Structure and topics that shoud be covered are more or less the following (open for suggestions!):
Theoretical framework of the thesis:
2. Theoretical framework
2.1 Digitization
2.1.1 Digital transformation
2.1.2 Digital innovative technologies
2.1.3 Dynamics of digitalization
2.1.4 Digital Maturity Framework
2.2 New Work
The period which should be viewed at are the past ten years. Digitization and than as part of this, the development of new work (new ways of working).
Abstract
Over the last decade, small and medium enterprises have faced severe recession that has been characterized by pandemics, wars, financial bubbles, and change in policies. This crisis dramatically disrupted the contemporary business environment as many small and medium-sized companies changed their business models to accommodate new and advanced digital solutions. Currently, there is limited and minimal literature on how pandemic-induced changes might facilitate digital disruption. This research endeavors to bridge the gap by illustrating how the scale and speed of digital disruption will change today’s business environment. Given the tremendous ongoing impact of Covid19 on the economy, more and more companies are digitizing services and products to gain a competitive edge and venture into the new markets. From this perspective, it is evident that digital transformation is a complex and dynamic phenomenon that can potentially disrupt all aspects of life. Therefore this study employed a qualitative approach and leveraged an interview schedule as the primary research instrument. Content analysis was the leading choice technique for analyzing collected data. Finally, the data gathered is transcribed to derive concrete and accurate solutions. The research shows a positive and significant correlation between pandemic induced digital disruption in small and medium-sized businesses. Working from home is argued as the future of small and mega businesses. It will be computer interlinked to ensure that institutions and their employees work effectively.
Keywords: Digital disruption, digitalization, innovative digital technologies
Table of Contents
Digital innovative technologies
Sample Size and Sampling Procedure
Data Collections and Procedures
Data Analysis and Presentation
Data Analysis and Presentation
Digital Changes in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises
Speed and Scale of Digital Disruption in SMEs
Future of Work amidst the Ongoing COVID-19
Summary of Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations
Create a Supportive Environment
Designing and Digitization Platform
The COVID-19 pandemic as an enabler for digital disruption in small and medium-sized enterprises.
Chapter 1
Introduction
Background of study
Digital disruption is an ever-changing phenomenon that comprises digital capabilities, assets, and channels that have varying effects on the culture, market, industry, and organizational processes. Digital disruption is an evitable phenomenon in all ages (Markku, 2017). With the continuous influx of new and advanced technologies, the digital revolution continues to suffice. Over the last decade, Digital disruption is exacerbated by innovations, sudden change of policies, pandemics, financial recession, thus causing a systemic shift in market structure, technology, and lifestyle in the contemporary business environment. The rapid digital take over can change the business spheres and a significant part of society. Many businesses have had their core business disrupted due to the spontaneous adoption of digital technologies. The exponential growth in information and communication technology has influenced the way people work, do business, and interact with one another. Since the industrial revolution, the digital space has been ramped up by a paradigm shift from a market-oriented system to knowledge-based economies. This significant change is attributed to the powerful and interconnected technology changing a considerable part of society. Advanced technology, availability of multiple technologies, changing demographics, and the influx of new international networks of knowledge is the cornerstone for robust digital transformation. In this light, the advent of information-based economies has influenced change in small and medium enterprises’ running and operation (Maciel et al., 2019).
Many companies have capitalized on using digital tools to operate virtually to cut down on physical office capital. This is influenced by the availability of multiple technologies and a well-integrated virtual infrastructure base to provide a suitable work environment. The digital disruption phenomenon has snowballed and sufficed as a transformative approach with the outbreak of Coronavirus disease-2019(Covid19), which has led to the closure of small and medium enterprises to reduce the spread of the virus (Qiu et al., 2020). This catapults the intrusion, emergence, and increased adoption of digital tools to sustain small and medium enterprises. In addition to imposing untold social suffering globally, the COVID 19 outbreak has inflicted unprecedented economic strains. Precisely, small scale-sized businesses have to deal with constant production and operations problems such as the influx of sick employees, limited movements, lock-down protocols, and limited movement of goods, especially in mainland China, quarantine measures, and inadequate digital infrastructure. This research paper will focus on the speed and scale to which the pandemic induced changes will exacerbate the digital revolutions in small and medium enterprises.
Since the outbreak of COVID 19 last year, December the virus has affected both large and small businesses’ performance and productivity. The ongoing pandemic has the potential to reach a large proportion of small market structures. This has led to the intensified enforcement of preventative measures to limit the spread of the infectious virus. WHO has emphasized the work-at-home measures to reduce the spread of the highly contagious disease? Other International organizations have advocated staying at work-at-home measures to limit congestion in offices.
Consequently, small and medium workers have been forced to work from home. This has drastically affected the work out per production for SMEs and disrupted the supply chain (Maciel et al., 2019). Following this, SMEs have capitalized on the most effective tools and strategies to stay afloat, retain workers, and hit profit margins. Most of these organizations have turned to digital devices as the primary approach to salvage the business from extinction. SMEs are significant contributors to the GDP and countries economic growth. These businesses provide a source of income for approximately 80% of the population, both in the formal and informal sectors. However, these businesses have limited reserves, minimal supply chains, thus less collateral to sustain the practice, especially with the ongoing pandemic. Despite the limited resources, SMEs have to secure digital solutions to ensure the continuity of the business. From this perspective, it is evident that the highly contagious COVID 19 will influence the digital disruption phenomenon irrespective of its role and position in the economy. This has led to an unprecedented development of new business models, approaches, and strategies shifting from the traditional work environment to more digitally interconnected spaces.
