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Dave Duarte on how to approach digital transformation in your business
Dave Duarte on how to approach digital transformation in your business
Speaking at a recent Investec Cash Investments Business Matters event in Johannesburg, digital expert Duarte explained how companies can decide where to start digitising by looking at the reality when it comes to their business, as well as at the trends and the available technologies.
“Base your business on the truth: What isn't going to change? When you know that, when you're focused on the customer value, you don't have to wait for your competitors to act," says Duarte.
"You can align with the trends in delivering that value – say, speed or service – and then you can start experimenting with the technologies."
Download Dave Duarte's Business Matters presentation
Invest in skills and technology
However, investment in technology and skills is not just about individual business; rather, it's about a country collective.
The shift to a digital world is affecting every industry. For instance, education is seeing a move to e-learning, while transportation is experiencing the phenomenon of self-driving cars as a reality.
READ MORE: Chasing exponential innovation
What won't change in your business? When you know that, you can align with the trends in delivering that value – say, speed or service – and then you can start experimenting with the technologies.
David Duarte, founder of Treeshake
Education first
"We need to get skills right at the fundamental level, at the early childhood development learning phase. The first 6 000 days of a child's life are crucial," says Duarte. It's something President Cyril Ramaphosa is also advocating for.
In his State of the Nation Address 2019, the president announced that more than 700 000 children are already accessing early childhood education. He also highlighted plans to provide every learner in SA with digital workbooks and textbooks on a tablet device over the next six years.
However small or big interventions may be in the business sector or in the country as a whole, it is clear that investing in technology and skills holds great potential for SA.
READ MORE: How to prepare your children for a digital future
Four ways to get your employees 'change fit'
About the author
Ingrid Booth
Lead digital content producer
Ingrid Booth is a consumer magazine journalist who made the successful transition to corporate PR and back into digital publishing. As part of Investec's Brand Centre digital content team, her role entails coordinating and producing multi-media content from across the Group for Investec's publishing platform, Focus.
