What’s the difference between digitisation and digitalisation? A guide to digital transformation in 2026

The DESI (Digital Economy and Society Index), which monitors the digital maturity of EU members, remains a key benchmark for assessing the effectiveness of national digital strategies. While France continues to make progress, it still lags behind some of its European neighbours in terms of how deeply businesses integrate digital technologies. This is partly due to the country’s economic landscape, which is dominated by SMEs, many of which have just initiated their digital transformation.

Although the benefits of going digital are widely acknowledged (75% of SMEs report having allocated a specific budget to digitalisation, according to the 2025 France Num Barometer), the terminology is often used loosely. This article clarifies two frequently conflated concepts, digitisation and digitalisation, and outlines their respective impacts.

Table of content

• What is digitisation?
• What is digitalisation?
• Digitisation vs digitalisation: what’s the real difference?
• What are the benefits of digitisation for businesses?
• What are the benefits of digitalisation for businesses?
• Key technologies behind digitisation and digitalisation
• Common pitfalls to avoid
• What’s at stake for digital transformation in 2026 and beyond?

Key takeaways

• Digitisation refers to converting paper-based documents into digital format, while digitalisation involves managing those documents throughout their entire lifecycle.
• A digitalisation project can be complex and should be carefully planned in advance, with clearly defined objectives, processes, and responsibilities.
• The benefits are significant: improved operational efficiency, better control over information flows, and structured, traceable document handling.
• Upcoming regulatory requirements, including mandatory e-invoicing and eIDAS v2 digital identity wallets, will make this transition unavoidable for many organisations.
• Integrating qualified digital proof solutions is essential to ensuring the long-term integrity and authenticity of documents.

What is digitisation?

Digitisation refers to the process of converting a physical, paper-based document into an electronic file. It is strictly technical: scanning a signed contract, converting a handwritten form into a PDF, or digitising archived records. The business process itself remains unchanged; only the medium shifts from paper to digital.

This initial step improves document access and internal information flow. It reduces physical storage, facilitates electronic archiving, and makes it easier to manage access rights document retrieval.

What is digitalisation?

Digitalisation, by contrast, refers to the structured management of a digital document across its entire lifecycle. This might involve a shared document repository, a full Document Management System (DMS), or tools such as qualified electronic seals, signatures, and digital archiving systems. Digitalisation reconfigures the business process itself, embedding traceability and integrity into document workflows.

This enables organisations to harmonise internal practices, secure their documentation, and maintain a high standard of evidential reliability from creation to archival.

Digitisation vs digitalisation: what’s the real difference?

Though often used interchangeably, these two concepts have distinct implications, especially from an operational and legal standpoint. Digitisation focuses on the document itself; digitalisation governs how that document is processed, validated, shared, and preserved.

The table below summarises the core differences:

Criteria	Digitisation	Digitalisation
Definition	Paper document converted into a digital file.	Structured management of the digital document lifecycle
Nature of operation	Essentially technical (scanning, format conversion)	Organisational: structuring, tooling, traceability, process automation
Impact on workflows	No change to business process – The change concerns only the document format and its storage.	Full process transformation: circulation, validation, and archiving are restructured. This generates measurable productivity gains
Objectives	Reduce paper, facilitate storage and retrieval	Ensure structured, traceable processing with integrity and authenticity guarantees
Legal implications	Limited. Insufficient alone for evidential purposes	Significant. May require to integrate evidential mechanisms to preserve legal admissibility and authenticity
Tools used	Scanners, OC software, format converters.	DMS, qualified electronic signature, electronic seal, qualified timestamping, digital archiving system

What are the benefits of digitisation for businesses?

The benefits are immediate:

• Reduced overheads for printing, physical storage, and file handling.
• Operational efficiency improves as digitised documents are retrieved, filed, and circulated more rapidly.
• Accessibility is also improved: digitised documents can be accessed remotely, facilitating collaboration across teams and locations.

For example, digitalising delivery notes in a manufacturing plant can help streamline truck flows, speed up invoicing, and simplify audit preparation.

What are the benefits of digitalisation for businesses?

• Document workflow automation reduces delays, simplifies validations, and creates a traceable audit trail.
• Security is improved as organisations can assign security levels based on document type, circulation rules, and retention policies.
• Where needed, mechanisms like qualified eIDAS timestamping or electronic seals can be integrated to guarantee a document’s integrity and authenticity throughout its lifecycle.

Key technologies behind digitisation and digitalisation

Tools supporting digitisation

Digitisation relies on tools that transform paper-based documents into digital files. Scanners, OCR software, and format converters allow organisations to produce readable, indexable, and reusable files for internal systems.

Tools supporting digitalisation

Digitalisation involves a wider ecosystem of solutions for managing, securing, and preserving digital records:

• Document Management Systems (DMS) to manage access rights, version control, and file structure
• Electronic Archiving Systems (EAS) to preserve documents with long-term probative value (e.g. ISO 14641 compliance)
• Qualified electronic signatures and seals, under eIDAS, to validate origin or approval
• Qualified timestamping, to certify integrity and date with high probative value

These tools typically integrate into business systems via API to maintain automation and ensure compliance without interrupting existing workflows.

Common pitfalls to avoid

Mistake 1: underestimating the complexity of digitalisation

A successful digitalisation project requires forward planning: defining objectives, identifying stakeholders, and scoping internal expectations. Neglecting this phase risks unrealistic timelines, budget overruns, and limited adoption.

Mistake 2: neglecting to train internal teams

User adoption is essential. Without proper training and support, employers and users often revert to previous habits, jeopardising the success of the digital transformation project.

Mistake 3: overlooking compliance and data security

Handling of personal data (e.g. under GDPR), creation of databases, and document retention must meet strict legal and regulatory standards. Identifying applicable requirements and building them into the project from the start is highly recommended.

What’s at stake for digital transformation in 2026 and beyond?

While digitalisation is becoming standard practice, emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI) are adding new layers of complexity. Businesses that haven’t stabilised their digital workflows may struggle to adapt.

Simultaneously, regulatory frameworks such as digital identity wallets (eIDAS V2)and mandatory e-invoicing will require organisations to adopt tools that offer structured, verifiable control over their data and processes. Companies that delay digital compliance risk falling behind.

As a Qualified Trust Service Provider under eIDAS, Evidency helps organisations structure their digital transformation processes, by providing digital trust solutions (timestamping, e-sealing, and archiving) that guarantee the integrity, authenticity, and evidential value of documents. Our team supports you in building a secure and reliable and long-lasting digital environment.

Sources

[1] https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/fr/policies/desi

[2] https://www.economie.gouv.fr/actualites/transformation-numerique-des-tpepme-les-enseignements-du-barometre-2025-de-france-num

[3] https://go.cegid.com/dematerialisation-cest-le-moment