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DIRECTORY OF SINGAPORE PROCESS & CHEMICALS INDUSTRIES 2021/2022
while more than half (54%) reported delays in their digitalisation plans due to Covid-19.
Despite higher adoption of digital transformation, only two in five companies (39%) surveyed perceive their digital implementation to be successful – a slight improvement from 28% two years ago.
It said more than three-quarters (80%) of Singapore SME leaders are now aware of the term ‘digital transformation’, up from 57% since the last study in 2018.
The study revealed that cost remained a top barrier, with just over half (56%) of the SMEs saying that they found it too expensive to digitalise due to high implementation costs. Other factors mentioned included “digital skills gap, and low awareness of government initiatives to support firms in their digital transformation journeys”.
In another survey conducted by Microsoft and IDC Asia-Pacific in September 2020 showed that 73% of Singapore SMEs “had accelerated the pace of digitalisation in response to the pandemic”.
In contrast, the ASME-Microsoft study found that only 30% of SMEs indicated that they were forced to digitalise due to Covid-19, with most reporting delays in their digital transformation plans.
Meanwhile the Singapore Government has continued to urge industries to adopt digital solutions for the sustenance and growth of their business in the face of more challenges expected in the on-going pandemic and in the new normal.
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