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Embracing automation paves the way for business efficiency
More companies were expected to be increasingly reliant on cutting-edge technology to improve business efficiency amid global economic uncertainty, a top business executive has said
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ore companies were expected to be increasingly reliant on cutting-edge technology to improve business efficiency amid global economic uncertainty, a top business executive has said.
Paul Burton, general manager, IBM Asia Pacific, revealed how the ongoing global transition to automation or artificial intelligence (AI), expedited by various macroeconomic events, had prompted companies to reevaluate “how they reach out and do basic business”.
“They want to do their business in an efficient, streamlined and automated way, which increases dependence on technology,” Burton said in an interview on Technology Trends for businesses of 2023 in Jakarta recently.
“Widespread inflation and rising wages have left businesses unable to cover that cost,” he said.
According to Burton, customers were rushing to embrace automation and make a decision on what could be in the cloud and how they could manage the infrastructure efficiently given the skill shortages.
“What you can do is make efforts to architect and deploy modern and cost-effective architecture going forward and keep all your eyes open so that whatever happens, you can do it quickly and effectively,” he advised.
Burton is reminding business leaders how pivotal the automation-driving skills are in the labor market to achieve a higher level.
“It is important to automate infrastructure, business process and continue to serve clients in a cost-effective manner,” he said, adding, “I believe; that’s the big change that has come forward.”
Technology can make certain jobs more efficient, which means reducing cost.
While noting the importance of business philosophy, he said that business leaders should run faster than their competitors in delivering values.
The degree of learning and adaptability to the technology-driven changes will determine how fast a company can move.
“Those who learn the fastest way will win,” he said, adding, “The way of adapting to changes is very important.”
“So, if you close yourself off to the global economy and try not to engage in trade, which requires an integration into a supply chain, then you will lag behind, compared to other countries that adopt an open system,” he said.
Strengthening resilience was also of paramount importance to stay competitive and withstand any unprecedented occurrences, he said.
The COVID-19 outbreak, which spurred the adoption of digital technology and which drove people to work from home, epitomized the resilience that many companies had built, according to the executive.
“All of these can be further achieved through good data architecture, automation, AI and hybrid cloud,” he said.
According to him, data is the blood of modern enterprises. “Like the blood in your body, it functions to send oxygen, nutrients and so forth to lungs, kidneys, muscles, etc. The blood can make your body work well,” he said.
Touching upon Indonesia, which is currently implementing digital transformation massively, Burton said that Indonesia was on the right track.
“The challenge for Indonesia is how businesses increase the speed of their innovations -- how they embrace a philosophy that innovates and deploys new technology in order to keep up with the rest of the fast-changing world.”
“So, I believe Indonesia can use the changing philosophy in terms of coming up with better architecture that leverages cloud, better data architecture, AI and better technology that drive out unnecessary costs of providing security and resilience,” Burton remarked.
“Going forward, the challenge for Indonesian companies is that the companies become increasingly integrated into the supply chain of global economy, not only for raw materials or commodities, but for other aspects as well,” he noted.
“They have to be able to operate on par with other companies or industries, other companies in other countries, with respect to supply chains for the global economy,” he said.
Sustainability
With respect to sustainability, which most business leaders are familiar with, Burton saw challenges from the technological perspective.
Sustainability meant running an efficient business, the metrics of which were highly related to how well a company implemented AI and automation to streamline business processes, according to Burton.
“The first thing you should do is benchmark where you are and how you make progress regarding automation,” he said.
Sustainability was about consumers’ cost of fuels, he said.
For example, beef or meat consumption has spurred the increase in the use of fossil fuels because fuels are required to transport the cows from the cattle farm and to a slaughterhouse prior to being delivered to traditional markets or supermarkets. “If people consume less meat, then less fuels for transportation are needed, which means reducing the carbon footprint,” he argued.
Concrete actions that led to sustainability included improving supply chain by reducing the consumption of fossil fuels, which released the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2), according to Burton.
“The best way to achieve sustainability is to be efficient,” he said.
“Implementation of AI, automation, corporate data architecture and cloud technology has the power to increase productivity, efficiency and cost savings, which can contribute to sustainability,” Burton pointed out.
This article is published in collaboration with IBM
