Operating and innovating at the speed of startups

Midha

The digital era has rattled multiple industries and signs indicate that this is just the beginning.

Disruption is the order of the day as startups offer increased convenience to customers at lower costs, facilitated by the integration of ubiquitous high-speed mobile connectivity, the Internet of Everything and advanced analytics. The barriers of entry have come crashing down with motivated and driven entrepreneurs competing with traditional businesses.

The new innovations are no longer just coming from the traditional epicenters of the various industries.

San Francisco, Beijing, Tel Aviv and Bangalore are some of the cities globally where the clusters of digital startups include entrepreneurs charting the future of industries ranging from finance to space travel.

The examples of industries disrupted by digitalization are all around us.

One of the earliest examples was the media industry impacted by the rise of online publications using real-time online journalism and crowd sourced content.

This has been taken one step further with artificial intelligence (AI) being used to write earnings stories.

Startups like Uber, Grab and Ola have transformed the taxi industry, which in the near future might get disrupted further with the coming of driverless cars.

Customer expectations have also evolved with the advent of new, personalized experiences enabled by digital startups, and there are a growing number of them in Asia.

India has more than 19,000 technology-enabled startups, China has doubled its startup population between 2010 and 2014.

Startup growth is also ramping up in developed countries.

For instance, the number of high-technology or knowledge-intensive startups in Singapore grew by more than 90 percent, since 2004.

In the Philippines, the number of startups is expected to jump to 500 with total valuation of $2 billion by 2020, creating 8,500 high-skilled jobs, enabling 1,250 founders, and acquiring 15.17 million users and 719,737 paying customers.

Enterprises in the region are realizing that they need to innovate fast or get disrupted.

According to a survey by Dell Technologies, the majority of businesses in Asia (83 percent) consider digital startups a threat to their survival, either now or in the future.

The survey also revealed that around six in 10 businesses in the region are unable to meet customers’ top demands, such as 24/7 faster access to services and information.

In contrast, startups typically have more agile mindsets and digital technology infrastructures that allow them to meet customer demands better.

To operate and innovate at speed of startups and successfully navigate through the murky waters of the digital era, traditional businesses will need to:

Prioritize a centralized technology strategy for their business

Businesses need to start making purposeful, data-driven technology choices by drawing-up three-year investment plans. It is essential to incorporate technology in all functions of their business. Digital start-ups have the edge as they build their technology infrastructure from scratch. Businesses dealing with legacy IT infrastructure need to align their technology strategy with their digital objectives.

Cultivate an obsessive focus on customer engagement and satisfaction

The balance of power has shifted from businesses to customers. A rising generation of consumers, whose insatiable appetite for faster, slicker, personalized services is creating a fertile environment for nimble, information-driven companies. Companies need to enhance their focus on meeting customer needs by making them a top driver behind their digital business strategies.

Acknowledge that software enables a digital world

In the near future, almost every business will need to have software development expertise at its core.

Companies, who have never written a line of code, will have to embark on a momentous digital journey in order to keep up with clients’ demands.

New digital products and services will drive the transformation of IT infrastructure as businesses need to manage thousands times more users and data.

Build products and services that make mobile and social media capabilities accessible to employees and customers.

Putting mobile at the center of the product and service development process has become essential.

With ever increasing computing power, a mobile-centric strategy provides a blueprint to success. At the same time, social media has transformed how we interact with businesses and people.

Whether it be established platforms such as Facebook or fast growing ones like Snapchat, businesses have to be prepared to provide social media capabilities with their products and services.

Time is running out for companies to compete in the digital era.

Disruption is not only happening, but accelerating, while the technologies that enable change are becoming more powerful every year.

Slightly over half of Asia-Pacific businesses (52 percent) have already seen the writing on the wall, and fear they may become obsolete in the next three to five years due to competition from digital-born startups.

The good news is that emerging markets are clearly on the road to digitally transform, and any business can embark on the same journey.

If businesses require inspiration, they don’t need to look any further than the 120-year-old global conglomerate GE. Over its long existence, GE has been predominantly involved in selling hardware and industrial equipment.

Anticipating the changes in the demands of customers, GE has created new business models and is delivering new experiences to their clients by harnessing enterprise cloud, hybrid cloud and data analytics. GE’s successful transformation counters any argument that digital agility and revolutionary business models are only reserved for the digital natives.

Committing to transform people, processes, and the technology upon which the business is built, from the edge to the core to the cloud, is critical.

The digital transformation journey does not have to be undertaken alone, with partners available with the breadth and expertise in digital transformation to help businesses accelerate digital transformation.

Where there is risk, there is also opportunity.

There may still be a way to go for businesses in the region, but there is definitely still time to get it right if they act now. —Contributed

The author is president of APJ Commercial Dell EMC