Digital disruption of small and medium enterprises causes the adoption of a new work approach known as telework, mobile work, or virtual work. Telework involves using ICT supported devices on a real-time basis to communicate with people without being in the same physical environment. Although the approach requires maximum guidance and support from the leaders, it presents various advantages for both the employer and the workforce. With a well-integrated ICT infrastructure base, telework ensures the smooth flow of activities. Amidst the rising tensions and uncertainties, telework has emerged as a strategic measure of ensuring that even with the physical office restrictions and travel bans, small and medium enterprises run smoothly. Even before the COVID, 19 small organizations made spontaneous steps to incorporate telework in their traditional model to increase productivity and play their role in the economy. Furthermore, the work from the home approach has received maximum support from Government and other international bodies. Because the directive aligns closely with the united nation global agenda on environmental conservation, favorable working conditions, less congested urban centers, and encourages work-life balance critical for a healthy nation (Thanos et al., 2020).
Additionally, telework has become a source of employment for a wide range of talents as it allows expertise from all walks of life to work remotely. With the continuous shift from the traditional physical environment to digitalization facilitated by telework, small scale entrepreneurs will be able to access a wide range of services from a wide range of experts that are not available in their locality. Furthermore, sourcing labor remotely will allow qualified personnel in remote areas to access jobs in the urban areas, which simultaneously boosts the remote areas across the globe.
Similarly, telework will exacerbate competitiveness across all sectors in the industry. Digitization is centered on boosting productivity through the implementation of the latest and most effective technologies. This new digital era is characterized by optimal products, services that increase and improve current operations. Maximum reliance on these products for high yields will encourage virtual teams to develop and apply the most suitable tools to boost employee performance, improving work output. On the one hand, virtual teams will work collaboratively to implement smart business solutions while still innovating and injecting new tools. Overall the digital disruption is taking over and causing a paradigm shift in all industries (Thanos et al., 2020). Providing new technologies coupled with extraordinary features to facilitate teleworking, the small scale traders will accumulate more value and work towards embracing digitalization’s intrinsic opportunities. This will lead to increased adoption and integration of telework and remote work.
Consequently, virtual work will become an imperative factor of production in Small and medium enterprises causing the organizations to restructure their agendas, policies, and business models to accommodate new technologies (Felipe, 2019). These changes include forming in-house policies and programs that can be utilized by virtual workers and third party functions or anybody working remotely. The new business policies will incorporate all the smart business tools to ensure a smooth transition of information to foster communication and allow positive interactions to boost organizational performance and organizational success. Amidst the ongoing pandemic, companies such as Zoom, Microsoft, Google, LogMeIn, and Cisco are offering technological tools for extended trial periods at a discount and sometimes free of charge. These tools’ affordability has increased the toll number of virtual teams using them and SMEs’ name. Resultantly these platforms not only facilitate working from home but allow mobile working. This engineer’s radical transformation of the small and medium-size by diversifying their products, market structure simultaneously improves the organization’s capitalization. Continuous advancement in technology has the potential to phase out the physical offices, thus changing the future of work in small and medium enterprises.
According to Markku (2017), there is little research on digital disruption speed and scale in small, medium-sized businesses. Therefore it is a formidable task to identify the workforce that engages in teleworks. This notion is premiered on the fact that every company has adopted and shifted to digitalization to avoid extinction (Markku, 2017). Notably, all organizations offer some sort of service remotely with the support of ICT smart business tools. Still, the ongoing impact of COVID 19 has exacerbated the need for full-time employees to take up teleworkers’ roles. This makes it challenging to measure pandemic induced digital transformation and attempts to make estimates vary due to methodological approaches such as sampling techniques used and the meaning of teleworkers implemented in the research. However, the Coronavirus outbreak has played an outsized role in increasing teleworkers in small and medium-sized businesses. The number of teleworkers is expanding due to increased quarantining and social distancing to halt the spread of COVID 19 (Qiu et al., 2020). Many small scale traders have changed their perspective on digital disruption. They are more focused on adopting the newest technologies and markets to fit in and survive these uncertain times.
Drawing insights from the Theory of diffusion of innovation, during these corona times, small-scale entrepreneurs are most likely to adopt the most efficient, effective technologies to reduce physical interactions while still fulfilling their measurable goals (Livia, 2016). These include installing the latest and most suitable digital technologies that fasten transactions and data transmission, such as web-conferencing, to conduct face to face meetings and electronic boards to update business agendas and policies. For instance, work that solely focuses on information-based systems such as sales and marketing departments need numerous passwords, ethical monitoring systems, software packages, and IP address protection. Resultantly SME’s with a well-established digital infrastructure base will only interact with entities that embrace and incorporate the same technology in their systems. Consequently, there will be a radical digital transformation that initiates the massive influx of digitalization in all sectors. Shifting the traditional organizational activities and processes to accentuate the digital measures heightens an organization’s overall efficiency. In this context, the speed and scale of technological shifts and advancements amidst the ongoing global pandemic have broadened, forcing many small and medium-sized businesses to adapt to digital solutions. This includes a separate and distinct business entity that works as branches and subsidiaries of a particular body.
Furthermore teleworking, mobile work has become a source of value creation from digital solutions reserved for large corporations, thus positioning most SMEs in the global economic scale index. The Covid19 has also led to a substantial influx and popularity of IoT based solutions that use artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies to make smart business tools. Moreover, IoT integrates the physical characteristics of the business with the organizational measurable to improve performance efficiency.
