In a fragile global economy based on uncertainty the flexibility of the business sector Support the impact of challenges stable is important. Digital Transformation Therefore, it is a secret weapon that helps maintain stability. Increase business capability Mr. Jareeporn Jarukornsakul, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Group CEO of WHA Corporation Public Company Limited shared their experiences with the participants of Mission X: The Boot Camp of Advanced Corporate Transformation Class 4 as follows:

The Future is Faster Than You Think

In an era where technology is growing by leaps and bounds causing rapid change Being able to predict is therefore a key factor for success. Khun Jareeporn said that if anyone sees a trend, they see an opportunity. in planning and creating a new business model for the businesspeople need to look to the future. must think in advance from the experience of doing business in Jareeporn for more than 30 years, never feel comfortable, each year there will be a test all the time. How to win in the arena of change?

Since 2020, technology is changing very fast. when looking back at our house in addition to not keeping up with technology, the regulator is still somewhat lagging. If it is a foreign country, it will be released first, and the Regulator will watch closely. If not, it will hit the brakes. If yes, then let go. But in Thailand, we have a lot of prohibitions to get stuck. So, nothing new will happen.

The world's mega-trends that businesspeople must keep an eye on. 1.Technological Change Rapid technology change. 2.Geopolitical Tensions, Geographical Conflicts 3. Supply Chain Resilience, Change of Production, and Investment Bases 4. Rapid Urbanization, Urban Management, and Infrastructure Adjustment 5. Climate Change & Resource Stress Climate change and stress from Use Resources 6. Demographic Shift Increasing the aging population, middle class, modern workers 7. Health Awareness Using technology to take care of the health and well-being of individuals.

As for Technologies Trend, exponentially changing rapidly, smaller, faster, cheaper. Examples of upcoming technologies include 5G, Internet of Things, Blockchain, Quantum Computing, Process Automation & Visualization, Cloud & Edge Computing, and Metaverse. New economy with technology including Metaverse, NFTs, Blockchain, Crypto, Smart Contract, DeFi, DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations) Organizations that are written in the form of computer instructions on Smart Contracts in the Blockchain)

The New World Order

What will happen to the world after the Covid-19 situation in addition to the return of the recovering tourism sector, 5G technology and Quantum Computing are about to revolutionize the face of industries like never. And prolonged geopolitical tensions will inevitably affect the global trade system. At the same time, higher inflation around the world is something that businesses must pay special attention to, Khun Jareeporn said.·         Re-Opening Around the World: Opening the city after covid causing the recovery of tourism the tourism business will be active again.

          ·    Rising Geopolitical Tensions: Geopolitical conflicts will affect international trade. and the Russo-Ukrainian War How will it be? Khun Jareeporn views that conflicts have been around for a long time, it's a common thing that happens repeatedly, of course, affecting the world. But for Thailand, not much because Thailand is neutral. And Thailand will have opportunities from export businesses such as food due to the depreciation of the baht.

      ·    Redefining the Supply Chain: From the Covid crisis, new sources of supply chain have been found. to spread the risk if a crisis arises will not affect the supply chain system in the future

      ·     A Pivot to Indo-Pacific: Thailand’s Advantages: The United States has placed greater emphasis on the Indo-Pacific region. This will benefit Thailand because Thailand is in the center of Southeast Asia, which is considered a Strategic Location for being a production and export base in this region.

     ·    Inflation and a Global Debt Crisis: causing inflation around the world as a result, interest rates have been raised in many countries. and could lead to an economic recession. when the situation is like this Businesses must be prepared to deal with rising interest rates. by preparing liquidity for both short and long term

    ·     Green Planet: Sustainable business development or ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) is something that businesses must focus on. because it helps build credibility to the business in the future

    ·    Driving the Future with Electric Vehicles: Electric cars will be a future economic driver. By 2030, 30% of all cars produced in Thailand will be electric vehicles, and Mr. Jareeporn views that Thailand will become a hub for right-hand drive electric vehicles in the future.

      ·    Oil Shortage and Food Insecurity: Oil shortage from Russia-Ukraine      crisis and food insecurity is emerging.

From New Normal to New Future

 

 COVID-19 has inevitably affected all sectors. Both consumer behavior and people's lifestyles have changed. Including business operations that require technology to support the change in the New Normal, what will happen in the future after COVID-19?

