ABSTRACT

General George MarshallEvery firm and organization operating in the world today are either connected to the internet or handling digital transactions in one form or another, or both. The “digital construct” comprises the equipment, the computer hardware, the datum streams, the datasets, the software/algorithms, and the user interfaces to execute the digitizing process and manipulate/transact the resulting digitized data. Digital data are both utterly useless and wasteful if they cannot be transformed into useful outputs. A successful digital transformation proceeds from small steps, limited in scope and corralled in risk. The digital construct is on its way to claim the hegemonic crown. There is a new ruler in town: data is the name and autonomy is the game. Whether in our daily lives, at the office, in the field, in the air, at the hospital, or in orbit, data are everywhere and requiring our obedience to their dictates.