Digital transformation is a process from which no company is currently immune and which has accelerated significantly since 2020 with the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There are studies indicating that, after the arrival of the virus on a global level, 8% of the companies in the world have exploded their digital transformation and 35% admit that they were somehow forced to take this approach to take over.

In other words, the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the transformation that millions of companies planned to leave for another time. The need to evolve and the drastic change in operating paradigms was a factor that forced companies and governments to develop strategies aimed at improving day-to-day operations through technology.

With that in mind, last year the Ministry of Telecommunication and Information Society presented the Digital Transformation Agenda of Ecuador 2022-2025, an initiative that aims to have a direct impact on people’s quality of life and bring about change in operational matters in companies in the country.

With this background, the company Technology Evaluation Centers (TEC), specialized in digital consultancy and advisory, confirms that this is an ambitious and coherent agenda, but that there are three major challenges that are essential to achieve the goals set:

Expand access to digital infrastructure

It is essential that companies and government agencies promote the penetration of the Internet and other digital solutions in areas where there is little or no access to these types of resources. According to TEC, it is essential that the organizations involved provide digital tools and mechanisms, as well as regulations that promote the growth of technological infrastructure, both public and private.

In this way, it will be possible to guarantee more users and employees from different industries access to more high-quality digital services, and also to promote education about the use of these resources.

Promote a new digital culture

It is important to note that digital transformation should not be viewed as simply acquiring and implementing technology solutions. It’s about integrating technology to transform processes and drive cultural change resulting in practices that optimize day-to-day operations and improve outcomes.

Therefore, companies should know that the analysis and evaluation of all tools they consider is essential to avoid failed implementations or implementations that do not really meet their needs.

Rather, an assessment process helps companies determine whether internal systems need to be upgraded or replaced, what technology is needed, and how best to integrate new solutions with existing systems.

Securing assets for digital fulfillment

While the initiative aims to drive significant change, it is important to note that for the growth of the software and technology industry, it is necessary to ensure that there are sufficient technical and human resources to use these tools.

Therefore, governments and companies need to promote the training of more and more digital specialists to ensure that digital demand is met and bring about a real change in technology business, optimizing operations in the various industries involved.(I)