Building a digital nation

Since the first personal computing device was introduced almost half a century ago, we have continued our exponential progress toward the digital age. Over the years, this technology paved the way in advancing our knowledge, improved the quality of lives in marginalized areas, and provided innovative communication channels that make the world seem smaller.

Indeed, technological advancements such as this have helped impact the lives of people from all walks of life. Information is now easily accessible to anyone with an Internet connection. That demographic alone represents over 3.249 billion people – almost half of the global population who have the world’s information at their fingertips. With a promising increase in active Southeast Asian Internet users by 12 percent since March 2015, enterprises and governments across the region have taken notice of the opportunities in utilizing digital technologies to introduce innovative measures to their businesses and make government and public services more efficient.

Industry leadership

During the recently concluded APEC SME Summit 2015, local entrepreneurs and students got a glimpse of how global economic and business leaders from AirAsia, FedEx and Uber Technologies Inc., to name a few, utilized technology to stand out in a rapidly expanding business landscape.

Local industry leaders also shared their stories and ideas upon putting up their businesses. Personalities such as Rappler CEO and executive director Maria Ressa, Xurpas president and CEO and PinoyExchange founder Nix Nolledo, and even Filipinos who have succeeded in setting up businesses abroad such as Simple Wearables co-founder and CEO Angelo Umali narrated the challenges that face so-called ‘start-ups,’ and notable accomplishments that their businesses have made since facing these challenges.

Through the whole-day summit, several words were being thrown around in each of the sessions with these leaders. Some of them include ‘innovation,’ ‘disruptive technologies’, ‘connectivity,’ and ‘empowerment.’ These buzzwords may not seem much to everybody, but our reaction as a nation to these words might just impact how well — or terrible — our economy will fare in the years to come.

There is no doubt that the Philippines is seen as one of the most promising countries in the region. With the Rise of Asia Megatrend that Asia Society president Josette Sheeran has seen, this presents a great opportunity for local businesses and entrepreneurs. The rise of digital technologies has created a ripple effect that is changing how global businesses deal with their supply chains and customers alike — it is only logical that the benefit of these technologies trickle down to the local micro, small, and medium enterprises ( MSMEs). Empowering this sector, which represents more than 99 percent of local enterprises in the Philippines alone, would undeniably further propel the country’s already outstanding performance even further.

Disruption at the roots

Already, a handful of enterprises have leveraged technology to revolutionize the way they do business. One of the most discussed subjects during the summit revolves around disruption. Indeed, there have been more and more discussions around the topic of disruptive business practices — both successes and challenges — that show how the traditional business landscape is changing.

The key to disruptive technologies is on how it changes the way we interact, both from a business standpoint and a social standpoint. We’ve already had a taste of this when Facebook gained popularity, paving the way for social networking and the sharing culture. Now, sharing photos, videos, and stories are as instinctive as texting was at the turn of the millennium. David Plouffe, chief advisor and board member of Uber Technologies Inc., now believes this culture has tightly woven itself into our lives that we are now stepping into what he coined as “The sharing economy,” which is part and parcel of Uber, the innovative – and evidently disruptive – ride sharing service that originated in San Francisco in 2010.

With this culture, brands and enterprises need to see the value in communicating with their consumers on a more personal level. The challenge now, however, rests on the operational costs that these initiatives will entail for MSMEs.

Innovation and success

As the role of technology and innovation become more relevant for the business sector, more solutions become available, catered directly to MSMEs who want to reach their audiences in a more intimate level. In fact, this is exactly the reason why PLDT decided to establish PLDT Smart SME Nation to help local businesses step into the digital arena. Undoubtedly, these solutions help level the playing field for MSMEs, but success goes beyond just embracing emerging technology.

One of the key points on the discussion spurred by AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes is that businesses that begin small must use every element at their disposal to gain an edge against its competitors. He made a good point when one of the summit’s attendees raised a question regarding customer service. He claims that he treats complaints on AirAsia’s service as ‘free market research,’ an unpopular view that would only rarely be mentioned within the world’s biggest boardrooms. Innovation doesn’t strictly come from solutions and physical technologies — innovation can also be found in drastic, high-risk but high-reward shifts in business logic and the ways we think about our consumers.

A digital nation to rival a revolution

This then defines how we categorize disruptive businesses — these companies often make decisions and analyses that go against traditional business practices. By thinking outside the traditional entrepreneurship box, and using innovative business solutions that are highly scalable depending on demand, businesses can further close the gap and go head-to-head with multi-national corporations, shaking the foundation of the global business economy.

This highlights the opportunities that MSMEs have in store for them as we continue into the digital world. As one of the region’s most prolific users of social media and digital technologies, the country stands to benefit as a whole provided that we provide our economic backbone, that is, the MSME industry, with the capabilities to penetrate the world’s largest global value chains and fully embrace the benefits that a digital nation has to offer.