Why building your digital enterprise is pivotal to success
With fewer companies banking on paper for their records and archives, digitalisation has turned operations across all industries and sectors from cumbersome to neat-and-speedy by converting their information into a computer-readable format, where information is organised into units of information, or “bits”.
Having been involved in the process of digitisation that has brought South Africa to a point where local businesses will reportedly be investing some R6 billion per annum over the next four to five years, TD Global urges clients to make the most of this valuable spend to achieve optimal results.
Why digitise?
To implement any new and potentially valuable system, businesses need to ensure the implementation offers returns in the following three areas: Costs, risks, and benefits. Comparing the costs and risks of paper-based records and archives to digital requires brief consideration of the ways in which “old systems” would need to be protected, updated and stored compared to the security, manageability and storage of data collected in bits.
Industry outlook reports suggest that the adoption of digitalisation by African countries could add US$300 billion (R4 trillion) to the continent's economy by 2026, with South Africa likely to see most of the benefits.
If your company is looking to clear out the filing cabinets and profit from the age of digitalisation, TD Global has five key benefits that may be the tipping point to a decision, and a more agile working platform for your organisation:
- Time-saving ~ Light years from the days when capturing data meant typing, scanning and uploading information via burdensome internet connections, documents can now be captured digitally and stored in smaller storage systems in-house, or in the cloud. Access to stored data is rapid thanks to smart search tools and fibre connectivity.
- Lower costs ~ Digitising documents and storing them in the cloud means less office space is necessary; remote working is possible; and the traditional spend on ink and paper is reduced significantly. Once digitised, data can be maintained and updated quickly, more precisely and without having to employ new data capturers to revise.
- Collaboration made easy ~ Digitised content enables teams to collaborate easily and quickly by sharing documents and working on them simultaneously, wherever they are in the world. Data-sharing is easier and more secure, and keeps management, employees, contractors and distance workers on the same page in an agile, productive environment.
- Improved data security ~ Even with the prevalence of cybercrime, with the right partner company assisting you through the digitisation process, security precautions and restrictions will be in place so that cloud-based documents can be seen only by the appropriate personnel. Printed files cannot be password-protected, nor can an organisation assume that staff members shred the correct documents when required to do so. Human error can be devastating to businesses.
- Trust and compliance ~ Generating trust in relationships between your organisation and your clients or potential clients means being able to prove that you are doing everything possible to protect their personal/business information. Laws such as the Protection of Personal Information Act (PoPI) also require compliance, and digital proof of security and compliance is simple and responsible.
Digitisation is no longer a “nice to have”, but the cornerstone that supports all the information generated by both your own enterprise and the markets that it serves. Once we have led you through the digitisation process, TD Global will show you how to leverage your database for true – and ongoing - return on investment.
Industry 4.0 and its impact on doing business
Industry 4.0 – or the Fourth Industrial Revolution - is defined as “a range of new technologies that are fusing the physical, digital and biological worlds, and impacting all disciplines, economies, and industries”.
The First Industrial Revolution came about via steam and water, and the Second through the use of electricity. The Third Industrial Revolution brought internet, communication technologies and digitisation. This means that in order to participate in the Fourth – where the real world and technology blur in the Internet of Things (IoT); Artificial Intelligence (AI); Virtual Reality (VR) and 3D printing, to name just a few – your process of digitisation is the platform for success and future-proofing your business.
The way we work and live; what we are capable of creating; and smart cities and automated services have already changed the business landscape. The opportunities that are opening up rapidly for digitised enterprises are endless. The companies that are able to pivot when consumers demand new services and products are those who have readied themselves for the massive impact that the use of digitised data offers.
Taking action
To ensure our clients are in the best position to participate in the swiftly-changing environment of opportunity, TD Global is able to take clients through the process of Data Governance, Data Modernisation, Data Monetisation, Data Democratisation and Digitisation in a process designed to ensure your future success and longevity.