The highly contagious Covid19 is causing immense suffering on human life, which will have lasting effects on society’s social and economic development. As the COVID 19 cases continue to skyrocket SMEs, there is a need and urgency to fasten the shift from a centralized work environment to avoid spreading it. This has been influenced by the issue of travel bans, closure of businesses. Although teleworking is not a new phenomenon, Coronavirus’s outbreak has portrayed it as an essential aspect of sustaining SMEs. The urgency to engage in teleworking as a strategic measure to limit the spread of Covid19 on a global scale shows there might be a paradigm change that will change the SMEs markets and dynamics.
Given the tremendous impact of covid19 digital technologies are penetrating and being absorbed into the market at a very high rate to enhance performance and productivity. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has primarily impacted the digital supply chain, affecting global economies, which have an untold impact on small and medium businesses. Not only is the supply chain at a standstill, but the COVID 19 has disrupted the downstream and upstream of the supply chain. (Thanos, et al., 2020). There is a severe recession of financial and human labor, which is reflected by people who were previously physical employees and now are working from homes, such as marketers, educators, and clerical officers. The increased autonomy and independence to run and manage SMEs has disrupted their market’s position and market strength.
While large corporations have adapted and integrated electronic media, SMEs are still lagging due to financial constraints, while the well penetrated and connected corporations are taking over. The ability and SME’s agility to survive in the market is based on the degree and extent of disruption engineered by the global pandemic. However, there have been massive layoffs, change in market structure, and policy change to leverage suitable digital tools while displacing traditional offices’ existence. It was not so long ago that companies such as Google have full-fledged their commitment to WHO directives to stay at home throughout this corona crisis. While this is arguably a strategic approach based on companies’ business models, it has created further tension and pressure from the SME sector to upgrade and catch up with the digital era. Now more than ever, SMEs have realized that employees can engage in organizational operations remotely and achieve the organizational measurable. In the past, teleworking was reserved for contractors and part rime based workers. Now, SMEs are capitalizing on deploying teleworkers in all aspects of the business. Consequently, a massive influx of digital technology converges to the need to change, restructure the business ecosystems, organizational learning, organizational structures, and organizational agility. From this practical perspective, SMEs will most likely operate on digital and data-driven innovation to march up to the digital era and boost their existing processes (Lieke, Bakker, Hetland, & Keulemans, 2012).
Furthermore, during this Coronavirus period, digital solution providers have cut off technology costs to reduce SMEs’ financial burden to access digital technologies. The low cost of technology, coupled with increased compatibility, harbors a critical force that will equalize digital technologies across all SMEs. From this perspective, digital technologies will accelerate innovations by ensuring technological progress that further disrupts organizations’ fundamental activities (Livia, 2016). Additionally, there will be enormous pressure to acclimatize to the combination of networks and electronic media such as mobile works, IoT, Cloud, and AI to make the job more manageable. This will also contribute to the radical transformation from analog to digital migration that will disrupt the SME’s business environment. SMEs will endeavor to create digital spaces that march the pandemic induced errors. For instance, people will feel more attracted to enterprises or businesses that offer ICT solutions than traditional work environments across all industries. This will create a well-integrated digital infrastructure base that facilitates the supply chain both downstream and upstream.
Problem statement
Currently, there is limited and minimal literature on how pandemic-induced changes might facilitate digital disruption. This research endeavors to bridge the gap by illustrating how the scale and speed of digital disruption will change today’s business environment. Given the tremendous ongoing impact of Covid19 on the economy, there will be an unprecedented digital shift in small and medium-sized businesses. There will be a radical transformation of the digital environment characterized by business models’ changes to ensure its survival during these extreme times. Additionally, there are no substantial insights on how the pandemic induced changes in the business environment will heighten the urgency to embrace new digital technologies that were often delayed. The continuous rush and speed to fit in to improve productivity and performance in an organization will transform small, medium-sized enterprises.
Additionally, there is little information on the scale and speed at which the covid19 digital disruption will transform the incumbent startups. While the digital transformation amasses many opportunities, it comprises of significant threats. The SME sector’s opportunity aspect requires full-fledged complacency that most companies have not actualized during these covid19 times. Therefore there is a need to analyze the varying effects of less complacency during the ongoing pandemic. Many of these companies have to jump in artificial intelligence, cloud solutions, teleworking, and other digital working solutions and have no idea where to start. As a result, there is a lack of insights into how digital technologies may support small and medium-sized businesses’ sustainability.
Purpose of the study
This study’s main objective is to research if pandemic-induced business models, policies, and agendas can facilitate digital disruption. The Covid19 pandemic has caused a paradigm shift in how people engage in the workplace, which implies substantial changes experienced in how organizations are operating. This research will unveil these changes’ speed and scale and offer a new approach to defining the digital disruption phenomenon. The study will also identify the changes in the traditional approach to work and how these changes will influence workplaces’ future development. The increased number of SMEs leveraging digital technologies shows a significant shift in productivity and performance (Gajendran and Harrison, 2007). This research will focus on these digital technologies in use and identify the adjustments that can make digitization more applicable, drawing from the continuous advancement in technology, innovation, and digital solutions such as IoT, artificial intelligence, and cloud solutions.
Research objectives
The study’s general purpose is to explore the magnitude and extent of digital disruption amidst the ongoing global pandemic in small and medium-sized businesses. This will be achieved by analyzing the critical objectives outlined from the aspect of digital transformation and the future of new work:
Exploring pandemic induced digital changes in small and medium-sized enterprises.
