Savings made due to Covid: how to invest them in digital transformation
The savings made by many companies during the Covid-19 pandemic could be an excellent source of investment and extremely useful when dealing with situations like forced lockdowns or production delays.
In a recent survey, 56% of executives interviewed expressed the desire to use those savings to support the digital transformation of their company; an admirable objective which underlines the importance of the move towards industry 4.0.
Post pandemic changes in the world of work
Covid-19 has changed everyone’s lives, especially the ways in which companies operate, regardless of the sector. In many cases, it has been necessary to re-examine working methods, in order to incorporate smart working and other similar solutions.
Not all businesses have been equally flexible regarding how to deal with the new requirements, which partly depends on the kind of company, legal restrictions according to geographical area and difficulties arising when managing staff and resources remotely. This last point represents a real barrier to progress for many.
In any case, 87% of interviewees confirmed that the changes imposed by the current extraordinary situation have led to improvements. Despite initial challenges, many companies have in fact managed to develop new working models, which are more inclusive and more closely dependent on digitalisation.
Of course, there is still a lot to do in terms of making these changes effective and permanent, as declared by 61% of interviewees, but the desire to move towards a digital based workflow is palpable. Reinvesting the money saved during the initial phase of the pandemic, while accelerating digital transformation is therefore an optimal solution to help companies grow and mature.
How should these funds be invested?
In many companies, one of the most difficult issues when moving to industry 4.0 is remote working. This is especially true in manufacturing businesses, for whom it poses a major challenge, due to concerns about the efficiency of service provision and potential delays in product delivery.
These fears are a reaction to a completely new way of working which represents unexplored territory for a lot of businesses. Nevertheless, many companies are relying on offline workflow, (as admitted by around 94% of interviewees), as they are unable to find the right balance in order to embrace digital transformation, a situation further highlighted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
It is, however, interesting to note the number of participants in the survey who emphasised the benefits of smart working, with over 48% of them reporting an improvement in their work-life balance.
The best way to invest the funds saved over the last few months should certainly involve updating company infrastructure, to facilitate remote workflow. If companies intend to remain competitive, targeted initiatives are required, involving more digitally oriented solutions.
Change can be scary, especially in a global economic scenario as precarious and unstable as the present one. In any case, now is the moment to act, otherwise companies risk remaining one step behind the competition.
The post-pandemic recovery requires great effort and an understanding of the benefits of the move to digital. It is essential to appreciate the lessons learnt during the months of imposed lockdown, in order to take the right steps to improve key aspects of company management and respond to clients’ needs efficiently.
Translated by Joanne Beckwith
