april 2021 retail digital pulse...hypermarkets/big box stores), and investigated their digital...

IDC InfoBriefA p r i l 2 0 2 1

IDC Doc. #AP241238IB

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Asia/Pacific

Retail DigitalPulse

IDC InfoBrief The Digital pulse of Asian retail2

E x E C u t I v E s u m m a R y

The retail sector has undergone dramatic changes in 2020. The shift to digital has accelerated, with many organizations speeding up their digital transformation journey. As we move into a post-COVID-19 operating environment, we have seen some retail businesses survive and thrive while others are still struggling.

To understand the current state of retail digital transformation, Google Cloud commissioned IDC Retail Insights to conduct research into Asia/Pacific’s retail digital pulse and develop a Google Cloud Retail Digital Index.

IDC analyzed 1,108 retailers across seven countries (Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, South Korea, India, Thailand, and Indonesia) and across eight different segments (online, drugstores, specialty shops, convenience stores, department stores, restaurants, supermarkets, and hypermarkets/big box stores), and investigated their digital maturity across five dimensions – strategy, people, data, technology, and process – to arrive at a digital pulse score.

Overall, of the five dimensions that make up the digital pulse, strategy and process are the highest ranked, with technology at the bottom.

This IDC InfoBrief analyzes Asia’s retail digital pulse, and identifies the use case focus areas and technology adoption of retailers across the four different stages of maturity, with the aim of providing a framework to assist retailers in developing their digital roadmap for the future.

The adoption of use cases and technology shows marked differences:

Use case adoption among retailers shows that for Stage 1,2 and 3, the focus is on the

theme of marketing/customer acquisition.

The orientation towards merchandising, logistics, and fulfillment is seen across

all stages.

Stage 4 organizations stand out in their adoption of omni-channel commerce

and product lifecycle management (PLM). Specific use case adoption shows a much greater focus on personalization, and product discovery and search.

Technology implementation for Stage 1, 2, and 3 organizations have focused

on the base technologies: security, customer engagement platforms, collaboration platforms, content management applications, and analytics.

In analyzing the factors that were hindering Asia/Pacific retailers’ adoption of digital, having a digital transformation roadmap in place surfaced as the top challenge.

The Stage 4 difference is the adoption of “as-a-service” technologies: software as a service (saas), Infrastructure as a service (IaaS), and Platform as a Service (PaaS).

the current digital pulse of asian retail is low, with only 2% of retailers at stage 4 (digitally resilient) and 55% at stage 1 (digital participant). there is variation across markets and segments with, respectively, australia and pure online players being the most advanced digitally.


Source: IDC-Google Cloud Asia/Pacific Retail Digital Pulse Survey 2021, AP n = 1,108

Retail is one of the sectors most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. For businesses to continue operating, retailers have had to embrace digital to not only satisfy customer demand, but also support back-office operations.

Just over half of Asian retailers are back to growth mode, but there is significant variation across geographies and segments.

In assessing the business confidence of Asia/Pacific retailers, the results are mixed:

An average of 52% of retailers said they were returning to growth and planning for the future, and 39% said they were still in survival mode.

Indonesia retailers were the most optimistic, and Australia the least.

Across the different segments, online retailers were the most confident, with convenience stores the least optimistic.

Digitalization Is Key to Success As part of the retail digital pulse research, we also explored the impact of digital technologies over the past year:

8 out of 10 Asia/Pacific retailers said that digitalization was essential for success.

They said being digital had assisted in growing revenues or mitigating declines:

• 43% believed it has helped them increase revenues, 31% maintain revenues, and 27% mitigate decline.

• Restaurants saw the greatest

impact with 72% stating that being digital helped drive up revenues.

thaIlanD

InDonEsIa

InDIa

south KoREa

sIngaPoRE

hong Kong

austRalIa

ovERall

ovERall

hyPERmaRKEts/BB

REstauRants

ConvEnIEnCE

DRugstoREs

suPERmaRKEts

DEPaRtmEnt

sPECIalty

onlInE

m a R K E t Which one best describes where your organization currently is?

s E g m E n t Which one best describes where your organization currently is?

