‘Business transformation must to revive economy’

Leadership can change an organisation through collaboration and cooperation, and learnings from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic can also help businesses modify their operations faster than was previously thought, said participants in a conference on Saturday.

Such a business transformation requires dynamic leadership, emotional bonding among team members, trust, and above all, readiness to accept innovation and fresh ideas, they said. 

They were addressing a virtual conference of members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh (ICAB). ICAB organised the event titled "Business Transformation: Recipe for Survival and Success."

Yasir Azman, chief executive officer (CEO) of Grameenphone, was the chief guest. ICAB President Muhammad Farooq and former president Dewan Nurul Islam participated in the conference while Jasmine Ahmed, senior vice president of Global Finance Transformation, USA, presented the keynote paper.

Grameenphone's CEO said technology is just a tool for business transformation but real transformation depends on transparency between leadership and members of an organisation.

He said no leadership can change an organisation if leaders in the different ladders do not collaborate and cooperate.

Business change is a must as learning from the ongoing pandemic will help businesses alter their operations faster than what was thought earlier, said Yasir. 

He said, "We will ultimately understand that everything we had before Covid-19 was not good."

Keynote speaker Jasmine explained why the new normal scenario involving working from home should be embraced in the post-Covid-19 economy with a view to running organisations by leveraging the power of the Internet.

She stressed the need to connect with customers along with the expanded delivery services system by applying personalised virtual experiences. 

"A successful transformation strategy delivers three core results: new revenue streams, top-line growth and business optimisation," she further said.

The successful transformation of a business demands a visionary – a bold leader who is able to change the longstanding cultural behaviour to the agility to accept the new normal, said Jasmine.

She thinks finance leaders, especially, should be the catalyst enablers and value creators to incorporate digital technology into modernised business operations.

ICAB President Farooq said the economy and businesses have been hit hard by Covid-19 and the digital transformation of businesses is a must for successful survival.

He said remote virtual meetings are now commonplace and economic activities have increased on a range of digital platforms.

The most obvious changes brought about by the pandemic are the infusion of data-enabled services into all spheres of life, he said. 

"We entered a new era of the 4th Industrial Revolution, which is categorised by not just a technological innovation but a fusion of technologies in our day-to-day life," Farooq said.  

"We must embrace this change. The digital revolution does not respect boundaries or nation states," he added.