By Mansoor Sarwar, Technical Director at Sage Middle East
Digital transformation will dominate the business agenda well into the future as companies rush to embrace the latest technologies, reshaping their businesses, their industries and entire economies in the process.
In the financial sector, digital transformation has enabled banks to reach a wider segment of the population and support financial inclusion in emerging markets. Online platforms and video streaming have revolutionised education, boosting the ease and accessibility of learning. In agriculture, farmers are leveraging new solutions such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence supply chain forecasting to optimise resource utilisation and crop yields.
Digital transformation spending in the Middle East, Turkey and Africa region is expected to reach US$40 billion (AED146.92 billion) by 2022, according to International Data Corporation (IDC) reports. Having placed 17th in the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2018, the UAE is spearheading the adoption of digital technologies in the Arab world, largely owing to its leadership’s smart city vision.
Enacting this transformation has required businesses to make fundamental changes and integrate digital technology into the core of their organisations. However, some companies, especially large firms, are still struggling to get on board.
What are the roadblocks hindering digital transformation? In the past, security and reliability topped the reasons companies were reluctant to jump on the bandwagon. However, technology has evolved, and companies now have sophisticated security options available to them.
Today, complexity and maturity have emerged as the main obstacles. Let’s examine these two key concerns.
Complexity and scalability
Larger firms often lack the agility to see digital transformation through to the end because complex, inflexible legacy ERP systems constrain them. These systems are expensive to maintain and lack real-time data collection and analytics functions. Companies might be hesitant to replace these systems with new ones that are relevant to today’s fast-paced environment because of their investments in their existing technology.
The solution is to find a partner that can help build an agile, secure and scalable digital infrastructure for the business. A tailored and robust advanced cloud-based Business Management Solution, which can be a game changer that helps the firm meet the dynamic needs of the market, make smart decisions and access intelligence at a lower cost.
Another alternative is to start implementing small changes step by step instead of rolling out a company-wide transformation all at once. This will initiate the transition and help employees adapt. It is important to ensure that the solution is the right fit for the business. The transformation will take time and effort, but it will all be worth it, as efficient operations await at the finish line.
Business maturity
Companies that are considering shifting to digital business models and adopting IoT solutions often believe they are not mature enough for such a bold move. While they need to be realistic about how quickly they can integrate new solutions into legacy environments, leveraging digital technologies like cloud computing, IoT, big data, and analytics can only help them grow.
Companies can use these solutions to streamline their operations, boost productivity, improve interoperability and collaboration, optimise the value chain and increase customer satisfaction. Chief Digital Officers (CDOs) that worry about business maturity should look at ways to adopt emerging solutions incrementally, looking for quick wins along with a long-term transformation roadmap.
While the concerns are valid, digital technologies act as enablers of innovation and disruption. CDOs across all industries are using technological advances to enhance operations, customer relationships, internal processes and value propositions. And those who haven’t started thinking about digital transformation yet must bear in mind that it’s always a longer race to run when you’re playing catch-up.