The Microsoft Asia Digital Transformation Study 2016 reveals that 92% percent of business leaders in India believe that every organization needs to be a ‘digital organization’ to enable growth for their business. This is ahead of the Asian average of 80%. Indian executives also led their Asian colleagues in placing Cloud Computing as an important element of their digital transformation strategy.

Among Indian respondents, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) are viewed as important and emerging technologies relevant to digital transformation strategies to businesses. 88% Indian respondents believed Cloud computing and decreasing cost of devices make it more affordable for companies of all sizes to access modern technology to gain competitive advantage - ahead of the 81% average across Asia. More Indian respondents also saw Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality as technology relevant to digital transformation among organizations than the rest of Asia.

Digital transformation is not just about digitization of processes — it is about business leaders re-envisioning existing business models and embracing a different way of bringing together people, data, and processes to create value for their customers through systems of intelligence. Today, cloud powered technologies such as IoT, AI and advanced data analytics are creating limitless possibilities in transforming the way people work, live and play. This is ushering in societal and economic changes at an unprecedented pace and organizations need to embrace this transformation to stay relevant,” said Anant Maheshwari, President – Microsoft India.

Commenting on the outcomes of the survey, Ms. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Group said, “Apollo Hospitals is committed to digital transformation that combines the best of information and medical technologies to deliver patient centric, user friendly care, and to transform healthcare processes. Innovative solutions powered by big data analytics and machine learning are supplementing our healthcare workforce through better decision-making. Further, to provide 24X7 quality healthcare services we are using the power of connectivity, mobility devices and platforms to ensure highest efficiency and security levels. I expect IoT based devices to significantly augment the care process in future, such that all models of care are patient centric and not limited to hospitalization episodes. I believe that when individuals, health professionals, researchers, policy makers and civil society come together we can evolve a better health system."

In India, respondents prioritized empowering employees as the top digital transformation priority for the organization, followed by optimizing operations, engaging customers and transforming products and services.

Prioritization of Digital Transformation pillars among India’s business leaders today

The study also revealed that

• 87% Indian respondents feel that new insights from data could lead to new revenue streams  compared to the Asian average of 79%.
• In Asia (49%) and India (53%), respondents indicated that their organization had specific digital transformation strategy in place, and were progressing in their journey to add digital elements.
• Security, lack of digitally skilled workforce, lack of supportive government policies and ICT infrastructure, uncertain economic environment and lack of leadership were ranked as the top five barriers to an organization’s digital transformation journey in India.

Barriers to Digital Transformation in India

Giving his views on the necessity of security, Sachin Gupta, Chief Information Officer, Havells India said, "Internet of Things (IoT) is no more the future, it is the present and it is all around us, all-pervasive, fueled by the huge amount of data generated by the consumers. This is the true digital transformation of the industry, riding on next-gen technologies such as Microsoft Azure. And a strong cybersecurity framework is an essential component of this. We are excited to join hands with Microsoft, and work towards achieving our goal of enhancing our products with IoT, that can provide better experience to our customers".

The Microsoft Asia Digital Transformation Study was undertaken to understand the digital transformation journey and priorities of business leaders working in leading organizations. The study polled business leaders working in mid-sized and large organizations from 13 Asia Pacific countries. Among Indian respondents, there was a high number CEOs, followed by Chief Digital Officers.