> Japanese version:
> _[デジタル・ヴァンガードCIOは何を実践しているのか　〜デジタル変革で価値創出を持続させるための構造要件〜](https://www.servicenow.com/community/japan-blog/%E3%83%87%E3%82%B8%E3%82%BF%E3%83%AB-%E3%83%B4%E3%82%A1%E3%83%B3%E3%82%AC%E3%83%BC%E3%83%89cio%E3%81%AF%E4%BD%95%E3%82%92%E5%AE%9F%E8%B7%B5%E3%81%97%E3%81%A6%E3%81%84%E3%82%8B%E3%81%AE%E3%81%8B-%E3%83%87%E3%82%B8%E3%82%BF%E3%83%AB%E5%A4%89%E9%9D%A9%E3%81%A7%E4%BE%A1%E5%80%A4%E5%89%B5%E5%87%BA%E3%82%92%E6%8C%81%E7%B6%9A%E3%81%95%E3%81%9B%E3%82%8B%E3%81%9F%E3%82%81%E3%81%AE%E6%A7%8B%E9%80%A0%E8%A6%81%E4%BB%B6/ba-p/3454539)__ _

_The views expressed in this article are based on the author’s personal experience and perspectives and do not represent official views or product positions of ServiceNow._

* * *

## **Introduction**

 

Many executive teams continue to invest heavily in digital transformation (DX), yet struggle to clearly explain _why_ expected outcomes are not being achieved or _where_ execution is stalling. This indicates a  **structural execution challenge** , rather than a lack of intent or funding.

According to Gartner research, only about half of digital transformation initiatives deliver results that meet expectations.

At the same time, there is a distinct group of organizations that consistently achieve high levels of value creation under similar constraints. Gartner refers to the CIOs and CxOs leading these organizations as  **Digital Vanguard**  leaders. Their differentiation lies not in the scale of investment, but in management practices and operating structures that translate strategic change into execution with minimal time lag, supported by the right organizational and architectural structures.

Building on Gartner’s analysis of Digital Vanguard leaders, this paper integrates the author’s hands-on experience to identify the management practices and structural requirements that create sustained performance gaps. By examining the practices shared by Digital Vanguard organizations with high goal-achievement rates, we clarify the structural foundations required to minimize the time lag between strategy and execution while continuing to leverage existing assets.

 

 

* * *

## 1. The Value Gap

  

As digital transformation becomes a baseline expectation for business management, initiatives that consistently deliver expected outcomes remain limited.

Gartner defines  **Digital Vanguard**  CIOs and CxOs as those who continuously achieve superior results from digital initiatives. Their distinguishing characteristic is not larger budgets, but management practices and structures that enable strategic changes to be reflected in execution immediately.

 

* * *

## 2. Four Management Practices Common to Digital Vanguard CIOs

 

 

These four practices are not isolated IT initiatives,  **but enterprise-wide management agendas by design**. They are designed from the outset for enterprise-wide execution.

Digital Vanguard CIOs position these initiatives not as “IT projects,” but as  **core executive agendas** , driving them across the organization as part of management decision-making.

 

| Enterprise-wide platform foundation | Establishing scalable platforms with user experience (UX) at the core by breaking down siloed, function-optimized systems. |
| Architecture as a strategic backbone | Implementing architecture as a “blueprint for transformation” that enables rapid reconfiguration of processes and organizational structures in response to changing business conditions. |
| Developing business technologists | Evolving business units beyond the role of requirements providers, enabling them to lead value creation through the direct use of technology. |
| Cross-functional collaboration |

Eliminating barriers between IT and business, and embedding continuous value creation into standard operating processes.

|

* * *

## 3. Five Structural Requirements to Synchronize Strategy and Execution

 

These four practices cannot be realized through isolated departmental initiatives or point-solution tool adoption.

They span multiple layers—organization, process, talent, and architecture—and must be elevated into  **reproducible, enterprise-wide operating mechanisms**.