Business Continuity/Economic slowdown: We are responding

to the crisis and focused on business continuity/As our revenue slows down, we are in cost optimization mode.

Recession: As our revenue is expected to be in prolonged

decline, we are focused on building business resiliency.

Return to growth/next normal: As our revenue is returning, we are looking

to more aggressively invest/As our business stabilizes into what is now the new normal, we are working to operate as a digital enterprise as we see it vital to the success of our business.

38.6% 9.3% 52.1%

44.7% 8.2% 47.2%

39.2% 13.3% 47.5%

44.3% 8.7% 47.0%

42.7% 9.3% 48.0%

36.8% 11.3% 51.9%

35.1% 10.1% 54.8%

39.9% 8.0% 52.1%

29.3% 6.7% 64.0%

38.6% 9.3% 52.1%

47.0% 7.5% 45.5%

28.0% 6.5% 65.5%

31.5% 18.5% 50.0%

41.2% 10.8% 48.0%

36.9% 12.6% 50.5%

47.6% 8.7% 43.7%

43.0% 54.5%2.5%

asian Retail today

Retail Challenges


the Retail Digital Pulse (RDP)The RDP aims to assess how Asia/Pacific retailers are digitalizing, building resiliency, and developing competencies to enable them to compete in a post-COVID world.

The RDP assessment gauges retailers’ digital maturity in five different areas – strategy, process, people, technology, and data – across a 4-stage digital pulse index, with 4 being the most mature.

The overall digital pulse of retailers is low, with only 2% of retailers that can be considered to be at Stage 4, and 55% at Stage 1.

In order to move to Stage 4, retailers need to address all the five dimensions, and advance at a similar cadence.

the opportunityWith 79% of organizations at Stage 1 (digital participant), or Stage 2 (digital explorer), there is the opportunity for organizations to develop and implement their digital strategy and break away from their competitors.

Digital resiliency implies that an organization has the foundation of technology and use cases in place that enables constant innovation in all aspects of the business, from store operations to customer acquisition, merchandising, logistics and fulfillment, omni-channel commerce, and PLM.

Digitally resilient organizations are able to respond quickly to external forces and to continuously innovate, driven by internal goals.

Organizations at Stage 4 are in the driving seat to fast track digital and have the potential to disrupt the market through its ability to introduce innovative new business models.

t h E 4 s t a g E s o f D I g I t a l m a t u R I t y The overall digital pulse of Asia/Pacific retailers is low, with slightly over half at Stage 1.


The Digital Pulse of Asia/Pacific Retail

s t a g E 1

Digital ParticipantLack of an organization-wide innovation and transformation approach coupled with legacy and siloed IT infrastructure, data assets, processes, and human resources.

s t a g E 2

Digital ExplorerTactical DX and innovation initiatives aimed at reactive interventions through technology, data, processes and people to accomplish short term business objectives.

s t a g E 4

Digitally ResilientEnterprise wide, dynamic and disruptive approach towards DX and innovation, supported by executive leadership and established processes, and enabled through a cloud-first and data-ready culture to achieve both short-term and long-term business objectives.

s t a g E 3

Digital aspirantConcerted effort in planning and managing DX initiatives through well-laid technology infrastructure and data management strategies, processes, and human resources for inter-departmental business metrics.

55% 24%

19%

2%


As we look toward economic recovery and the next normal, the key to success will be digital resilience.

The IDC-Google Cloud RDP survey reveals that the overall average scores of Asia/Pacific retailers are low, with 55% in Stage 1.

Advancing to the next stage will require retailers to take a digital approach to the five index dimensions, and implement a plan to progress across all of these areas. These five dimensions, which all organizations need to have in place to drive digitalization are:

strategy focuses on innovation strategy, and digital transformation strategy.

technology explores the technology approach for infrastructure and cloud adoption.

