SMEs do not have enough awareness about digital transformation, lack of commitment and perseverance from leaders as well as information about digital technology. — Photo congthuong.vn

HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are facing barriers in digital transformation and have a passive response to market changes, said Hoàng Minh Chiến, deputy head of Việt Nam Trade Promotion Agency (Viettrade).

Chiến told an online conference on digital transformation for sales and marketing held in Hà Nội on Saturday that Việt Nam targeted to become a digital country by 2025 under the national digital transformation programme. Of which, digital transformation for businesses would play a crucial role.

However, the SMEs did not have enough awareness about digital transformation. In addition, they lacked commitment and perseverance from leaders as well as information about digital technology. They also faced limited human and financial resources.

“Viettrade is gradually implementing training, consulting and events applying information technology and digital transformation to support enterprises to overcome difficulties in the COVID-19 pandemic,” he added.

Bùi Hoàng Anh, director of SME Centre under CMC Telecom Việt Nam, said there were three clear trends in digital transformation in Việt Nam this year, including data analysis, online payment/transactions and data security in the digital environment.

Digital transformation is strongly taking place around the world. But in Việt Nam, the speed is still modest. A survey by Việt Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in 2020 at more than 400 businesses showed that 51 per cent of businesses actively transformed digitally before the COVID-19 pandemic occurred. Meanwhile 25.7 per cent of businesses were not interested but when COVID-19 happened, they started to catch up and find digital technology solutions; 17.5 per cent of enterprises started to pay attention but they had not yet started to apply technology.

“Nearly half of Vietnamese businesses have not actively converted to digital. But when the pandemic occurred with unpredictable developments, if enterprises do not adapt and catch up with trends, their business and development will certainly be affected,” Anh said.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a driving force for businesses and people to change their habits and apply more technology in production, business and consumption. For businesses that do not keep pace with digital transformation, they will very quickly see their business results affected, and in the long run, they will be easily eliminated from the market.

Many businesses acknowledged the importance of digital transformation, but still faced challenges.

Chu Trường Ân, deputy head of Tôn Vinh Technology Development and Trading Company Limited, said: “We do not know where to start to digitalise while we are still applying information technology in production, business and export.”

“When implementing digital transformation, enterprises' resources will be assessed for Viettrade and experts to support according to a roadmap. Enterprises could completely convert digitally and start from available resources. The most important factor is business owners’ commitment and persistence in digital transformation,” said Nguyễn Thị Minh Thúy, Director of Viettrade’s Information Technology Application Centre.

She said Viettrade was completing the VECOBIZ ecosystem which is a platform that integrates trade promotion activities to serve businesses, such as exhibitions, promotions and trade connections. In the future, businesses could use this platform to find customers and exchange information. VECOBIZ also provided factors related to the business environment such as free trade agreements, non-tariff barriers and standards for export markets.

The online conference saw the participation of some 1,200 delegates from many provinces and cities nationwide to raise awareness and build capacity for individuals and enterprises in information technology application and digital transformation. This training focuses on sales and marketing skills for businesses. These are two important activities, contributing to improving sales and the image of businesses. — VNS