Digital technology is reshaping consumer industries, but until recently, executives in the energy sector have been skeptical of its disruptive power. That view is changing quickly. Oil and gas executives, who have long used data analytics to understand reservoir potential, are now increasingly using digital technology and analytics to improve performance, maximize uptime and pursue operational excellence.

To ride this wave of change, and to avoid being swept under by it, oil, gas and energy executives will have to understand the nature of digital transformation and how it affects their industry and their companies. Bain & Company has collaborated with Baker Hughes, a GE company, to develop this overview and help executives understand the forces at work and the proactive steps they can take to ensure competitive advantage. This brief outlines an approach based on three key imperatives.

• Align the digital doers with the dreamers in your organization, the pragmatic realists with the visionaries.
• Adopt a holistic approach to digital strategy.
• Address the what as well as the who and how, while making progress in discrete waves and small steps.