People looks at change management and transformation culture.

Data/intelligence examines the management and the use of data.

Process automation and change management reviews the approach to both.

While the pulse survey reveals that overall average is low, organizations that have invested in digital (Stage 4) have moved ahead of their peers and set new benchmarks, as shown by the gap between the 2% of organizations that are at Stage 4 (digitally resilient), versus those that are in Stage 1,2, and 3.

Focusing on just one dimension will not lead to digital resilience. Progress has to be made across all the dimensions to build digital resilience.

there are variations across the five dimensions:

The most advanced dimensions retailers have in place are strategy and process. However, though the plans in place, the lowest ranking dimension is technology implementation.

Once retailers have progressed beyond Stage 1, the process dimension becomes the most mature, as change management and process efficiencies become the focus.

There is significant variation across geographies and segments.

D I g I t a l P u l s E I n D E x - D I m E n s I o n soverall average

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

People

strategy

Data/Intelligence

technologyProcess

D I g I t a l P u l s E I n D E x - D I m E n s I o n s

People

strategy

Data/Intelligence

technologyProcess

s t a g E 1Digital Participant

s t a g E 2Digital Explorer

s t a g E 3Digital aspirant

s t a g E 4Digitally Resilient

the Drive for Digital Resilience

about RDP



The index was developed by analyzing 1,108 retailers that employ at least 250 employees across the Asia/Pacific region. The respondents are management level, including business owners, CEOs and departmental heads with influence over IT purchasing decisions. They were tested on their progress in digital resilience across five areas: strategy, people, process, technology, and data/intelligence.

People

strategy

Data/Intelligence

technology

Process

No long-term innovation strategy; DX initiatives are fragmented

Limited by change management challenges & lack of executive support in DX initiatives

Lack of continuous process improvement initiatives

Rely on legacy and uncoordinated groups of IT infrastructure with no or limited focus on leveraging cloud and data platforms

Lack of business data visibility and taxonomy

DX initiatives are tactical, and focused on immediate customer and product gains

Ad hoc DX initiatives driven by cross-functional teams across specific business functions

Process changes are reactive in nature and are launched to address ad-hoc issues

Cross-channel data sharing supported by siloed business processes and applications

Data analysis done in siloes and supports limited process objectives

DX strategy cuts across products, services and customer experiences but is tactical in nature

Culture transformation and end-to-end DX program in place but has limited budget and resources for implementation

Focused teams that manage continuous process improvement and drive business innovations

Data sharing between multiple ecosystem partners supported by cloud enabled analytics frameworks

Availability of data management platforms across the organization with standard definition sets

DX strategy is disruptive and dynamic in nature

Culture transformation driven by executive leadership with organization-wide participation in DX initiatives

Process transformations are iterative in nature and are embedded in organization’s DNA

Cloud-first strategy with outcomes such as hyper personalization driven by cognitive and contextual data inputs

Insights generated are holistic in nature and data monetization is a key aspect of business strategy

Digital Participant Digital Explorer Digital aspirant Digitally Resilient

s t a g E 1 s t a g E 2 s t a g E 3 s t a g E 4

the Retail Digital Index



The scores represented here are the average for each market. Within each market, there are retailers that are more digitally advanced and those that are less so.

Examining the maturity of retailers by geography, the developed economies are the most mature. However, they are still, on average, at Stage 2. singapore is the most mature, edging close to Stage 3.

In the developing/emerging economies, all are digital participants, which is Stage 1 of the digital pulse, with India being the most mature, followed by Thailand, and then Indonesia.

Exploring the scores by dimension:

Singapore, South Korea, and India are the most mature in the strategy index score.

Hong Kong, Australia, and Indonesia are the most mature in the process index score (note that the South Korea score is equally high).

Thailand is the most mature in the people score.

