The Croatian Digital Index, a survey of the digital readiness of Croatian companies conducted by the Apsolon company, shows that 59 percent believe the digitisation of Croatian companies is poor or very poor.
The index analyses companies’ preparedness for the challenges which are speedily changing the traditional way of doing business, it was said earlier this week at the presentation of the findings at the Croatian Employers Association.
The survey covered 300 companies – 65 big ones with over 250 employees each and 235 medium-seited ones with 50 to 249 employees each.
According to the findings, 15 percent have a developed digital transformation strategy, 17 percent believe they are fully prepared for the changes digital transformation will bring, and 29.7 percent have digital transformation among their top priorities.
Forty-seven percent of the companies said they believed the digitisation of Croatian companies was poor and 12 percent said it was very poor, with big companies more critical in their assessment.
On the digital readiness scale, Croatian companies were given two out of five, five being the best grade.
The survey shows that Croatian companies are not acquainted enough with digital transformation and most identify it with the digitisation of existing business models and/or analogue processes which, Apsolon experts say, accounts for 40 percent of the digital transformation process in Croatia.
The remaining 60 percent, which includes the development of an innovative business model, the creation of new services or products and building a viable system tending towards innovation and change, is more demanding and requires an active role by company management in the implementation of transformation at all levels, Apsolon representatives said.
The findings also show that digital transformation is mostly run by IT departments (44 percent), board chairmen (26 percent) and board members (15 percent). This shows that Croatian companies’ executives have not recognised the importance of and need for digital transformation.
