- Joanna Matlak-Oczko
Evolving into a digital business
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Not long ago, there was a belief that digital transformation is a process reserved only for large companies. However, the time of pandemic strongly verified these assumptions and significantly accelerated decisions in this area. It turned out that not only corporations, but also many public institutions and the SME sector can digitize and – most importantly – this is now the only way to adapt quickly to changing market conditions and be able to build competitiveness.
I confidently say that the last two years have guided the market, which is moving towards digitization at a rapid pace. What is the evolution of digital business in the context of the market, and is it really just an evolution, or is it already a revolution? This is what I focus on in the following material.
Digitalization is no longer just the domain of telecommunications companies or the enterprise sector
Digital transformation, which just a dozen years ago was mostly the domain of telecommunications companies, is becoming the preserve of a growing number of entities in various sectors. In a world where digitalization is more and more often a standard in various market segments, cloud solutions have become an integral part of doing business. These are the words of Dr Wojciech Kamieniecki, the director of the National Research and Development Center, and it is hard not to agree with them.
The economy digitization and – going further – the digitization of society represents a clear change of the current times, opening up new opportunities for the development of companies, including the creation of innovative business models. Digital transformation is a special kind of organizational change of a company, sector, supply chains, as well as public administration and, looking globally, entire economies.
Development of the digital world
Digitalization as a process of continuous change is undoubtedly a major driver of innovation, causing changes in many industries and most sectors of the economy. This also includes the SME market. The development of the digital world is currently driven mainly by factors such as the Internet of Things, pervasive connectivity, cloud-based applications and services or cloud computing, big data analytics (BDA), automation and robotics, or multi-channel distribution models for products and services.
In order to meet these trends and the changes that are taking place – individual companies, as well as entire sectors of the economy or public administration need to make digital transformation, a process that offers opportunities for even more dynamic development.
The evolution of digital business and the SME market
In addition to a number of benefits, an important aspect is also the risks associated with, for example, security in the broadest sense, or the social impact of the automation of the production and commercial processes, which are separate challenges resulting directly from the already ubiquitous digital reality.
The examples I described above represent challenges, and these in turn, especially for the SME sector, represent opportunities and possibilities. However, this requires thoughtful action and resources, and above all, a vision of how to effectively and efficiently address these challenges.
Increasing market awereness
Every organization, in order to increase its quality advantage, has to be open to modern solutions that support the efficient management of production processes, the organization of the company’s work, or – perhaps the most important aspect – enable continuity of operations even during unforeseen events. And more and more companies in the SME sector are aware of this. As early as 2021, industry reports showed that as many as 36 percent of SMEs had implemented cloud solutions in their IT resources. And now this trend has accelerated even further.