs. But much of the argument concerns other work that might not be so routine, but might arguably also not be so productive . 

Graeber argued that in large organizations, as much as half of all work was being done by five categories of unproductive jobs:

• Flunkies, who serve to make their superiors feel important (receptionists, administrative assistants, door attendants, makers of websites whose sites neglect ease of use and speed for looks)

• Goons: who act to harm or deceive others on behalf of their employer (lobbyists, corporate lawyers, telemarketers, public relations specialists, community managers)

• Duct tapers: who temporarily fix problems that could be fixed permanently (programmers repairing bloated code, airline desk staff who calm passengers whose bags do not arrive) 

• Box tickers: who create the appearance that something useful is being done, when it is not (survey administrators, in-house magazine journalists, corporate compliance officers, quality service manager)

• Taskmasters: who manage, or create extra work for, those who do not need it (including middle managers (middle management, leadership professionals)

One need not agree about the analysis to agree that automating work that should not be done in the first place would not necessarily improve productivity.