Companies need to transform digitally not to stay afloat but also to carry on the business and move forward. More so for small and medium businesses (SMBs). But it is quite tough for them to begin the digital transformation journey for different reasons, according to Vimal Pillai, Assistant Vice-President -Marketing and Digital) of Clover Infotech.

“The digital era enables every sector to undergo a radical transformation across areas such as sales, marketing, financial management and customer engagement,” he said.

“Digital transformation creates a democratic level playing field for SMBs. But they face challenges in taking up digital transformation,” he said.

He felt that insufficient growth capital was one of the major challenges that they faced.

“The promoters can bring in limited capital. They work under severe margin pressures and focus more on sales and sustenance,” he felt.

“As a result, they are left with insufficient growth capital and hence, technology adoption and digital transformation is often put on the back burner,” he pointed out.

Lack of awareness

The SMBs are also faced with the challenge of lack of awareness on the need for transforming digitally.

“They are not aware of how digital transformation could impact their businesses. The decision to embrace digital transformation is often delayed or not taken at all,” he observed.

The SMBs also lacked in technical expertise, making it difficult to devise a plan for digital transformation.

He also sees resistance in adopting digital technologies that could help them in their business growth.

Vimal Pillai said the SMBs also found it challenging to store, manage, analyse, and transform data into insights for business decision making.

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