Exploring the speed and scale of digital disruption in SMEs since the outbreak of COVID 19
Exploring the future of work post Covid19.
Chapter 2
Theoretical Framework
Digitization
Digitization is a rapidly growing phenomenon that breaks down and diffuses business activities and processes to improve performance and productivity across all sectors in the economy. According to Ruiz-Alba, Guesalaga, Ayestarán, & Mediano (2019), digitization is the continuous use of digital capabilities, assets, and networks to change the business models, agendas, and processes to create new sources of value that boost capitalization and improve performance and productivity. Since the Industrial revolution, digitization has remained the primary goal of many technological companies. Through the use of ICT support and the Internet, these companies have created digital technologies that fit the propensities and needs of Small and medium-sized businesses. Digitization has radically transformed the economy in the last ten years. There has been enormous turbulence and disruption in the business culture and market structure due to the recent spike in digitizing services and products to improve business operations (Felipe, 2019). The rapid deployment and dependence on data-driven and information-based economies facilitated by digitization have become a critical force in the business world today. More and more businesses are digitizing services and products to gain a competitive edge and venture into the new markets. Since the development of the first website, there has been a sharp bounce in the usage and adoption of digital technologies in large and small corporations. (Press, 2015). With the continuous advancement in technology, digitization has amassed a lot of success within the quarter-century since the commercial Internet and the first browser. Following the partial extinction of newspapers in the US in 2010, the smartphone replaced the digital camera, thus taking up a significant percentage of the online advertising segment.
Furthermore, peer to peer communication as well as business to business communication became more personalized and consumer-centric. However, digital platforms were not yet mainstream and did not attract or alter any marketing dynamics. Within the same year, Facebook accrued around 100 million users. Subsequently, there was a massive digital shift from print media to digitized texts to ease accessibility while using digital phones. This led to a drastic rise in Amazon kindle sales compared to print media sales in 2011.
At the beginning of 2012, there was a massive insurgence of e-commerce sites. Facebook added a plethora of tools and features that facilitated e-commerce sales. In 2015 the digital technologies disrupted the film and music industry by replacing CDs with online-based radios such as Spotify and Pandora. Most mainstream film networks shifted from traditional forms of storage to electronic media and online-based platforms such as Netflix and Hulu (Markku, 2017). Over the years, digital technologies have broken down market barriers to providing a favorable medium for its growth and expansion, precisely small and medium-sized enterprises. In this light, digitization comprises a diverse network of technologies supported by ICT solutions that diffuse stagnant models. Today digitization has influenced the emergence of digital business and is a complex phenomenon accepted worldwide as it changes all aspects of transactions (Press, 2015).
Digital Transformation
Over the last decade, small and medium enterprises have faced severe recession that has been characterized by pandemics, wars, financial bubbles, and change in policies. This crisis dramatically disrupted the contemporary business environment as many small and medium-sized companies changed their business models to accommodate new and advanced digital solutions. Maciel points out that the high rate of digitization and technology advancement are the primary drivers that steer digital transformation. Digital transformation accrues vibrant opportunities that transcend the traditional work environment. A comparative analysis of the threats and opportunities emerging from digitization shows a positive and significant impact that fuels economic growth and shifts small-medium businesses (Maciel et al., 2019). Maciel further clarified that the digital phenomenon is built on innovations that disrupt and shift the existing fundamental business processes in small and medium-sized enterprises and large corporations. Although there is an invention of new technologies, the everyday adoption of digital solutions such as web conferencing amidst the ongoing COVID 19 crisis exacerbates penetration and absorption of digital products. The influx of SMEs leveraging on digital technologies forces incumbent and new entrant businesses to join in to enhance competitiveness in the market. On this note, a well-integrated digital infrastructure base magnifies the business potential to tap into the intrinsic benefits of new technologies. From this perspective, it is evident that digital transformation is a complex and dynamic phenomenon that can potentially disrupt all aspects of life. Digital transformation follows a sequential series of events composed of three main segments: introduction of new and advanced technologies, adoption, classification intrusion, and dispersion of the business systems, models, and policies (Bughin, 2017). Rogers points out the five attributes of accompanying the developments that reliably impact the reception of new growth.
Firstly, the preferred viewpoint relative is how much an advance is seen to improve the current offers. Secondly, compatibility is a crucial determinant for the consumption of digital technology. Compatibility refers to the degree to which an increase is considered to fit the propensities and practices of potential adopters. Third, the complexity that alludes to how much development is confused to use. Fourth, observable, which is how many consequences of an event are detectable to others? Fifth, Friability is alluding to how much an advance could be adequately tested before adoption.
In the space of data frames, Moore relied on Rogers’ work, among others, and extended the variety of developmental attributes to seven. Three of the seven advanced attributes are directly acquired from Rogers; relatively favorable position, compatibility, and usability in extreme times. The fourth brand, usability, is very close to the complexity of Rogers. Both the preferred relative point of view and the convenience must be subjective qualities since they can be seen in contrast depending on an individual’s discernment. Moore deduced three other attributes. While Rogers included the organization’s brand and culture as of the preferred relative point of view, Moore noted that it was a free indicator of reception and extent of the breakthrough. The image is self-observation that embracing a discovery could bring improved economic well-being to a person among its subordinates (Hoe, 2019). The final match of attributes, a probability of results, and perception determine Roger’s recognizable qualities. The verifiability of results is characterized as the substance of the consequences of receiving a development. The perception of how customers look at an unmistakable advance in appropriation reminds us, however, that these definitions are; in fact “, to the Advance print light in itself, and not in the impression of actually using the frame.” As Fishbein agrees, the provisions for a question and moods regarding a specific behavior identified with that protest may vary from time to time.