All markets have the opportunity to improve their score and advance in their digital pulse. However, all dimensions have to be developed concurrently in order to progress in the digital journey.

The Market Highlights section will explore further the opportunities and challenges for each geography.

D I g I t a l P u l s E I n D E x - m a t u R I t y s t a g E s B y m a R K E t

All retailers N = 1,108

Dig

ital

tran

sfor

mat

ion

dim

ensi

on

InDIathaIlanD

InDonEsIa

sIngaPoREhong KongaustRalIa

south KoREa


D I g I t a l P u l s E I n D E x D I m E n s I o n B y m a R K E t

strategy

technology

People

Data/Intelligence

Process

Indonesia thailand India south Korea australia hong Kong singapore

Diving Deeper: market Digital Pulse

findings



D I g I t a l P u l s E I n D E x - m a t u R I t y s t a g E s B y s E g m E n t

D I g I t a l P u l s E I n D E x - m a t u R I t y s t a g E s B y s E g m E n t The index shown here represents the average scores by segment. Within each segment, there are those that are more digitally mature, and those that are less so.

There is a big difference across the digital maturity of the different segments. online pure play leads in digital maturity, followed by department stores, with supermarkets and specialty stores all at Stage 2 - digital explorer.

At Stage 1 - digital participant - we have convenience stores, hypermarkets/big boxes, restaurants/food services and drugstores.

All segments have seen a shift to digital over the last year to enable retailers to continue to operate. However, while some accelerated their digital transformation, with the roadmap and foundational technology already in place, others had to start from scratch and develop roadmaps in conjunction with implementing the base levels of technology, while ensuring the business could still run.

Exploring the scores by dimensions:

Online pure plays lead in all the five dimensions.

Strategy and process are the most mature in all segments except for convenience stores and hypermarkets/big boxes where technology is the most mature dimension.

Drugstores Restaurants/ food services

Convenience stores

hypermarkets/Big box

specialtystores

supermarkets Department stores

online pure plays

All retailers N = 1,108

Dig

ital

tran

sfor

mat

ion

dim

ensi

on


DRugstoREs

REstauRants/ fooD sERvICEs

ConvEnIEnCE stoREs

hyPERmaRKEts/BIg Box

sPECIalty stoREssuPERmaRKEts

DEPaRtmEnt stoREsonlInE PuRE Plays

Diving Deeper: segment Digital Pulse

strategy

technology

People

Data/Intelligence

Process



The journey to digital resilience is not a simple one. It consists of a number of use cases that when integrated, and with the right underlying technology, provide a digital framework using data to make improved business decisions.

Based on the analysis, we see three clear stages of use case theme adoption.

stage 1: Digital Participant. This is the “starting” phase on the roadmap to digital resilience. It is predominantly focused on the optimization of current processes, with an additional focus on marketing/customer acquisition use cases.

stage 2-3: Digital Explorer/aspirant. As digital adoption matures, the focus shifts to merchandising, and logistics and fulfillment. Typically, the use cases here are developed from those in Stage 1, taking the data and output and building on that with other use cases to enable and optimize more complex parts of the business.

stage 4: Digitally Resilient. The most mature use cases are being deployed by those retailers in Stage 4. The focus is on omni-channel commerce, and PLM. This continues from building on past use cases in the preceding stages and enables the digitalization of the most complex processes supporting an improved customer experience, and optimized processes.

Across all the stages, there is a focus on store operations (not applicable for pure online players) and the other enabling technologies (back-end process, e.g., finance and HR).

Marketing optimization

Customer data platform (CDP)

t o P 5 u s E C a s E s B y D P I s t a g E

u s E C a s E a v E R a g Es t a g E 1 s t a g E 2 s t a g E 3 s t a g E 4


Personalization

Inventory optimization

Demand planning, allocations, assortments

Product discovery & search

Personalized recommendations

Optimizing sourcing

Pricing/Promotion/Markdown optimization

Social listening

loyalty program/ customer relationship management

#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#8

#14

#15

#16

#17

#2

#3

#1

#5

#4

#4

#1

#5

#3

#2

#1

#4

#2

#5

#3

#5

#4

#2

#3

#1

C h a R a C t E R I s t I C s o f s t a g E 4 R E t a I l E R s

social listeningMonitoring social channels for comments about your brand, competitors, products, etc.

