Digital Transformation Use Cases: How Leading Companies Transform Function by Function

Why Now Is the Best Time in History for Digital Transformation

We are living through a period of unprecedented technological advancement. The rise of AI, intelligent automation, and cloud-native platforms has redefined what’s possible for organizations across industries. Digital transformation is no longer about simply modernizing IT—it’s about radically improving how work gets done to drive agility, efficiency, customer satisfaction, and long-term growth.

For forward-thinking organizations, the benefits of digital transformation are massive:

✅ Streamlined processes that eliminate manual work and speed up operations
✅ Higher efficiency and smarter resource allocation
✅ Significant cost savings through automation and reduced rework
✅ Enhanced customer experiences that build loyalty and drive growth
✅ Greater business agility to adapt quickly to market shifts

Unlike any other time in history, we now have the tools—AI, process discovery, task mining, automation, and real-time analytics—to align people, processes, and technology seamlessly. The opportunity is huge.

The Challenges That Sabotage Digital Transformation

Yet despite the promise, most digital transformation initiatives fail. Studies consistently show that 70% to 80% of transformations fall short of their goals, wasting trillions of dollars globally. The root causes are systemic and impact every function—from Sales and Finance to Procurement, Supply Chain, and beyond.

The Critical Blind Spot: Not Understanding the how work actually gets done

One of the most devastating missteps is failing to deeply understand current-state operations before designing the future state.

👉 As detailed in The Unseen Costs of Ignorance: Why Understanding "As-Is" Processes is Critical to Technology Transformation Success, this blind spot leads to:

• Strategic misalignment: Solutions that don’t address actual business needs
• Poor user adoption: Employees resist or abandon tools that don’t fit how they work
• Costly rework: Missed requirements lead to massive rework and delays
• Budget overruns: Projects exceed cost projections as gaps are discovered too late

📉 Over $2.3 trillion has been wasted globally on failed transformations, largely because initiatives focus on the technology and not the people and process elements.

📉 Rework costs can eat up 30-50% of project budgets—with 70-85% of that due to requirements errors stemming from poor discovery.

📉 Only 2.5% of organizations fully complete all their transformation projects on time and on budget.

These challenges don’t just affect IT—they ripple across every function, derailing well-intentioned transformation programs in Sales, Finance, HR, Procurement, Supply Chain, Travel & Expense, Customer Support, and beyond.

How ClearWork Solves These Challenges

ClearWork takes a radically different, people-centric approach to transformation:

✅ Captures real-time user activity and process flows across every department
✅ Maps actual “as-is” work—including informal steps and workarounds
✅ Highlights bottlenecks, friction points, and automation opportunities
✅ Generates validated requirements for the future state
✅ Guides users with an in-browser AI Co-pilot during and after go-live
✅ Continuously monitors for improvement opportunities

Let’s explore how ClearWork’s approach transforms each major function by solving these systemic challenges.

🚀 Sales Transformation

Common Challenges

Sales transformations often focus on CRM upgrades or new enablement tools without addressing how reps really work.

📉 CRM adoption lags because data entry feels like a burden
📉 Reps use shadow tools or manual workarounds to meet targets
📉 Sales cycles drag due to redundant steps and disconnected tools

These problems stem directly from a lack of understanding of “as-is” selling behaviors. Transformation efforts designed on assumptions rather than facts fail to drive adoption or revenue impact.

ClearWork’s Solution

✅ Captures how reps work across CRM, CPQ, content tools and more
✅ Maps workflows to identify bottlenecks and wasted effort
✅ Provides reps with AI-guided support to close deals faster

👉 Explore Sales Transformation

💰 Finance Transformation

Common Challenges

Finance transformations often center on ERP upgrades but fail because they overlook daily realities.

📉 Manual reconciliations persist despite new systems
📉 Compliance risks arise from inconsistent processes
📉 Close cycles stay slow due to hidden inefficiencies

Without deep current-state visibility, automation misses the mark and rework drains budgets.