The digital transformation theory is of vital importance for review when discovering the effect of digital disruption in Small and medium-sized businesses. The hypothesis states that data and correspondence innovation’s appropriation presents reliable hypothetical support for the emergence and evolution of digitization. According to the Theory, an apparent integrated digital infrastructure base has a secure connection with ICT selection. It is this perspective that the review sets out to discover. The data provision is essential to create a faster breakthrough in digital solutions. The hypothesis is useful in managing and understanding the primary segments of the appropriation of ICT by associations. This is especially imperative for the present review undertaken to discover the effect of ICT selection on SMEs during the ongoing global pandemic. The innovation dispersion hypothesis is made up of significant segments: breakthrough brand, unique customer brand, adoption diffusion, overtime, dispersion systems, adoption developments and classes, and preparation of individual receipt. These parts are useful for understanding why partnerships would encompass ICT in their operations and the apparent benefits of digital implementation in our current review.
Digital innovative technologies
Digital innovative technologies, better known as the backbone of digitization, have accelerated digital disruption’s speed and scale over the years. With the first exhibition of the website in 1990, innovation has become an essential facet in digital disruption. Maciel states that change is the primary driver of the highly debated fourth industrialization. Innovation intends to meet needs in the market as well as introduce new markets that boost company valuation. In this regard, change is the cornerstone of digital disruption and is mutually exclusive (Maciel et al., 2019). Digital innovative technologies are increasingly important in today’s business world as it comprises critical and pervasive force that causes transformation radically across all sectors in the industry (Matzler, Eichen, Anschober, & Kohler, 2018). Over the last decade, digital technologies have amassed a lot of success through a combination of product and service innovation. Looking back, innovative digital technologies have accelerated the induction and disruption of traditional work environments as they force businesses to change their business portfolios to accommodate the innovations. As much as digital innovations are for the new entrants in the market seeking to compete with an existing business or facing a crisis, it ultimately boosts the incumbent companies causing significant and radical restructuring of the entire industry. Digital innovative technologies provide an entirely conducive environment for the firms and new domains to promote and expand their portfolios in the digital environment. Digital innovative technology comprises three main steps: introducing a new technology in the context of an existing business or new business: adopting new systems and software that are suitable for the company: Shifting from analog to digital activities.
Consequently, these processes’ disruptive impacts accelerate the coming wave of the 4th Industrial Revolution, commonly known as the 11th future of the Internet. According to a recently published journal by Pew Research Center and the Imagining the Internet Center, innovative digital technologies is the foundation upon which digital innovators and adopters usher businesses into the new digital era (Anderson, Rainie, & Luchsinger, 2018). With the advent of emerging technologies such as Artificial intelligence, it is imperative to devise strategies, protocols compatible with the macro and microenvironment to facilitate far-reaching impacts in the industry. Following this, the disruptive impact of digital has gained researchers and experts’ attention from technology businesses, Government bodies, critics, and think tanks, especially with the ongoing COVID outbreak (Kavanagh, 2019). The rate at which the innovative digital technologies erode existing organization structure and business portfolios will lead to a universal swap into a digital in a new digital era.
Dynamics of Digitization
Digitalization is a complicated procedure and universally accepted term to define and name the occurrence of morphisms caused by digital capabilities and assets in the various industries. Numerous elements influence digitalization in digitalization dynamics. According to Lyytinen and Newman’s 2008 model, digitalization dynamics are presented in a transient form that keeps on shifting based on the social-technical changes channeled into the products or services. From this perspective, it is evident that digitalization’s speed and scale are solely based on how people transact, interact, and advance in technology (Marrone, & Hazelton, 2019). Digitalization dynamics emerge from the convergence of external and internal triggering factors that manifest into new megatrends that facilitate innovation. Andreasson and Henfridsson 2009, describe a triggering event as an unusual occurrence in a process. In regards to this thesis, a triggering event is a change in organizational culture and structure to accommodate new technology (Andreasson, & Henfridsson, 2009).
Consequently, most triggering events are entirely social, and organizational factors entangled to a certain degree. For instance, a shift from traditional based models to digital-based policies is mainly influenced by corporate and social factors such as the corona outbreak. Another example is the development platforms that operate on complex and interconnected software but requires collaboration to metamorphosis into one procedure (Hylving, 2015). The platform has the potential to bulge and increase due to the disruptive impact associated with the partnership.
Furthermore, the Lyytinen and New man model (2008) outlines a series of critical forces that stimulate digitalization. The systems view of digitalization stresses the essence of the external business environment. To contextualize, it focuses on the ever-changing political, economic, organizational, and social systems. These external factors are the primary drivers of digitalization and shape the digital transformation trajectory. The digital transformation will bring substantial and lasting implications for digital dynamism. It will create room form more innovation, thus increasing SMEs’ ability to shift to new and advanced technologies. As the virus exponentially increases across the globe, businesses and institutions will implement strategies that can limit its spread and impact on companies. These disruptions have influenced the need for alternative measures that can support profitability and sustainability in all Industries. Furthermore, the increased adoption of telework across will change the future of work.
Chapter 3
Research Methodology
This study adopted a qualitative approach. This is mainly because the qualitative approach entails the use of interviews, document analysis, and observation.