Stage 4 retailers pivot towards more advanced use cases that are focused on:

Product discovery and searchImproving the shopping experience by supporting the discovery of products and associated merchandise through search terms, text, voice and visual, and item associations.

Personalization and recommendationsImproving the overall customer experience by treating every customer as an individual.

the Journey to stage 4 Digital Resilience Use Cases Adoption



Technology adoption across the different stages shows a distinct variation between those retailers in Stage 4 and those in Stage 1,2, and 3.

Stage 4 retailers have a key focus on “as-a-service” technologies, with Software as a Service (SaaS) ranked number 1 and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) ranked number 2.

In comparison, those organizations at the other three stages emphasized security and customer engagement applications.

The gap between those at the lower 3 stages and those at Stage 4 is huge, as uncovered by the digital pulse findings,

and only 2% of organizations are at Stage 4.

The “as-a-service” model departs substantially from the traditional approach of on-site IT and requires a different mindset and approach to managing technology. However, it is clear that this is a distinct differentiator in facilitating the journey to digital resilience.

When provisioning to lay the foundation for digital transformation and enabling the digital journey, the “base” digital technologies are security, customer engagement platforms, collaboration platforms, content management, and analytics.

K E y t E C h n o l o g y a D o P t I o n B y m a t u R I t y s t a g E

t E C h n o l o g y a v E R a g Es t a g E 1 s t a g E 2 s t a g E 3 s t a g E 4


security technologies

Customer engagement applications

Collaboration platforms

Content management applications

analytics software

software as a service (saas)

Infrastructure as a service (Iaas)

#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#1

#3

#4

#5

#2

#1

#2

#4

#3

#5

#1

#4

#2

#3

#5

#4

#5

#3

#1

#2

the Journey to stage 4 Digital Resilience Technology Adoption



The challenges to digital transformation are enormous. Asia/Pacific retailers cited a number of challenges, with the lack of a transformation roadmap topping the list. The key priority for retailers is really to develop a plan of how to get from A to B, detailing the use cases and technology required to implement those use cases, and enabling the use cases to build upon each other.

The difficulty of having the right technologies in place was highlighted in the digital pulse as it was the lowest scoring dimension. It is essential to think about what the technology architecture is going to be.

The results have shown that those at Stage 4 have a greater focus on “as-a-service” technologies, so questions as to whether this should be embraced at an early stage of the roadmap or deployed at a later stage need to be considered.

Organizational issues such as digital mindset, budget, and senior leadership commitment are all challenges highlighted, but there are regional differences.

It is interesting to note that while Singapore is the highest ranked country, the shortage of digital skills was brought up as a challenge, underscoring the competitiveness of the market in finding talent, as well as the need to deploy the latest technology.

t o P 5 C h a l l E n g E s f o R o R g a n I z a t I o n s

t o P 3 C h a l l E n g E s

C h a l l E n g E s t o t a l a u s t R a l I a hong Kong I n D I a s I n g a P o R E south KoREa I n D o n E s I a t h a I l a n D

#1

#2

#3

Lack of a proper digital transformation roadmap

Lack of the necessary technologies to enable digital transformation

Lack of a digital mindset/cultural challenges

Lack of budget/commitment from management

Digital transformation is not well understood at senior levels

#3

#1

#2

#3

#2

#1

#3

#3

#2

#1

#3

#1

#3

#2

#2

#1

#3

#1

#2

#3

#3

#1

#2

lack of a proper digital transformation roadmap

lack of necessary technologies to enable digital transformation

lack of digital mindset/ cultural challenges

shortage of digital skills and talent

lack of operational and customer data

the RoI for digital transformation is not clear

lack of budget/commitment from management

Digital transformation is not understood at senior levels

Retailers across all markets cite lack of a digital transformation roadmap as a top 3 challenge. Developing markets cite lack of technology more than developed markets.

overcoming the Challenges



The opportunity is out there for retail organizations to accelerate their digital adoption, but speed is critical in a dynamic and increasingly uncertain environment. COVID-19 underlines the fact that black swan events can throw the best-laid plans into disarray in

a flash, but being digitally resilient will go a long way in ensuring business survival and success.

