Digital transformation is essential for boosting companies’ competitiveness

In a sweeping digital revolution taking the world by storm, Saudi Arabia stands as a leading model in adopting digital transformation, recognising its importance for achieving sustainable development and prosperity across all sectors.

The world is witnessing a rapid spread of the internet and mobile devices, leading to a massive digital revolution.

Out of the eight billion people on Earth, 5.44 billion are now internet users. However, this number is expected to reach 7.9 billion by 2029.

This shift has heightened consumer expectations for seamless digital experiences in all their interactions with organisations and companies, making digital transformation an imperative for the survival and growth of any entity in this dynamic market.

Saudi Arabia recognised the importance of digital transformation and made it a fundamental pillar of its ambitious Vision 2030.

The kingdom adopted a comprehensive strategy to achieve this across all sectors, aiming to develop the digital infrastructure, enhance the efficiency of Saudi institutions, and elevate its global competitiveness.

This approach brought significant achievements, as Saudi Arabia ranked second among G20 countries in the 2023 ICT Development Index. As a result, the size of the telecommunications and technology sectors witnessed notable growth, reaching 166 billion riyals last year, with a compound annual growth rate of 8% over the past six years.

Continuous transformation

Despite the adoption of digital technology by almost every sector, the recent boom in cloud computing, the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, Web 3.0, the Metaverse, and other innovations has led Saudi institutions to radically reconsider their approach to digital transformation in order to keep pace with these developments and new market trends.

Manikandan Thangaraj, vice president at ManageEngine, a division of Zoho Corporation and a leading provider of enterprise IT management solutions, reaffirmed that digital transformation is no longer seen as a one-time process but rather as an ongoing journey.

In an environment where the emergence of new technologies is accelerating, it has become essential for Saudi institutions and companies to adopt a continuous improvement approach to digital transformation to ensure they remain at the forefront of competitiveness.

This includes continuously improving digital infrastructure, developing workforce skills, and discovering new opportunities for innovation.

Journey of digital transformation

Thangaraj believes there isn’t a single path to digital transformation for all industries and organisations. Instead, each entity needs its own methods and technologies to implement digital products and services.

“Integrating augmented reality and virtual reality technologies in the construction sector can revolutionise the planning process by visualising projects before execution, which helps to save time, money, and resources,” Thangaraj said. “Meanwhile, the financial industry might witness a shift from traditional banking services to mobile services, adopting advanced technologies like blockchain and cryptocurrencies to enhance security and efficiency.”

The differences are not limited to industries alone but extend to organisations within the same sector.

In the healthcare sector, a startup might focus on digitising patient records as part of its digital transformation while a more mature institution may offer telemedicine services and electronic pharmacies, thereby expanding its service range and improving the patient experience.

Thangaraj emphasised the necessity for each organisation to develop a clearly defined digital transformation strategy tailored to its industrial and organisational needs.

An organisation should consider the characteristics of its industry and its current level of digital maturity. He noted that there are fundamental steps in the digital transformation journey that can be adapted to meet the specific needs of each organisation.

Impact of technologies

Thangaraj pointed out the necessity of understanding the impact of digital technologies on the institution’s sector as a first step to successfully embarking on the digital transformation journey.

This requires assessing the trends, challenges, and opportunities that drive the need for transformation, taking into account that the steps of digital transformation vary from one sector to another. Therefore, they must be defined to suit the institution’s path and goals.

This deep understanding lays a solid foundation for success, enabling institutions to communicate effectively with internal and external stakeholders and streamline the process of setting goals.

Transformation map

According to Thangaraj, a clear roadmap is the key to the success of a digital transformation journey. It starts with setting specific goals, such as increasing market share or improving customer satisfaction, then identifying short-term and long-term strategies and setting a timeline that spans from five to 10 years.

Additionally, roadmaps involve identifying immediate implementation areas and future needs, taking into account any risks or compliance requirements.

The roadmap must also be flexible enough to adapt to the institution’s needs and evolving technology.

Since digital transformation involves cultural change, it is essential for institutions to engage all stakeholders and inform them about this journey.

This can be achieved by forming a specialised digital transformation team that includes representatives from all functions and highlighting the benefits of the transformation, such as improving operational efficiency, enhancing customer experience, and creating new opportunities to increase revenue.

It is also important to be prepared to address any concerns or difficulties that stakeholders may encounter during this process.

Industrial techniques

To define the role of technology and innovation in the digital transformation strategy of organisations, Thangaraj emphasised the importance of selecting key technologies, such as cloud computing, robotics, automation, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, and blockchain, that align with the industry of the organisation and drive its digital transformation journey.

He advised Saudi institutions and companies to continuously monitor emerging technologies and integrate them into their digital roadmap to maintain their market position.

For example, augmented reality and virtual reality might be prioritised over artificial intelligence in a construction firm, while focusing digital transformation efforts on automation might be more suitable for an industrial organisation, leading to a higher return on investment.

Digital sustainability

Thangaraj recommends that Saudi organisations collaborate with innovative technology providers to ensure a successful digital transformation journey.

This collaborative effort requires a clear articulation of the organisation’s goals and vision to the partner from the outset and an assessment of the partner’s expertise and reputation in digital transformation, ensuring their ability to deliver tangible results in similar projects while adapting their solutions to future needs.

Thangaraj also emphasises the importance of continuous monitoring of the digital transformation journey of institutions, making necessary adjustments to ensure its effectiveness, and identifying key performance indicators to measure progress, such as revenue growth, employee experience improvement, cost reduction, or customer satisfaction ratings.

It is crucial to communicate these metrics to all members of the digital transformation team clearly, create an environment of open interaction, and encourage them to share their experiences with the rest of the team.

In the digital age, adaptation has become essential to ensure business sustainability, to meet customer expectations, and to create a distinctive work environment.

Therefore,  Thangaraj advises the institutions and companies across Saudi to instil a culture of change and innovation.

This can be achieved through regular discussions about the impact of technology and its commercial benefits, and identifying the importance of positioning for success. Through these efforts, growth, innovation, and leadership can be driven in this era.