Vietnam currently has about 800,000 enterprises, 97% of which are SMEs, which utilise 51% of the country’s total workforce and contribute 40% of GDP. With such contributions, their role in the economy has been growing more and more important.
For many years, SMEs have received various forms of support from the Government, with the most recent being a decree guiding the implementation of the Law on Support for SMEs. In addition, the Ministry of Information and Communication and the Ministry of Planning and Investment have rolled out a number of programmes to support SMEs in adopting digital transformation in order to overcome the impacts of COVID-19 and look towards the sustainable business model.
Quang Nam Province-based Phu Tuong Garment Company is one of the first garment makers in the central region to adopt digital transformation in its production management from receiving materials to finalising orders for export.
With the new management system, Phu Tuong Garment is now able to solve many common management issues of the past, helping to make the production process run smoothly while improving factory productivity.
Prior to digital transformation, Yody, a fashion brand with over 160 stores throughout the country and about 4,000 employees, faced many difficulties when remotely managing data on its personnel.
Yody opted to use 1Office to digitalise the entire staff management process, allowing personnel data to be updated in a timely and accurate manner. All tasks related to personnel can now be performed online on any smart device and from anywhere.
A number of enterprises which pioneered in digital transformation and recorded certain achievements are now offering solutions to other enterprises to join the transformation in the digital age.
Lazada is one of them, with the company having worked with many ministries, sectors, localities and enterprises to organise training activities aimed at enhancing the digital transformation capacity for enterprises.
The company has established a system of academies and provided digital transformation tools and applications to help sellers in the system and other enterprises perform more effectively. Lazada has many initiatives to connect enterprises and entrepreneurs and has built a community of sellers with more than 49,000 members helping one another to grow.
According to FPT Chairman Truong Gia Binh, the most important factor in digital transformation is mindset, and that depends on those in leadership positions.
It is necessary to support SMEs in implementing digital transformation by motivating them to adapt to the common economic development goal. In addition, to support enterprises in digital transformation, the Government needs to improve the delivery of online public administrative services and support enterprises in taking their products and services to the digital environment. At the same time, cybersecurity needs to be guaranteed to protect the fruits of digital transformation.
With its SMEs, Vietnam is well positioned to create and take charge of an ecosystem of digital products and services with rapid and sustainable growth, helping to realise the goal of national modernisation and developing the digital economy.