EmBRaCE digital.

DEvEloP a clear roadmap adopting use cases and technologies identified in this research as a starting point.

Plan - leverage the use case map to help you plan and focus on the key areas as you embark and/or progress in your digital transformation journey.

aDoPt as-a-service technologies as a key differentiator.

PaRtnER - seek out technology partners who can help you on your journey, and explore with them your vision.

a guide for the future

Essential guidance

Essential guidance

The value of digital is clear and has been reinforced by this research; the challenge is how to get there. The key is to understand your digital pulse and then plan your innovation agenda to become a digitally resilient retailer.

Currently, the digital pulse of the majority of retailers is low, but we expect this to increase rapidly over the next few months. To move forward, it is critical to develop a digital transformation roadmap. This must include having a future vision of your organization and getting it communicated across the business.

The use case map shown on the next page can be used as a starting point. Think about what you already have in place; what are your priorities for the future?

In creating the roadmap, seek out technology partners who can help you on your journey, and explore with them your vision – most vendors now have some form of design thinking, ideation, and/or innovation program to assist you in developing that future vision.

Consider your underlying technology infrastructure. Stage 4 digitally resilient organizations stand out in their adoption of “as-a-service models.


Essential guidance Digital Transformation Use Cases GuideThe table below serves as a guide to the key areas and themes to focus on from Stage 1 to 4 in terms of use cases to help you plan your journey to digital resilience.

t h E m E

s t o R E o P E R a t I o n s

o t h E R E n a B l I n g t E C h n o l o g I E s

m a R K E t I n g / C u s t o m E R a C q u I s I t I o n

m E R C h a n D I s I n g

L O g I S T I C S & F u L F I L L M e n T

o m n I - C h a n n E l C o m m E R C E

P R o D u C t l I f E C y C l E m a n a g E m E n t

m a t u R I t y

u s E C a s E

Pick/Pack &task optimization

Loyalty program/CRM

Workforce productivity/

Labor management

Corporatefunctions

Marketingoptimization

Personalizedrecommendations

Inventoryoptimization

Warehousingoperations

optimization

Customer dataplatform

Shrinkagereduction

Demand planning,allocations,

assortments

Vendormanagement

Customercare chatbots

Virtual try on

Social listening

Routeoptimization

Optimizedreturns

experience

Digitally empowered

store associates

Optimizingsourcing

Last milefulfillment

Conversationalcommerce

Trends analysis

Pricing/ Promotion/Markdown

optimization

Real estate

Omni-channelfulfillment promise

Frictionlesscheck-out

Omni-fulfillmentoptimization

Shelf checking

Sustainability – smart buildings, packaging, CO2

footprint

Product discovery& search

Personalization Fraud detection Design

to value



s u R v E y D E m o g R a P h I C s

how IDC Retail Insights arrived at the RDPThe RDP was developed based on the sample population below.

online pure plays

specialty stores

Department stores

supermarkets (grocery)

Drugstores

Convenience stores

Restaurants/food services

hypermarkets/Big box

R E t a I l t y P E D E s C R I P t I o n E x a m P l E

(100% online sales)

Retailers who specialize in one or a few distinctive categories of products such as electronics, furniture, stationery, apparel, sporting goods, etc.

Large format retailers featuring wide range of products, both private labels and national brands.

Large format retailers predominantly selling groceries.

