APAC enterprises world leaders in digital disruption

Businesses in Asia Pacific (APAC) are more confident in their ability to disrupt markets than their global counterparts.

By implementing new digital technologies and business models, APAC enterprises are world leaders in digital disruption.

That's according to new research by IDC and commissioned by Avaya. The report reveals that almost a third, 29%, of respondents consider themselves market disruptors, while, the global average sits at 19%.

The Digital Transformation: The Key to Getting it Right report identifies increased employee productivity as the primary driver for digital transformation for 66% of organisations in Asia-Pacific. This sits above the international average of 62%.

Supporting new products and revenue streams and delivering better customer experience were ranked as the second and third-most important drivers for digital transformation.

Greater use of communications was seen as vital by organisations, with 91% saying it is important or extremely important to embed communications into core business processes and applications. This would enable better productivity and collaboration for remote and mobile workers, cited by 80%, and allow greater control over the business (85%). While organisations acknowledged the importance of human interaction in customer service, insufficient skills and training was seen as the biggest barrier to blending digital technologies with the "human touch," followed by lack of appropriate procedures and processes.

Additionally, lack of insight into customer behavior and preferences was ranked as the greatest barrier to improving customers' experiences, cited by 53% (compared to 49% globally). Moreover, 57% of organisations claim that most but not all customer interactions are supported by a single, seamless experience across all services, functional areas and departments (45% globally).

Avaya's ASEAN managing director Sami Ammous says organisations in the APAC region are setting the pace for digital transformation, and driving innovation in their industries.

"Companies understand the importance of communications and its impact on increasing employee efficiency. Empowering workers should, in turn, lead to better customer experiences, as more productive staff should be better able to meet their needs," Ammous explains.

Interestingly, just over half (53%) of APAC respondents said a digital strategy is being executed in a coordinated way across the organisation. (50% globally). In addition, only  16% of APAC organisations have a centralised digital innovation group in charge of DX (11% globally).

The Digital Transformation: The Key to Getting it Right report was conducted by International Data Corporation (IDC), and commissioned by Avaya Holdings