Digital Transformation: What does it mean for your business?

Digital transformation is hot and should be made a priority to anyone in business. The biggest conglomerates in Indonesia are spending millions of dollars into their internal digital transformation projects, investing in tech startups or even managing their own technology-focused investment funds. At the same time, cash is coming in from outside of Indonesia in the form of joint ventures, venture capital or private equity funds. It’s time for any business big or small to focus on digital transformation.

E-commerce share of total retail sales in Indonesia is currently around 3% compared to 20% (China), 13% (South Korea), 9% (United States), 7% (Japan).

On the 11th of November 2017, also called Singles Day, China’s e-commerce shoppers spent a mind-blowing 25 billion USD in 24 hours.

To put this in perspective, Indonesia’s total e-commerce spending of 2016 was 7 billion USD.

There is still a long way to go but by 2020 it is expected that the Indonesian e-commerce market will grow to 130 billion USD and be the 3rd largest in the world after China and India.

This means two things, Indonesia is still early in the digital adaptation curve, but it also means it’s the ideal time to invest and prepare for the digital wave that will come. Indonesia is changing rapidly and on the road to becoming the biggest digital market in South East Asia.

“When digital transformation is done right, it’s like a caterpillar turning into a butterfly, but when done wrong, all you have is a really fast caterpillar.” ~ George Westerman

Digital Transformation can be defined as leveraging technology to accelerate and improve entire business models. It’s improving insight into customer behaviour because of tracking and understanding big data. It’s digitalizing invoicing procedures to avoid human error and automating internal processes. It’s leveraging social media channels to increase brand activity, engage with potential customers and eventually boost sales. Digital transformation is transforming your entire business model and touches every aspect of it.

In this time of massive distraction and information, overflow companies might feel overwhelmed with the thought of digitalizing their business. Where do you start this digital transformation? Below I describe 3 steps that will get you started and will lay the foundation for digital success:

1) Build an innovative culture. The big difference between a “startup” culture and a traditional company culture is the drive for change and innovation. Companies need to embrace change on a daily basis and keep their eyes on continuously improving the status quo. In this digital era, we either disrupt or are being disrupted so keep moving forward.

2) Setup a Digital Board. I have the privilege of advising several corporates on their digital journey and have seen the impact of having a digitally minded board or not. The fact of the matter is, if there isn’t any direction from the top to prioritize digital on the agenda it will never happen. It’s always about balancing short-term versus long-term priorities and the board plays a crucial role in the success of any digital transformation project.

3) Hire the right People. The people that work at your company represent your company. Fundamentally I believe that for big transformations like digital transformation, you need to have the right people in place that can build a case both to internal and external stakeholders. This way digital transformation can be executed upon on a daily basis.

Digital transformation starts today.

Sources: eMarketer “Adspending in South East Asia”, February 2017 and www.statista.com (worldwide retail e-commerce sales)

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Andrew Senduk is an Amsterdam entrepreneur currently living in Bali with his lovely wife and two sons. He is a highly sought-after keynote speaker, worked for billion dollar corporations, built several multi-million dollar companies and has a burning passion for millennial leadership, digital transformation and entrepreneurship. He is also on a journey to do 10 handstand push-ups.

For speaking engagements or inquires please contact [email protected] or visit www.andrewsenduk.com for more information.