I got an interesting question the other day. One of my clients asked me, "Are you good at digital strategy because you play chess?" Before I answer this question, here’s an introduction to the context. I play chess occasionally, specifically in the winter holidays. I am just an entry-level player, but I am a fan of chess history and chess strategy, and I sometimes watch the finals of bigger tournaments, especially if it's Hikaru vs. Carlsen.

Also, 3 years ago, our company took part in the World Corporate Chess Championship, but we didn't finish even near the top. And that's normal because chess is a very complex game, and to become a great chess player, you need to work a lot on your skills. To put things in perspective, let's take a look at some chess background:

There's an international rating in chess that is called the Elo rating system. This starts from level 100 and goes to level 3000. However, the highest ever rating achieved was 2882, done by Magnus Carlsen (reaching a peak rating of 2882 in May 2014). As of June 10, 2025, according to Chess.com, Magnus Carlsen holds the highest rating at 2837, followed by Hikaru Nakamura at 2804 and Ian Nepomniachtchi at 2757. In chess, there are different levels of seniority. The highest is the grandmaster level. 

To become a grandmaster, you need to reach at least a 2500 ELO rating. If you want to get to that level, you need to start training really early, which can mean as early as 3 years old. The best players in the world reached the grandmaster level on average in 7 to 12 years. In chess, your chessboard is limited to 64 squares, and each player has 16 pieces. Still, the variations make the game super complex for the human mind.

Now, if I want to put things in comparison, in digital strategy, the so-called "chessboard" has unlimited squares. When you start, you might see only 4 squares, but as soon as you go forward, you will find new ones. You might be playing with 2 pieces at the beginning, but you can extend your arsenal to 100 or more. In the beginning, you might feel that you are playing against one player, but very soon, you will realize that you are playing against a huge field of competitors.

Chess is hard, no doubt about that, and I think I wouldn't be able to become a chess grandmaster. However, playing in the field of digital strategy is a different thing. I see that as a challenge that is another level. So when my client asked me if I am good at digital strategy because I play chess, my answer was NO. My digital strategy skills have almost no connection to chess.

I say "almost" because certainly there are things that you can learn from chess that help you. But both the risks and the opportunities are vast in digital strategy compared to chess strategy. Moreover, due to the rapid evolution of technology, the rules change in digital continuously. So, I wouldn't advise you to learn digital strategy based on chess. However, if you want to become a great chess player, learn from chess masterminds like Levy Rozman or Eric Rosen.

In case you are not sure if you are going in the right direction in your digital strategy, drop me a message on LinkedIn. Also, if you are interested in learning more about digital transformation, subscribe on YouTube or follow me on LinkedIn.