 

To systematize these efforts, we define the following  **five structural requirements**  as the common foundation of an enterprise execution platform:

| **Governance**
| Synchronizing investment decisions and business outcomes in real time. Strategy, KPIs, and portfolios are tightly linked to enable decentralized decision-making while preserving enterprise-level optimization. |
| **Talent and organization** | Liberating business technologists. By establishing a shared language and clearly defined roles, organizations can co-create vision, design, and execution across functional boundaries. |
| **Process** | An end-to-end execution engine that transcends silos. Standardized operating models enable continuous improvement cycles across the entire enterprise. |
| **Data** | An AI-ready Single Source of Truth (SSOT). Unified definitions and accountability ensure executives, frontline teams, and AI operate on the same trusted data. |
| **Technology** | A sustainable digital platform that leverages existing assets. By overlaying systems of record (SoR), business processes, data, and IT are integrated into a digital core that evolves without compromising governance or security. |

 

* * *

## 4. An Overlay Approach That Leverages Existing Assets

 

 

For many Japanese enterprises, replacing core systems of record (SoR) involves extremely high risk. The path to becoming a Digital Vanguard does not require  **discarding or replacing existing assets**.

One practical approach to implementing these structural requirements without disrupting existing SoR is to  **overlay ServiceNow as a management layer on top of existing systems**. This enables management intent to propagate to frontline execution without time lag, forming a next-generation management foundation.

 

* * *

## 5. The Digital Vanguard Execution Engine:

 

 

An Enterprise-wide Platform for Cross-Process Integration

ServiceNow is one example of a platform capable of consistently implementing the five structural requirements while preserving existing SoR investments.

Its value lies not in isolated efficiency gains or one-off project success, but in  **embedding a management mechanism that continuously cycles strategy, investment, execution, and learning into the organization’s structure**.

Below, we outline how ServiceNow fulfills this role across each layer.

| **Governance**

A management layer that synchronizes strategy, investment, and execution in real time
|

ServiceNow connects KPIs, investment decisions, and execution status within a single platform, structurally preventing misalignment between strategy and frontline operations.

Executive dashboards and portfolio management capabilities function as a “strategy execution control tower,” enabling leaders to view multiple initiatives holistically and dynamically reprioritize investments as conditions change.

|
| **Talent and Organizational Capability**

Organizational design built around business technologists |

By providing a common platform that balances usability with governance, ServiceNow prevents technology utilization from being confined to IT.

Low-code/no-code capabilities combined with controlled development and operations models support an organizational design in which frontline talent actively drives process improvement and value creation as business technologists.

|
| **Process and Operations**

An end-to-end execution engine |

ServiceNow integrates fragmented, department-specific processes into a single end-to-end platform.

By standardizing cross-functional processes such as _Hire-to-Retire_ and _Order-to-Cash_, organizations can build execution engines that do not rely on individual expertise, enabling continuous improvement and rapid execution at enterprise scale.

|
| **Data and Information**

Establishing an SSOT that supports executive decision-making |

With CMDB (Configuration Management Database) and CSDM (Common Service Data Model) at its core, ServiceNow establishes a service-centric SSOT with consistent semantic definitions.

This enables unified visibility into relationships among systems, assets, services, and processes—providing a reliable data foundation for executive decisions and AI-driven use cases.

|
|

**Technology**

 

A sustainable digital core realized through an overlay model

|

ServiceNow does not replace existing SoR. Instead, it overlays the Now Platform on top of them.

This structure protects existing assets while enabling expansion without increasing complexity, maintaining a resilient digital core that balances security, governance, and agility for long-term sustainability.

|

 

* * *

## Conclusion

 

The essence of digital transformation is not the success of individual projects, but the  **intentional construction of organizational capability itself** —the ability to continuously adapt, learn, and redesign.

Whether an enterprise can protect its existing SoR while building a management architecture that translates executive intent into frontline execution in real time will determine its competitive advantage over the next decade.

Is your DX merely a collection of projects, or is it an evolving management structure?