Rethinking digitalisation drive

The biggest part in the drive for Digital transformation is the change of the way we think. To rethink Digital transformation is to reconsider how to drive efficiency, transparency, and competitiveness and systems enhancement.

In a statement issued by Samantha Power of the United States Agency for international development in a development discourse reiterated the need to break through the dilemma of system and efficiency with the help of a digital transformation drive, a position both the ruling New Patriotic Party and the opposition NDC have echoed strongly in their 2024 political manifestoes.

Indeed, we are living in a time of exciting technological innovations where Digital technologies are driving transformative change and shifting economic paradigms in favor of human prosperity and organizational effectiveness. In most recent years, the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed the new urgency of meeting digital transformation goals and forced many organizations to speed up transformation work.

In this accelerated growth and transformation of the Digital landscape and as occasioned by several factors including the COVID-19 pandemic has culminated in the introduction of newer technological platforms with the propensity for reshaping products and services, enhancing market development and profoundly altering businesses and economies at large. The latest advances in the digital frontier however is the introduction of artificial intelligence and its related innovations which is pushing the narratives for technological expansion and revolution. The future indeed has arrived faster than expected.

Obviously, this existential paradigm in today’s digitally-infused times, have seen bold actions actively supported by out-of-the-box digitalization experiments and pathfinding novelties. This evolution indeed has necessitated the call by leaders of evolving economies and organizations to match the pace of economic and social challenges with robust impact change approaches and solutions pivoted on digitization mindset and drive.

Today, any country that walks through the trajectory of economic change and transformation keeps up with trends of digitalization to catalyst an effective management of its human capital development, improvement in systems and services, increasing efficiency and optimum productivity boost.

Significantly, rethinking digitalization drive brings to consideration old operating models and the need to make changes, to experiment more, to become more agile and to be able to respond to the greater challenges for an organization and the economy’s good.

Let me re-emphasise that, the role of the digital economy in driving efficiency and improving the quality of economic growth essentially has received increasing attention. A trend which is evident globally, especially in large and rapidly developing countries and a vital tool to consider in effectively utilizing the advantages of technology to improve the quality of economic output.

However, Digitalization comes through loud and clear as to how businesses and economies can remain competitive and relevant as the world becomes increasingly digital. What’s not clear in Ghana is whether digitization is just a catchy word for political sloganeering or perhaps the case of a critical tool to drive and empower a country’s economic transformation fortunes?

This article explores the development of Ghana’s digital economy relative to the rippling impacts on the 24 hour economy agenda. In particular, we will discuss how the digital economy affects the quality of economic growth in terms of organizational effectiveness and the spillover effect of boosting economic efficiency. Let’s talk Digitization!

What is digital transformation?

Digital transformation drives have always begun with a motive for problem-solving, a clear opportunity and an aspirational goal aimed at addressing or managing organizational or economic situations. It seeks the improvement of business experiences, reducing friction, increasing productivity, elevating profitability and eventually economic turnaround.

Arguably, any business or country that may embark on a digital transformation drive does so for several reasons. Taking for instance, in the wake of the pandemic, if we saw an organization’s ability to adapt quickly to supply chain disruptions, timely responses to market pressures, and better respond to rapidly changing customer expectations, it could only have been possible with strong support of technology.

Fundamentally, the emergence of technological transformation and understanding the principles behind creating an open and transparent practice and ensuring sustainable development establishes the core essence of digital transformation.

Digitalization which remains an imperative transformative tool for all businesses, from the small to the large enterprises acts as the integration of digital technology into all areas of a business or organization resulting in fundamental changes to how the business operates and how it’s able to deliver value to its stakeholders.

Beyond that, digital transformation is considered a means of cultural change that requires organizations and economies to continually challenge the status quo, experiment with better solutions and get uncomfortable with failure with systems.

What drives digital transformation?

