The digitalisation of small and medium-sized companies, although often challenging, leads to benefits that are hard to pass up. In such a big change, companies should be accompanied by the right partner to carry out the implementation according to the needs of the organisation. How to choose it? This is discussed by Karol Sudnik, President of the Management Board of XPLUS S.A.
How would you assess the current level of digitisation of companies in the construction industry?
The global mechanisms in the market related to digitalisation today affect all large players, for whom in-depth digitalisation is today a condition for maintaining a high level of competitiveness. This mechanism also applies to the largest construction and development companies. Large companies are digitalising and developing digital maturity. For smaller companies, digitalisation is slower; there is a lower degree of digital maturity and less advanced activities.
To what extent has the pandemic had an impact on the current state of digitalisation in this industry?
I don’t think that in the case of construction, the pandemic has affected the digital nature of business processes in any significant way. However, remote working mechanisms for back-office teams have certainly developed strongly.
Recently, the e-commerce sector has been thriving. A plethora of new online shops are springing up, which are using automation to a greater or lesser extent. What challenges does the industry face in terms of process automation?
In e-commerce, the key is the integration of all processes, the so-called omnichannel. There is a lot of data acquired online that relates to customer behaviour. Therefore, the biggest challenge becomes the ability to use this data in such a way that it is part of a coherent e-commerce sales process.
What qualities should a company that implements an ERP system have? How do you assess whether a company will meet the needs of the business in which it is implementing the solution?
Companies should be aware of their business processes. It is important to find a supplier that has successfully handled specific business processes in other companies. It is worth checking the supplier’s proficiency both by checking references in similar companies (in our industry). You can also propose to the supplier to perform a so-called PoC – Proof of Concept – which is a mini-project based on solving a specific, important business problem. On the basis of the supplier’s approach to this task and the quality of the solutions it proposes, it is possible to deduce what cooperation on the actual project will look like.
Will the digital transformation of the SME sector, which took off strongly during the pandemic, slow down in the near future?
I don’t think these trends will stop. Rather, it is a sustainable phenomenon that will progress systematically.