 

•  The Rise of E- Commerce: In 2021, global e-commerce will grow by $4.9 trillion. and is expected to grow by 50 percent in 2025 to a value of $7.4 trillion.
•  Changes in Healthcare Industry: Changing health care beyond treatment but it is a health planning with technology to prevent, predict, before the occurrence of illness.
• Demographic Trends Reshaping Health & Wellness: The population aged 65 and over continues to rise, with a global aging of 1.2 billion by 2035, and an increase in the middle class, by 2030 globally 65%. Gen Z, a new generation of consumers who care about health and the environment.
• Seize the Opportunities from Digitization Trend: Digital Transformation It will help increase efficiency, productivity, manage resources, help businesses adapt quickly. According to Gartner, 93% of organizations that invested in technology before the pandemic Able to adapt quickly during COVID-19
  
  

Digital Innovation & Transformation

Khun Jareeporn shared her experience in doing Digital Transformation of WHA Group that in 2017, he started doing it even though at that time the company was not ready. But to wait for everything to be ready, it may be too late. Therefore, we started doing Digital Innovation first. The method was to bring new generations into the company. While the older generation will organize training for everyone to realize that the organization needs to be transformed, in 2021, Digital Transformation has begun. According to a survey of corporate executives in Thailand, 98% think they must, but most tend to hire consultants to do it. But in the view of Khun Jareeporn I see that the CEO must know what the company should transform, what should the business model be? Not for a consultant to tell. for consultants It should help in things that we don't know, such as AI.

When WHA started doing that, there was no tech team at all. The approach was to team up with a well-established Tech Company. Which Khun Jareeporn sees that it's better than hiring new people to work. Because it may not be compatible with the culture of the organization. The misconception about Digital Transformation is that strategy is what makes it successful. but in fact, what makes it successful is the ability to act.

Khun Jareeporn said that Digitalization It's the first mission. of organizations to do, but only 2-3 organizations are successful According to Deloitte's 2020 Digital Transformation survey, 13% are successful in improving business performance and sustaining long-term performance. 21% achieved improvements in business performance but failing to sustainably improve performance over the long term, 59% were relatively successful in improving performance and 7% were unsuccessful in improving performance.

What are the factors that make Digital Transformation successful? 1) Digital Strategy and targets Have a clear roadmap and measurable KPIs. 2) Organizational Structure for Digital Transformation Optimize the structure, don't do it like a silo. 3) Pilot Projects That Use a Test and Learn Approach learn from mistakes 4) Talent and Capabilities attract new talent and build up the old. 5) Ecosystem to create cooperation between each other such as joint projects, investments, joint ventures. 6) Culture Change the corporate culture. promote understanding Reward or Create a Role Model. Khun Jareeporn also added that “Top Management has to come down and play. But I don't use the word Top Down but call it "Bash Dao". You have to beat people to understand that you have to do it.” Misconceptions about Digital Transformation Another point is that it's not a separate project, but something that all departments in the organization must do together. Another thing is that it's about technology. but in fact, also including people corporate culture and ecosystem as well. Choose to do only the critical parts before doing all of them.

WHA Group Path with Technology Empowerment Strategy

WHA Group was established in 2003 and consists of 4 main businesses 1. Logistics: WHA Corporation Public Company Limited 2. Industrial Development: WHA Industrial Company Development Public Company Limited 3. Utilities and Energy: WHA Utilities and Power Public Company Limited and 4. Digital Platform: WHA Info Nit Co., Ltd. The WHA Group has laid out strategies to drive the organization with innovation as follows: 2021 - Digital Transformation Use technology to enhance your business Increase operational efficiency in 2022 -Innovative Workplace, an innovative organization Generate revenue from new products and services with innovations based on customer demand 2023 - Data Driven Organization Use Data to Drive Organizations increase competitive advantage Creating Innovations from Data 2024 – Turning to Digital Company, becoming a fully digital company.

The WHA Group's concept of Digital Innovation and Digital Transformation is to bring technology and innovation deeply rooted within the WHA Group's business. As for Digital Innovation, it starts with initiating new products and services with innovations that respond to the needs of customers and business partners. While doing Digital Transformation Starting from the back of the house by providing the technology infrastructure to be ready for change and new technologies to increase efficiency Prevent and reduce the impact of interruptions, increase productivity, reduce

In addition, WHA Innovation Bootcamp is organized within the organization to 1. Increase the potential of people in the organization 2. Develop Innovation Project with outside experts to advise. 3. Find new initiatives to solve problems in the organization. that can be developed and further developed into a new business

Even though the technology storm is raging relentlessly, but if the organization has prepared the Digital Transformation weapon ready, it will be able to survive. stand firm Competitive potential in an era where nothing is true and certain anymore Before we parted, Khun Jareeporn has concluded that “Do not be afraid of change. because people have to live with change Do not be afraid of ignorance because we have to learn all the time.”

 

Source: Mission X: The Boot Camp of Advanced Corporate Transformation, Class 4 by Khun Jareeporn Jarukornsakul, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Group Chief Executive Officer of WlingHA Corporation Public Company Limited on June 28, 2022 at the Siam Commercial Bank Headquarters.