Digital transformation is an evolution, a transformation which does not necessarily have a clear endpoint. An important element of it is that it tries to shed outdated processes and legacy technological practices hence enabling innovation to realize full economic potentials.

Theoretically, several scholars allude to and trace economic transformation and development of any sort to the buildup of technological advancement and progress, the means by which corporate productivity, economic turnaround and transformation agenda remain guaranteed and assured.

According to Deloitte, digital transformation is all about becoming a digital enterprise that uses technology and innovative tools to continuously evolve in all aspects of the business and economic models. The concept leads to an evolution and experimentation with new technology and the need to rethink the current approach to common issues.

Navigating the Digital Landscape in Ghana

Digital technologies now permeate all aspects of the economic and social fabric of both developed and emerging economies of which Ghana is no exception. At the micro level of the economy, digitalization allows firms to lower transaction and operational costs, improve productivity, enhance data collection capabilities, modernize existing legacy processes, improve operational agility, provide better customer experience, and increase market share and profits.

At the macro level too, digitalization has a positive impact on financial inclusion, access to public services, health outcomes, food security, education and more. As Ghana seeks to transform its economy, policymakers need to know how digitalization fits into the current economic strategies and how can they leverage its benefits to drive transformational growth economically.

Analyzing the digital transformation in Ghana, we can draw from a few critical enablers that the digital sphere hinges on in shaping the pivotal role of government in fostering economic prosperity for all. Typically, digital transformation covers people, processes, and technology.

The question however is, whether Ghana can leverage its digitalization drive to effectively support the economic transformation agenda of a 24hr economy? Indeed, if the necessary policies are drawn to carefully guide the agenda, the bottom line effect are the impact effects on sustainable jobs and competitiveness, improved manufacturing throughput, quality assurance, preventive maintenance, inventory control, safety, quality, real-time monitoring of plant operations, real-time decision-making, cost control, business process efficiency and better customer experiences.

The Promise for a Digitalized 24 hour Economy

As technology is reshaping markets and altering growth and distributional dynamics in all economies, I do acknowledge the need to have policies that will guide and ensure the variables underpinned by a sustainable digital ecosystem in Ghana remain inclusive and supportive with wide access to the new opportunities for organizations and for that matter the economy.

One important reason for these outcomes is that policies and institutions have been slow to adjust to the unfolding transformations. To realize the promise of today’s businesses and economic change, policies need to be drawn to guide this effort. There must be a more responsive approach to change to fully capture potential gains in productivity and economic growth and address rising inequality as technological disruptions create winners and losers.

Nevertheless, while digital technologies offer large productivity payoffs, they create new challenges for firms as production processes, sources of competitive advantage, and market structures shift. It is imperative therefore to develop policy frameworks to drive this monumental agenda of how the economy will thrive at the back of digital drive by being all-inclusive.

Digital transformation and economic growth.

The economic landscape of most economies as mentioned is changing with the application of digital technologies, opening pathways to improve the quality of economic growth and reshaping the circulation of information, changing consumer behavior and business models.

With the arrival of the era of digital transformation, the digital economy has burst forth with unprecedented vigour and become an important force in promoting the high-quality development of every economy. For most digitized economies, one will acknowledge the significant contributions to economic growth and efficiency in multiple folds.

Exploring the role of the digital economy in improving the efficiency of economic growth in essence, is crucial for understanding current economic development trends and its practical significance for formulating future economic policies.

Findings are that organizations are impacted positively through a digital transformation which to a large extent impacts the economy. These findings are a valuable reference around:

People Development

Digital tools help employees improve by enabling better communication, providing access to more learning opportunities that bridge the gap between team members, citizens, making it easier for them to stay connected. They no longer need to be in the same space to collaborate. Instead, they can communicate and collaborate remotely.

Digital transformation allows to build a custom learning management system so employees can continuously access resources, content and the organization’s internal experts. This‌ reduces the learning curve and makes onboarding new employees faster and more cost-effective.

