| | AUGUST 202182021 - A YEAR OF PHYSICALIZATION OF DIGITAL ACCELERATIONBy Anil Kumar Jain, CEO, National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI)T he COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for digitization in all companies. In fact, for many businesses, the continuity of operations critically depends on their digital capabilities.Boards and markets are taking note, and consequently, digital transformation is likely to be one of the most strategic topics on the boardroom agenda. The question now is how soon can organizations shift to the new digital business and operating models.As businesses scramble to adjust to the new normal, we foresee the following seven key themes playing out on the wider economic canvas:Digital nationalism: Increasingly, a large part of the economic value created is coming from digital innovation, ecosystem propositions, and new technologies. This clearly plays out in the soaring valuation of big tech that we have seen, and rapid investments in this space. However, in these trying times, countries could consider digital adoption as a critical step for national security or economy. Shift towards digital labor: The world was already embracing digital labor and bots, but COVID-19 should accelerate this shift towards greater automation. Businesses would want to increasingly leverage digital platforms, which can continue uninterrupted in the event of a crisis and reduce dependence on personnel. Further, the margin pressures would nudge businesses to seek efficiency in scale deployment of digital labor technologies. This could actually be the perfect storm for widespread adoption of such digital technologies.Workspaces of the future: COVID-19 could mark a turning point in how people work. The pandemic is transforming people's approach towards work, mobility, and flexible working models. We expect to see an acceleration of alternative work delivery models as well as employment constructs. Most of these new models would be powered by digital platforms for realization.Vantage Point
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