Digital transformation is considered the "backbone" and an important trend for enterprises amid economic uncertainty. Talking to Customs Newspaper, Mr. Nguyen Minh Quy, CEO of NOVAON Digital Group,said that actual activities of enterprises have proven that the application of digital transformation will help them become stronger.

Mr. Nguyen Minh Quy, CEO of Digital NOVAON Group. 

As a company operating for a long time in three areas,namely online advertising, e-commerce, and digital transformation, how has the digital transformation in NOVAON been done, sir?

- As a platform provider to help enterprises with digital transformation, NOVAON itself had to apply digital transformation. About 7-8 years ago, our group started to apply software to improve the efficiency of corporate governance, helping improve the quality of business activities. Thereby, NOVAON was in Vietnam’seight fastest- growing companies according to the FAST500 Ranking. This wasdue to the early digital transformation with in-depth and methodical investment and vision. We strongly believe that digital transformation will help enterprises become stronger.

What is your assessment that many enterprises, especially small and medium enterprises, have not paid sufficient attention to digital transformation?

- I think that Vietnamese enterprises are not really "nonchalant" about digital transformation. By looking from a multidimensional perspective, they are applying digital transformation in many different ways and different scales.

The Covid-19 pandemic is posing many challenges for enterprises, large enterprises or small ones. In the face of such a crisis, enterprises are forced to improve their productivity, and to improve their corporate governance in a breakthrough way, otherwise they may face bankruptcy. Therefore, Vietnamese enterprises have been moving much faster than before.

Many large enterprises, especially retail enterprises, have paid more attention to how goods can be marketed on e-commerce channels, boost sales from e-commerce, or create websites to sell goods, seek business opportunities from social networks and develop an online sales force. Enterprises now have increases in revenue from e-commerce and online advertising. But this is a much more difficult problem than traditional advertising and commerce, so if they do not apply digital transformation and an e-commerce platform, the problem will be difficult to solve.

In addition, the number of providers of services and applications in the field of digital transformation such as HRM solutions, customer management solutions, and digital signatures of Vietnam, in the lasttwo years has been growing quickly. This means the demand of the market and enterprises for digital transformation has been also increasing.

What strategies should Vietnamese enterprises adopt for successful digital transformation?

- Developing strategies for successful digital transformation is very important, but this is not a simple task. So, the first problem that enterprises,whether large or small, need to understand is the digital transformation is not just a tool, but it is a transformation in working culture, management methods and operations. That's why it must be guided by the highest leaders, rather than leaders or directors of the functional units.

The second problem is that those that want to apply digital transformation cannot transform 100% immediately, but must divide it into different phases. Accordingly, it is best to start with divisions, units or parts that are easier to produce results, and then duplicate it to other divisions and units. This is a suitable tactic, because immediatedigital transformation for entire enterprise is difficult, risky, and easy to fail.

The third problem is that enterprises should intelligently choose companion units for transformation. To make a smart choice, enterprises themselves must understand the nature of digital transformation. If misunderstood, it may take three to five years to see the consequences. Therefore, enterprises must have very careful assessment and choice of providers, including factors such as reputation and products of providers.

There are many providers in Vietnam, but I think that a strong provider in digital transformation may not necessarily be the technology leader. Enterprises need application than the content of technology in digital transformation. So these providers must have a lot of administration experts and digital transformation experts to provide the most appropriate technology applications. As at NOVAON, we firstly focus on supporting enterprises to grow and develop, then costs, because operating costs in Vietnam are not as high as those in developed countries.

Thank you Sir!