Process Enhancement and Efficiencies

Indeed, business processes are the greatest beneficiary of digital transformation. The tools consolidate information and resources, reducing vendor overlap. It creates a central repository for applications, databases and platforms, enabling better collaboration, communication and improved customer relationship management.

Employee productivity Enhancement

Companies that look to effective ways for creating productivity improvements, resort to digital technology. Digital transformation tools enable organizations to digitize core business functions allowing leaders to focus on other critical opportunities.

Optimum Results

Digitization tools are designed to reduce manual intervention processes which produce faster results. An organization with digitalized operations can sell more products, increase its revenue and remain highly profitable and innovative. 

Better Collaboration

As businesses move to a customer-centric culture, it’s becoming crucial to eliminate silos and build standardized ways for employees and stakeholders to share data seamlessly. Using digital tools can pave the way for improved transparency and interoperability.

Accelerating Digital Transformation in Ghana

Accelerating digital transformation in Ghana calls for a strategic plan of action for introducing, analyzing, and driving a digital transformation initiative forward. An organization’s strategy will define what business goals it aims to achieve and help accelerate it. An effective digital transformation strategy will help create a framework to be followed throughout its ever-evolving process.

It is a fact that, the digital divide remains particularly wide in developing economies. Therefore, stronger digital infrastructure and literacy will be crucial for such economies. However, new thinking and adaptations are needed to realign policies and institutions with the digital economy. Areas for attention include competition policy and regulatory regimes, the innovation ecosystem, digital infrastructure, workforce development, social protection frameworks and tax policies.

Again, the foundation of the digital infrastructure must be strengthened to broaden access to new opportunities. This calls for increased public investment and frameworks to encourage more private investment to improve digital access for underserved groups and areas.

The key policy actions that would be needed to direct digital economic transformation towards sustainable, fair and inclusive development may include the regulation of enterprises, social protection, unionization and data transparency. That notwithstanding, the opportunities for using digital technologies to resolve issues related to workers’ rights, access to benefits and conditions of work, are some of the unmeasurable possibilities the drive for digitalization can offer and therefore ought to be critically considered.

The need for digital transformation leadership

As a country, we saw the COVID crisis rapidly reshape both the “what” and the “how” our organizations and for that matter the country’s digital transformation agenda ought to be driven. Today, with a vast portion of the workforce now remote, employee experience of digital technology has gone from “nice to have” to “the only way work gets done. Although digital transformation will vary widely based on the organization’s specific challenges and demands, there are a few constants and common themes among existing case studies and published frameworks that all businesses, technology and country leaders should consider as they embark on digital transformation.

Increasing productivity while reducing labour costs by using technology to work more efficiently is one of the most impactful ways to transform today’s business. While the digital transformation agenda depends on a variety of factors, the right technology can greatly improve how businesses function and economies transform.

Digital transformations which are the driving force behind improved several service experiences, drive innovation and keep an economy competitive. In fact, choosing not to embrace digital transformation is essentially deciding that the country does not mind being left behind.

In fact, global companies and economies have been able to achieve greater business and economic outcomes from their investments in digital technology.” One of the strategies that set leaders apart is that they spend more on transforming their businesses instead of just running them. The need to develop leadership on the basis of understanding the Digital transformation ecosystem is important because it allows organizations to adapt to ever-changing industries so that, they can continually improve how they operate.

In conclusion, rethinking the links between digital transformation drive and its economic impact on a country’s development, speaks to efficiency, productivity and cost savings, the critical benefactors accrued from creating an environment or economy in which the adoption of technologies for the enhancement of economic productivity overall is considered highly imperative.

 Discovery….Thinking solutions, shaping visions.

Frank is the CEO and Strategic Partner of AQUABEV Investment and Discovery Consulting Group. He is an Executive Director and the Lead Coach in Leadership Development and best Business Management practices for Discovery Leadership Masterclass.