Turning Risk Into Reward Through Digital Adoption

We are in a time of incredible change. Small Businesses Technology is evolving at an incredible pace. Automation through information technology has spread from complex software being used in corporate offices of large companies to mobile phones being used to make a payment to a street vendor. Now, AI and robotics are quickly finding applications from the largest companies to farmers working in their fields.

At the same time, trade is evolving dramatically. Government policies and trade infrastructure are making it easier to operate across markets, and e-commerce is changing what defines the operating market of manufacturers and merchants. Today, soccer ball manufacturers in Punjab can reach customers in Germany, and an artisan in Agra can sell their crafts to a buyer in Mexico through online marketplaces accessible through a few clicks on a smartphone.

A Time of Opportunity and Risk

These trends bring great opportunity for entrepreneurial small businesses that understand them and capitalise on them. They bring significant threat for those that do not.

New technologies can help reduce costs and increase profits through the productivity they bring. Applications that help track and manage customers can improve salesforce effectiveness, automate marketing, and improve customer service.  Logistics management solutions using IOT can create more efficient, dynamic delivery routes. And generative AI tools can help create sales scripts and collateral quickly and tailored to specific prospects.

These technologies can also help raise revenue through entirely new products and services like remote repairs using video calls, drone services for farmers, or proactive product replenishment for retailers.

Entrepreneurial small businesses and new startups are constantly searching for differentiation and new markets enabled by these trends. Physical distance is not as big a moat for competition as it was before with cheaper or differentiated products from across the state, country, or world easily visible and accessible to incumbent customers.

In this environment, simply holding course is not a safe path to sustained returns. Small businesses must adopt the technologies and adapt to the market or find themselves substituted by a provider that is nearby or far away.

A Time to Transform

For small businesses without the resources and budgets of larger companies, adopting fast emerging technologies can seem complex, costly, and risky. In today’s environment, it doesn’t have to be.

Previously capital-intensive infrastructure is available at a small cost by simply “plugging into” cloud service providers like Microsoft Asure, Amazon AWS, and Google Cloud and paying only as you use the resources instead of making large up-front investments.

Software to help productivity is becoming simpler and more intuitive to use and requires very little setup and configuration. Zoho provides simple pay-as-you-go tools to manage customers and workforce. Razorpay and others help make financial transactions easier.

And ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Bing can be easily accessed to help tap into the power of AI to help understand trends, conduct research, and even generate ideas for growth.

Small businesses could take a simple, 5-step progressive path towards adopting technology to keep up with competition on capability and accelerate growth.

Understand emerging technologies: Begin by staying informed about the latest technological trends in your industry through research, webinars, and community engagement. Assess how competitors are using technologies like AI, IoT, and cloud computing to gain an edge. Identify practical applications that can be adapted to your business to streamline operations and drive innovation.

Identify the opportunity spaces for growth: Analyse your business processes to find areas where technology can have the most impact, such as customer management or supply chain efficiency. Conduct market research to surface new opportunities for growth and differentiation. Focus on how technology can help you stand out in a competitive market.

Define a target state vision for the business: Set clear objectives for what your business will look like after digital transformation. Reimagine your business processes and products to integrate technology into your value proposition and customer interactions.

Establish a roadmap for business and technology evolution: Prioritise technology initiatives based on their impact and create a timeline for implementation, balancing quick wins with long-term goals. Plan your resources carefully, including budget and expertise, and consider partnerships to fill gaps. Implement changes in phases, starting with critical areas that deliver immediate benefits.

Execute with consistency and speed: Cultivate a culture that embraces continuous improvement and rapid iteration on technology projects. Monitor progress regularly using key performance indicators and be ready to adjust as needed. Leverage available support from government programmes, industry experts, and tech communities to navigate challenges and stay competitive.

A Time to Invest

In this emerging world where competition can come from more technologically advanced large players or even small businesses in other markets, technology is as much a core resource for small businesses as human talent, plant and equipment, and capital. It is not an optional cost that can be deferred but is rather an investment that can yield breakthrough results for those who embrace it and challenges to those who do not. Fortunately, though, it is also easier than ever for small businesses to access and adopt technology. The choice is clear: invest in digital transformation today, or risk being left behind tomorrow.

(Meetul B. Patel is President, Entrepreneurship, Wadhwani Foundation.)