ClearWork’s Solution

✅ Maps real finance workflows to expose inefficiencies
✅ Generates requirements for automation-ready processes
✅ Guides teams in meeting compliance and close deadlines

👉 Explore Finance Transformation

👥 Human Resources Transformation

Common Challenges

HR transformations stall when new systems don’t match the complexity of actual work.

📉 Onboarding/offboarding is inconsistent and manual
📉 Change management processes are poorly adopted
📉 Employees face friction at key moments

Without understanding the “as-is” experience, HR tools fail to deliver on promises of better engagement or compliance.

ClearWork’s Solution

✅ Captures lived experience of HR processes
✅ Highlights gaps and friction points
✅ Guides HR teams and employees through smoother workflows

👉 Explore HR Transformation

📦 Procurement Transformation

Common Challenges

Procurement teams face slow cycles and compliance gaps due to poor visibility into actual processes.

📉 Manual vendor follow-ups slow PO approvals
📉 Sourcing workflows are undocumented or inconsistent
📉 Compliance risks hide in informal processes

These issues originate in a lack of “as-is” process understanding, as Why Most Digital Transformation Projects Fail explains.

ClearWork’s Solution

✅ Maps sourcing, approval, and vendor workflows end-to-end
✅ Identifies automation opportunities and compliance gaps
✅ Supports teams with AI guidance for faster, safer procurement

👉 Explore Procurement Transformation

🔗 Supply Chain Transformation

Common Challenges

Supply chain digitalization struggles when system changes aren’t rooted in operational reality.

📉 Siloed planning and fulfillment processes
📉 Manual interventions that delay delivery
📉 Disconnect between systems and day-to-day work

Poor current-state understanding leads to transformation designs that don’t hold up in the real world.

ClearWork’s Solution

✅ Maps end-to-end supply chain workflows
✅ Highlights delays, manual work, and inefficiencies
✅ Provides data to design smarter, connected supply chains

👉 Explore Supply Chain Transformation

✈️ Travel & Expense Transformation

Common Challenges

T&E programs frustrate employees and create compliance risks when they’re designed without real workflow data.

📉 Clunky, manual expense reporting
📉 Out-of-policy spend slips through
📉 Slow reimbursements harm morale

Without understanding how employees actually submit and approve expenses, new systems often fall flat.

ClearWork’s Solution

✅ Maps T&E workflows to spot friction and compliance gaps
✅ Supports employees with AI-guided submissions
✅ Speeds up approval and reimbursement

👉 Explore Travel & Expense Transformation

🤝 Customer Support Transformation

Common Challenges

Support teams struggle when tools don’t fit actual workflows.

📉 Slow response times due to manual processes
📉 Inconsistent service across channels
📉 Repetitive tasks eat up agent time

The root cause? A lack of insight into “as-is” support activities.

ClearWork’s Solution

✅ Maps how agents work across CRM, chat, and ticketing
✅ Identifies automation candidates
✅ Supports agents with real-time AI guidance

👉 Explore Customer Support Transformation

💻 Digital Transformation (Cross-Functional + Catch-All)

Common Challenges

Digital transformation programs often fail to connect new systems to real work.

📉 Misaligned tools that don’t solve real problems
📉 Automation that misses manual work
📉 Disconnected initiatives that create silos

These challenges, as detailed in Why Most Digital Transformation Projects Fail, stem from skipping the hard work of understanding the current state.

ClearWork’s Solution

✅ Captures cross-functional workflows and user activities
✅ Highlights where systems, people, and processes disconnect
✅ Provides AI guidance to support seamless adoption

👉 Explore Digital Transformation

Why ClearWork Outperforms Traditional Transformation

✅ Rooted in real-world data, not assumptions
✅ Tailored to the unique needs of every function
✅ Embedded AI support for users during change
✅ Continuous visibility for ongoing improvement

Ready to Transform Any Function?

👉 Request a Demo to see how ClearWork drives sustainable transformation, function by function.

👉 Explore our deep-dive posts and use cases to see how we help Sales, Finance, HR, Procurement, Supply Chain, T&E, Customer Support, and cross-functional initiatives succeed.

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