By Layan Damanhouri
Saudi Gazette
If enterprises’ priority is not digital, leaders and CEOs need to re-examine their strategy. This was stated by Denis Klimashev, Windows and Devices executive director for Middle East and Africa, while addressing journalists at Microsoft’s regional headquarters in Dubai.
“The process to digitize businesses is consumer-driven,” Klimashev said, adding that customers opt for quick, easy, and efficient services. This causes traditional businesses to lag behind and lose in a competitive world.
“The mindset of companies need to be digital. It must flow from top managers to all levels of the organization,” Klimashev said.
Sectors that are generally transforming more aggressively than others are those driven by consumers, such as banking, telecom industries. Klimashev noted, “The transformation in the public sector has started as well but the issue is accelerating the process.”
This comes in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 that was announced in a wave of reforms to modernize the Kingdom and remodel the traditional structure.
“Digitization of industries is so relevant to the Vision 2030,” he said in an interview with Saudi Gazette.
“Connectivity is not the challenge. We need to focus on educating the public. Providing remote areas and villages in addition to big cities in the Kingdom with mobile technology, network, radio frequency is not a major task from a technological perspective, though it will need investment.”
Digital transformation is one of the leading goals of the National Transformation Plan for the next five years.
“The issue is how to get people to be connected and use it,” he continued. “They need to have familiarity and have the right devices. People of all ages need to be able to use technology easily.”
While Saudi leadership aim to disrupt the traditional economic model, new technology and digitization can make the process faster and more efficient, according to Klimashev.
“Technology will give government ministries this advantage. A ministry can monitor its KPIs through data analytics, for example. Digital transformation is making sure goals are achieved at lesser cost and time.”
Asked about how to eliminate a bureaucratic pace and ‘automation’ of ministries rather than ‘digitizing’ them, he said: “The type of devices and learning to use the analytics are key. Productivity cannot be achieved without data analytics.”
“New markets are being created leading to new business models, jobs, services, and products,” he added, referring to new digital companies disrupting traditional industries.
86% of CEOs consider digitizing their No. 1 priority, according to a report. The lines between humans and machines are blurred and will increasingly disappear.
The digital process is achieved by making technology easy to use, mobile, and more productive. The need to create more personal computing is vital.
However, the digital transformation of industries is not achievable without the right level of security.
The threat of security is high when core businesses are digital, experts emphasized.
“Security threats are inevitable and must be prevented and detected early on,” said Hesham Saad, product technical manager at Microsoft Gulf.
“Security has to be part of organizations’ business strategy. The key is how quickly to react because the security landscape is constantly changing.”