Research Design
Research design explains the manner and procedures or techniques adopted to undertake in-depth research. In this study, a case study research design has been approved. The choice is motivated by the view of having this research conducted in a single place with interest in informing on specific objectives considered by the study (Choy, 2014). The survey covered 100 business owners involved in online businesses, digital works, and development issues. The study utilized an interview schedule as the primary research instrument, and content analysis was the leading choice technique for analyzing collected data.
Target Population
This study targeted online small-medium enterprise owners around the world. This was because they are heavily involved in digital business issues and developments around the country and, therefore, can inform this study. This study targeted 100 respondents as most of the business members are engaged in their jurisdiction areas and the field and, accordingly, are informed about the institutional business developments.
Sample Size and Sampling Procedure
Sampling remains a critical aspect of research being it selects a unit of the whole population known as a sample (Gast & Ledford, 2014). In this study, purposive sampling was adopted to obtain adequate data for analysis. This necessitated a more accessible collection of data.
Data Collections and Procedures
Data collection is how to extract or obtain specific information from the respondents or units under examination by the study (Trainor & Graue, 2014). Data collection is useful in gathering responses and pooling reliable knowledge for the research to assess the relationship, behavior, or trend of variables under examination. This study utilized secondary data. This is mainly because the reliable information building on this study is either obtained by interviewing specific actors in the sector or and published materials about the subject under investigation. Therefore, this study fetched secondary data from published reports, articles, and institutional documents to inform the research. The information gathered in four key industries, namely financial, hospitality, manufacturing, trade, and logistics industries which gave the study and in-depth understanding of the working from home phenomenon for different sectors. The four sectors have been experiencing tremendous growth over the years with support from the Government. Resultantly, the sectors have been driving economic development in the global economies by supporting other industries and creating employment for the entire populace.
This was motivated by the fact that the secondary data provided an opportunity for the researcher to offer specific and specialist information about the subject under study (Gast & Ledford, 2014). This study distributes the interview schedule through the drop and picks method. This enabled the respondent to have adequate time to respond to the interview program and provide ample room for distribution and collection; therefore, thus aiding sufficient information sourcing from the respondents.
Data Analysis and Presentation
Data analysis is the process of cumulatively finding out the relationship between examined variables and the behavioral nature of units under examination (Harland, 2014). This study adopted a content analysis technique. This is mainly because the study entirely sought to assess the community engagements for the effectiveness of the development initiatives and, therefore, the need to understand every meeting’s contribution. Furthermore, the study shows a detailed and illustrative, tabulated, and graphical form of the outcomes on how development initiatives enrich community engagements by international organizations. The findings from analyzed data were interpreted, and relevance checked against the reviewed literature.
Ethical Considerations
This study complied with all ethics necessary when conducting research. This is important to maintain standards and quality of the work and data documentation (Chidlow et al., 2014). First, this study obtained a license to survey digital business issues and developments around the country. This enabled the study to retrieve data from the respondents and convince them to respond to this study. Secondly, the study obtained a letter from the University, permitting this study to be undertaken. The study also ensured all the information provided by the respondents was maintained confidentially, and their identities were kept anonymous. Also, this study is for academic purposes only. The responses provided by the survey only were utilized in responding to the study.
Chapter 4
Data Analysis and Presentation
Introduction
This section discusses various findings from the analyzed data per the objective of the study. This study singularly focused on digital changes, speed, and scale of digital disruption and the future of work amidst the COVID-19 impact on SMEs. The study has interpreted the data findings and made conclusive remarks.
Digital Changes in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises
Digital changes in an organization are diversified. Both internal and external changes are matter in an organization to perfect or deliver its services. Such is the enterprise resource planning (ERP). According to data collected, this is the most reliable software in the place by small and medium enterprises use for revenue tracking, sale performance, reduction in costs, reviewing new financial performance, and assessing institutional performance, ERP has remained significant (Gubik & Bartha, 2017).
In the age of cloud computing, ERP is significant in transformation approaches linking institutional systems or functions such as the inventory, financial management, sales and accounting, and resource management. In the case of transformation, it is realized that ERP can boost the utilization of resources by engaging staff to work remotely and, therefore, making it easier for workers to deliver their services (Faridi & Malik, 2020). From the data collected, it’s also realized that customer relationship management tools can be integrated to aid the sales and marketing; the ERP software enhances data capture, customer retention, and acquisition, minimizing data duplication and employee collaborations.
Also, online tools and development platforms collaborating and integrating the institutional units remain a risky affair (Juergensen et al., 2020). It is of common knowledge that cloud-based computing systems improve efficiency; however, systematic web attacks and data theft remains a concern to the majority of the businesses.
Supremacy or superpower in the world remains a competitive or touchy issue with the top nations utilizing pandemics or unprecedented situations to measure the capabilities for providing solutions (Jurczenko, 2020). For instance, after the Second World War, nations realigned their allegiances, block formations, and regional states who would act as a team insignificant issues of concern such as war, health, or political eruptions or revolutions (Bodenheimer & Leidenberger, 2020). COVID-19 has proved to neutralize, realign, and develop new geopolitical arrangements. This is evidenced by the sourcing and supply of health materials such as masks, personal protective equipment (PPEs), and ventilators all that work in tandem to combat the virus. Production, quantity, and distribution of the materials in the recent days and onset of the outbreak of the virus have proved a change in political allegiance with nations deemed as rivals providing emergency technical response and support.
