Deloitte: Thai digital transformation faster than expected

Thailand’s digital transformation is taking place much faster than expected, driven to a degree by the safety measures companies have put in place to fight the pandemic, according to an online survey by U.S. consulting firm Deloitte.

“The majority or 56 percent of surveyed companies have already transitioned to a digital adoption stage, compared to 12 percent before the pandemic, from a digital evaluation stage,” said Narain Chutijirawong, Executive Director of Clients and Industries at Deloitte in Thailand.

Deloitte conducted the Thailand Digital Transformation Survey from November 2020 to January 2021. It assessed the progress of 77 leading companies in Thailand in their digital transformation plans, digital adoption and technology implementation.

Financial services, life sciences and healthcare businesses have reportedly transitioned towards digitalization much sooner than expected as the pandemic drove more economic activities online.

The adoption rate of advanced technologies in all business sectors, except for robotics, dramatically increased since the onset of the pandemic. According to the survey, the adoption rates of cloud technology, Internet of Things and mobile applications have increased by 19 percent, 16 percent and 15 percent, respectively.

Narain said that that companies in the energy, resources and industrial sectors would ride the next wave of digital transformation. He expected that this would be particularly true for businesses related to electronic vehicles and green energy, as they required information technology and digital data collecting.

Viney Hora, Executive Director of Deloitte Consulting, said that digital transformation presented three challenges for the private sector: talent shortage, outdated digital culture in the organization, and silo management structure.

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