Tech & Cloud: India’s ‘Tech Ninjas’ push the pedal on financial development

With the Covid-19 pandemic pushing industries to critically appraise their operations, it has created an urgent shift to digital as firms show resilience and realignment in their businesses which, in turn, will have an impact on India’s economy. Speaking on the financial situation with FE, Arun Singh, chief economist, Dun &amp Bradstreet says, “The Indian economy is showing signs of recovery from the debilitating impact of the pandemic’s second wave.”

A Dun &amp Bradstreet survey observed that regardless of a mapped decline in business enterprise optimism for Q2 2021 (42% as opposed to 71% in Q1 2021), companies are now beginning to really feel more optimistic for Q3, which is in turn anticipated to have a cascading impact on the Indian economy. “In this context, certain sectors like manufacturing, BFSI, e-commerce, IT, and healthcare are part of an accelerated shift which means that they have done relatively well in the past, and the pandemic has simply accelerated their performance. This pandemic has fast-forwarded the digital adoption rate by up to 10 years, and cloud technology has a key role to play in it,” says Singh.

Industries that focused on integrating cutting-edge technologies in their operations are superior equipped to deal with future shocks. “The outbreak sped up the adoption of innovative operating models and digital technologies by several years, especially in key industries like healthcare; pharmaceuticals, e-commerce & retail, manufacturing and BFSI,” claims Prasad Rai, VP, Global Strategic Clients Group at Oracle India. “India is home to some fascinating stories where some of India’s biggest organisations have turned a new leaf by re-inventing themselves via digital transformation using Oracle Cloud while keeping their ground values intact. Riding on technology, India’s manufacturing sector could amplify growth the most, potentially adding 9.6% in annual GDP growth and creating 11 million jobs, from 2023 to 2030. Similarly, industry-specific tech solutions and cloud applications can potentially uplift the health of India’s banking, healthcare, retail and manufacturing sector as well,” he adds.

With the pandemic, there is an enhanced demand for insurance coverage and policy servicing.

“Government initiatives, combined with increased digitisation and technological advancements in the financial space, are driving the insurance sector to accelerate the pace of digital transformation. Emerging technologies are empowering insurance companies to personalise their product and services across the value chain,” says Anjana Rao, CSO, IndiaInitial Life Insurance.

Today, each and every bank is investing heavily on adoption of new age technologies in quite a few processes like cross-border payments, trade finance, intelligent contracts and integrating each front-finish CX and back-finish ERP, EPM to take a holistic method and emerge as a collaborator.

The rise of digital payments in India has had a domino impact on nearly each and every sector, particularly, e-commerce, healthcare and manufacturing. Says Bharath Reddy, vice-president – IT, Flipkart Group, “During the pandemic-induced lockdowns, the e-commerce industry acted as a bridge to ease the supply constraints and ensure India had essentials delivered. As the Digital India campaign remains the Indian government’s top priority and the Indian economy gradually shifts towards a completely digitised economy, the prospect for growth of the industry is huge.”

The pandemic was a boon in disguise for the Indian pharmaceutical sector, strengthening healthcare services in the bargain. Veneeth Purushotaman, Group CIO, Aster DM Healthcare says, “We are working to ensure accessibility and affordability of healthcare across geographies, through effective and smart use of technology. Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is bound to help in improving overall patient experience while reducing the load on clinicians.”

As the manufacturing sector appears to develop its contribution from 15% to 25% of the country’s GDP, the next decade will focus on it adopting cognitive options. Hizmy Hassen, chief digital officer, Apollo Tyres says, “Manufacturing segment needs to be a torchbearer for India’s economic revival. At Apollo Tyres, we’re already witnessing the increased pace of digitalisation, along with technology adoption including AI and Internet of Things.”

Originally appeared on: TheSpuzz