Speed and Scale of Digital Disruption in SMEs
The world economy is reliant on manufacturing, service, and processing industries, with service being the core link for others. In the onset of social distancing, it implied enterprises would reduce their operational or output scale owing to the limited labor available. This has led to a disjointed and not so seamless supply system (Conway, 2020). Despite the existence of technology, lack of production, high demands for products such as human consumption.
Also, a massive injection of policy stimulus eventually leads to a pick-up in inflation. Concepts such as ‘helicopter money’ and ‘deficit monetization’ have now entered the mainstream. Further, the costs of providing financial support will lead to an unsustainable rise in debt. These concerns are related, since one way of eroding debt burdens over time is through higher inflation. But both are overdone (Lakshmi Priyadarsini & Suresh, 2020). If current policies remain in place, that makes the threat of higher inflation significant, either because aggregate demand rebounds and economies return to full employment, or because inflation expectations rise. The spectra of stagnation appear (Choi et al., 2020).
Recently, the World Trade Organization has projected that global trade volumes are going to shift down by 13% and 32% in 2020 due to the tremendous impact of COVID-19 (Lakshmi Priyadarsini & Suresh, 2020). The forecast states that their magnitude and a high degree of uncertainties surrounding due to the lack of a vaccine for the ongoing pandemic and the actual impact these uncertainties will have on the global economies. However, in the report, the WTO depicts a more optimistic scenario that illustrates the possibility of economic recovery in the second quarter of 2020 that will be facilitated by the opening of borders, or the global economies experiences the widely reference V-shaped recovery(Jurczenko, 2020). The more pessimistic scenario assumes a partial recovery that lasts into 2021, or that global economic activity experiences more of a U-shaped recovery. The WTO concludes, however, that the impact on global trade volumes could exceed the drop in global trade during the height of the 2008-2009 financial crises.
There is limited production since the start of the pandemic. This has led to different views by the consumers and may have lowered profitability levels of companies. Businesses that are in the service industry may have survived. However, production and manufacturing businesses suffer due to limited human capital, compliance with the state regulations, and also the slow uptake of goods by the customers (De Santis, 2011). It is estimated that out of every ten business during this pandemic, 7 of them are having below-average scale production, implying the supply market is in less than the demand side.
Future of Work amidst the Ongoing COVID-19
Risk assessment and privacy concerns are one of the significant issues revealed (Juergensen et al., 2020). Organizations are more subtle to attacks, loss of data, malware attacks, and increased infringement of the code of work as employees get to work from home. Privacy concerns are raised on the safety of the business data, accidental leakage to third parties. This might lead to an increase in the cost of managing staff remotely (Joensuu-Salo et al., 2018). Also, the need for cloud computing is risky intensive, requiring critical assessments by the institutional managers to make more explicit decisions.
Working from home is argued as the future of small and mega businesses (Gubik & Bartha, 2017). It will be computer interlinked to ensure that institutions and their employees work effectively. Need to utilize more online materials that print or physical paperwork is also a core concern. This might require institutions conducting a series of training to maintain a steady flow of performance and service delivery (Faridi & Malik, 2020). Loss of jobs and the creation of new employment tailored with the working remotely is also an expectation. Cybersecurity mechanisms and threats are expected to increase significantly, and therefore, it remains a core managerial aspect of concern.
Social distancing measure advised by the WHO remains valid, and therefore, it implies academic institutions, religious activities, or family gatherings will be void in the same period until the virus is declared free (Prideaux et al., 2020). Also, families and societies no longer enjoy their constructivist structure owing to the social distancing. Therefore, these may delay some of the essential or perennial practices that are deemed core for the communities. Communities are known by their cultural tradition, relationship, and language, and therefore, the virus may hinder some of the needful developments in the societies (Bodenheimer & Leidenberger, 2020). Also, COVID-19 has had an impact on annual cultural festivals that are income-generating activities to communities. Therefore, the virus may have distorted the income flow of many in the communities.
The future of work remains a dynamic structure. First, it is evidenced that artificial intelligence is resourceful and quite good at enhancing efficiency at work. The multidisciplinary mix of technology and innovations to aid in the performance of specific action is welcome to several businesses. Global businesses anchored on the strategy of excellence remain poised to gain highly from the utilization of technologies. System integration and resource mobilization dually will enable companies to implement a part of the aspects of their plans. Also, change of on and off work stations is part of the expected changes with the work. The employee experiences at work are vital for their productivity. It is evidenced that there is an existence in the mismatches of time zones, and therefore, the distribution of work may vary, or the timescale of submitting jobs might vary. Also, businesses need to maintain an outreach team to ensure all work is undertaken following the objectives of the company. Further, trust and communication is a crucial component for the success of the company. The need for businesses to establish reliable and robust communication frameworks is an essential recourse for performance.
Cost-cutting is another measure to be witnessed by most SMEs. This is primarily anchored on the premise that most employees will be distributed evenly with specific routine assignments. It is, therefore, worth noting of minimal recruitments in the future as companies will tend to utilize technologies as their assistant for fastening the processes at work. Also, the emergency of Artificial Intelligence, as mentioned earlier, is a more significant disruptor (Juergensen et al., 2020). Innovations emerging in the present and near future have to be integrated into the system to ensure there exists efficiency and high productivity. The sudden onslaught of the pandemic has acted as an economic shock, and we consider how it is likely to affect different types of manufacturing SMEs. Work content and reliance on the soft material for planning, guidance, and on-site training will highly be utilized. This is in the course of ensuring there remain continuous capacity building developments at work. Training updates employees with relevant industrial information for their general performance.