Carrying medication, health, and beauty/cosmetics products.

Smaller format retailers often with high turnover of goods.

Large format retailers carrying all types of products.

Amazon, Flipkart, eBay, Tokopedia, Lazada, Qoo10, Rakuten, Shopee, etc.

Harvey Norman, IKEA, Popular, Power Buy, Kyobo, etc.

Mustafa, Shoppers Stop, Lotte Department Store, Central, Target, Shinsegae, etc.

Woolworths, NTUC FairPrice, Cold Storage.

Apollo Pharmacy, Olive Young, Priceline, Watsons, Guardian, etc.

7-Eleven, SPAR, FamilyMart, Alfamart, Koryo Mart, etc.

KFC, McDonald’s, Home Original Chicken, J.CO, Starbucks, Café Coffee Day, etc.

Walmart, Tesco, Giant, Carrefour, Homeplus, etc.

R E s P o n D E n t s

1,108in 7 markets:• Australia• Hong Kong• India• Indonesia• South Korea• Singapore• Thailand

I t I n f l u E n C E

Decision makers of their company’s IT purchases

R o l E

Manager-level and above, such as business owners, CEOs, directors, and heads of departments

C o m P a n y s I z E

I n D u s t R I E s

• Online pure plays• Specialty stores• Department

stores• Supermarkets

(grocery)• Drugstores• Convenience

stores• Restaurants/

Food services• Hypermarkets/

Big box

>250 employees

SurveySampleNew



D I g I t a l P u l s E I n D E xs t a g E 1 s t a g E 2 s t a g E 3 s t a g E 4


t o P f I v E D R I v E R s t o D I g I t a l I z E

t o P f I v E C h a l l E n g E s t o D I g I t a l I z a t I o n

t o P f I v E u s E C a s E s

t o P f I v E t E C h n o l o g I E s a D o P t E D

51.0%

50.0%

49.0%

49.0%

46.1%

m a R K E t h I g h l I g h t s

singaporeSingapore leads the pack in maturity, with strategy at Stage 3, and the other dimensions, whilst at Stage 2, coming close to Stage 3. Despite leading the pack, challenges remain around managing the roadmap, making the change happen, and having the right digital skills. The shift to Stage 3 requires improvement in the technology dimension. Mapping digital skills to technology requirements will be crucial for progression as shortage of digital skills may hinder the journey, and the decision on what skills to develop in house will be key.

ovERall

sIngaPoRE

People

strategy

Data/Intelligence

technologyProcess

ovERall

sIngaPoRE

D I g I t a l P u l s E I n D E x

Improve Cx to drive revenue/KPI

optimize core activities/processes

Improve customer reach and convenience

Expand B2B sales by becoming a tech company

simplify/modernize It

lack proper Dx roadmap

Digital skills/talent shortage

lack digital mindset/cultural challenges

lack necessary technologies

lack budget/management commitment


Customer data platform

loyalty program/CRm

vendor management





Customer engagement applications 49.0%

45.1%

36.3%

36.3%

36.3%










55.3%

41.7%

39.8%

35.9%

32.0%





analytics software


hong KongHong Kong ranks second in the DPI and is above the average across all the DPI dimensions. It leads in process for the region, and is weakest in people, which is amplified in the challenges faced when transforming. In order to move to Stage 3, Hong Kong retailers need to focus on the technology and people dimensions. The two dimensions are closely connected - introducing new technology such as automation will improve the operating environment of the employees, thus helping to address people issues.