Skills and competencies changes are also an aspect to expect soon. With the reliance on technology and innovations, employees are bound to learn new developments which will remain core in their performance. SMEs are small enterprises with less than fifty personnel. Therefore, gainful skills and competencies required to undertake some specific assignments primarily will be either taught or outsourced from technical expertise. Online coursework and new emerging business models are some of the latest developments in the business arena. These are core for informing and equipping employees with new bits of knowledge, information, and perspectives on how to handle emerging contexts for the betterment or achievement of the business goals. Also, training being an institutional measure for growing competencies, in the progress of key performance indicators, SMEs would have to invest heavily in regular pieces of training.
Chapter 5
Summary of Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations
Introduction
This section summarizes the above findings in detail. It provides conclusions and also recommendations. It also recommends areas for further study and limitations of the study as encountered during the study.
Summary of Findings
COVID-19 is one of the significant unprecedented flu or viruses that have affected the global economy. Reported in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the virus has proved enormous and disastrous to each country. Companies and institutions have had to close down or impose precautionary measures. Proved to transfer quickly, the virus has spread extensively, necessitating countries to close down their borders. Nations have provided technical support, created awareness, and effectively institutionalized screening for the infection as well as providing free medical checks or treatments.
As of midmonth of June, the world had recorded 8,428,380 cases where 3,540,160 are active, 451,926 are the total number of reported deaths. The virus led to the introduction of social distancing to avoid or limit the spread of the virus. Also, due to high exponential cases reported around the world, there was a need to provide responses and urgent mechanisms to contain the situation. In the paper, the author seeks to discuss independently on the effect the virus has had on the political economy, financial economy, and social economy, and finally, conclusions from the discussions.
Telecommuting is the new norm for most enterprises. However, some jobs, such as construction and transportation, do not necessarily need telecommuting as someone has to appear in person. This implies that there is an increase in legal challenges and computerization and the need for intensive continuous learning to enhance performance. Also, a fair number of jobs are poised to be scrapped to pave the way for artificial intelligence technologies.
Conclusions
In conclusion, with the uncertainty lying behind COVID-19, we can expect the global market to be quite volatile with no global growth this year. This year, 2020 can see an estimated 2.4 percent decline for the worldwide economy before the growth of 3.3 percent next year. The study concludes that digitization is poised to increase the level of productivity by integrated simulation and automation. Also, integration of ICT tools, analytics, reshuffling, and modeling is an essential value chain way of increasing manufacturing. Companies that have embraced digitization have shown to improve their productivity, and it’s in this that the study concludes scanning is the core way of aiding business going on concerns.
Public health and health development in children, mothers, and the elderly, as mentioned above, remains a concern to many. COVID-19 outbreaks put expectant mothers and females undergoing treatment for chronic diseases at risk, which may, therefore, might lead to high mortality cases. High unemployment rates around the country may imply some families lacking basic needs, halt to medical checks, which may, in turn, become disastrous.
Recommendations of the Study
This study makes a series of recommendations for consideration by respective business owners, managers, and players in the business environment.
Position Company
Pandemics are uncertain events, and therefore, the presence of COVID19 is a guide to enable managers to position their companies well. Customer acquisition and retention, corporate culture, and organizational performance, as well as relationships with stakeholders, are essential. Therefore, it remains upon managers to position their companies and businesses well to stay afloat and competitive with other companies around the world. It may include ensuring proper knowledge management systems, purchasing and supplies chain systems, work-life balances, virtual satellite offices, and, therefore, enabling ease of business performance.
Create Digitization Roadmap
This is an essential aspect of a business at the onset of a pandemic. This may be related to the strategic planning and inclusivity of the project plans of a company. Businesses are not void of making critical decisions and plans on how to stay afloat for long. Therefore, SMEs have to ensure they have structured a digital policy, privacy policies, particular procedures adopted in the handling of customers and other institutional assets, and conduct of staff in working from their offices or digital space or offices. SMEs have to develop a series of tools, documentation, and maintain compliance with the state regulations and laws as a requirement for effective performance.
Create a Supportive Environment
In creating a supportive environment, this has to include the hospitality of the staff, psychosocial mechanisms, and aversion of any hazards at work that may remain detrimental to the performance of the team. Employees are instruments of the SMEs, and therefore, their welfare and workplace is an essential aspect in attaining high performance by companies. This study recommends an intensive assessment of the hazards, occupational state, and the environment from where employees work. Also, the issues of privacy and data management revolve around the information of a work environment.
Designing and Digitization Platform
The design, uploading, and maintenance of a digital platform are essential for businesses. For instance, the small and medium enterprises are reliant on customer referrals, and ease of customer finding the service is necessary. Therefore, small and medium businesses need to have a friendly platform that can ease the purchase and provision of services.
Areas for Further Research
Digitalization is an emerging concept that has had varying impacts on the business environment. The level of productivity in the public sector and institutions, technological risk management, and global business environment as influenced by digitization is a ripe area for investigation. Also, digitization is an instrument for knowledge management systems and corporate culture, cost-cutting and human capital mobilization need to be investigated.
Limitations of the Study
The study was limited to online published materials from authentic and verified sources from the last decade. Whereas there would be a variation on how digitization occurs in specific countries, this study was modeled on the premise of generalized conjecture in the reflection of the business performance during the COVID19 era. Also, data and information collected from online sources might have some errors that are overlooked by this study, and therefore, blame relies on the primary sources.
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