ovERall

hong Kong

People

strategy

technologyProcess

ovERall

hong Kong






adopt a new business or revenue model




lack operational/customer data


Personalization

marketing optimization



loyalty program/CRm

37.9%

37.9%

34.0%

33.0%

32.0%

Data/IntelligenceSource: IDC-Google Cloud Asia/Pacific Retail Digital Pulse Survey 2021, AP n = 1,108









ovERall

austRalIa

People

strategy

technologyProcess

ovERall

austRalIa


Reduce costs






management doesn’t understand Dx






Personalization

loyalty program/CRm







50.5%

46.6%

40.8%

35.9%

35.9%

43.7%

40.8%

39.8%

39.8%

39.8%

australiaAustralia ranks third in the DPI, with process being in Stage 3, and the other dimensions all in Stage 2. Australia is the most cost conscious of all the countries, with drivers and challenges all related to cost savings. Australian retailers were the most pessimistic in business sentiment, and the market shows a split between those that have embraced digital and are thriving, and those that have not and struggling. For those that are floundering, commitment to a digital strategy, and putting the necessary investment into accelerating the journey to digital resilience, will be key. For those that have already embraced digital, the opportunity to extend into the more advanced use cases, and build on the digital foundation, will enable further differentiation.











analytics software




south KoreaSouth Korea ranks fourth in the DPI, with all dimensions in Stage 2. it is most mature in strategy and process, but all the dimensions are very close in maturity.The drivers to change focus on increasing revenue, and challenges relate to technology and having a roadmap in place. Retailers in South Korea are on the journey to Stage 3 maturity with businesses focusing on optimization of core activities and rethinking their current business model. Matching technology skill requirements to the roadmap will be key to enable the move to Stage 3.

ovERall

south KoREa

People

strategy

technologyProcess

ovERall

south KoREa






Reduce costs









loyalty program/CRm

vendor management

33.5%

28.0%

27.0%

27.0%

26.0%

36.0%

35.5%

34.0%

31.5%

31.0%













analytics software


IndiaIndia ranks fifth overall in the DPI and leads the group of developing countries. It is most mature in strategy, and least mature in data/intelligence. The challengesfor going digital are from the leadership, as well as the lack of a roadmap and clarity over ROI. Understanding what is a digitally resilient retailer is key for Indian retailers. Improving customer experience is underway and will assist in improving the data dimension on their journey to becoming a digitally resilient retailer. Beyond the customer focus, emphasis should also be placed on improving operational processes such as vendor management, demand planning, and warehouse operations.

ovERall

InDIa

People

strategy

technologyProcess

ovERall

InDIa






adopt a new business or revenue model



no clear RoI for Dx



loyalty program/CRm

Personalization

vendor management


Warehousing operations optimization

16.5%

15.0%

14.5%

14.5%

14.5%

60.0%

54.5%

54.5%

53.5%

51.0%













analytics software


thailandThailand ranks sixth in the DPI Index. It is most mature in the people dimension, and least mature in technology. The drivers and challenges focus on technologies – the need to modernize IT, and overcoming the lack of technology. The Thai retail sector has a workforce that is adaptable to change and retailers can capitalize on this on their journey to digital resilience. As a foundation of their digital transformation, retailers need to be clear about what is required to become a digitally resilient retailer, and must modernize the current IT infrastructure to ensure progress in their journey.

ovERall

thaIlanD

People

strategy

Data/Intelligence

technologyProcess

ovERall

thaIlanD














Personalization


loyalty program/CRm

17.0%

15.0%

12.5%

11.5%

8.5%

50.5%

49.5%

47.0%

47.0%

44.5%











analytics software




IndonesiaIndonesia ranks seventh in the DPI index. The most mature is process, with strategy and technology the least mature. The focus is on reaching customers, and improving the experience; however, the challenges are on having a roadmap in place, and the right technologies and mindset. Fundamental to Indonesian retailers’ ability to move forward is understanding what is a digitally resilient retailer, and developing a roadmap to get there. Coupled with this is the need to put in place the right foundational technologies and to start implementing a process for acquiring the appropriate skills.

ovERall

InDonEsIa

People

strategy

Data/Intelligence

technologyProcess

ovERall

InDonEsIa















loyalty program/CRm

Personalization

15.5%

14.0%

13.5%

12.0%

9.5%

59.5%

56.5%

55.0%

54.0%

52.5%



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