The coronavirus pandemic is shaking up many businesses across Da Nang, but it is offering them the opportunity to boost digital transformation and build improved digital platforms.

Employees of the FPT Software Da Nang

Since the social distancing measures were put in place nationwide for 3 weeks starting from early April, small to large-sized enterprises in Da Nang have moved to a work-from-home model to keep their services uninterrupted during the pandemic.

Amongst them is the STUnited Co., Ltd. located in Ngu Hanh Son District.

Director of the company Bui Ngoc Vinh said his company used technology applications to communicate or work when national social distancing measures were introduced in the city.

For instance, such free software as Trello and Redmine were used by the company to organise and manage project workflows, whilst Slack, Skype and Telegram apps allowed the company’s employees to communicate with each other more conveniently. Also, people used apps like Zoom and Google Hangouts for meetings.

In a similar vein, the Hai Chau District-based DataHouse Asia Consulting JSC asked its employees to work from home to reduce their risk of exposure to Covid-19.

Mr Nguyen Xuan Huy from the DataHouse Asia Company said his company used Slack app to communicate, and Jira app to assign work, follow team activity, and manage projects from start to finish.

However, it cannot be denied that the pandemic forces local businesses to promote the application of digital technologies in their activities in a faster manner.

Amid coronavirus fears, many shops in the city have focused on selling their products on the internet in order to meet the growing demand of customers.

Mr Do Giang Chung, Deputy Director of Tradeline Viet Nam, an e-commerce website, remarked, in the first quarter of the year, thousands of commercial transactions were implemented on his online trading platform.

Meanwhile, Cashbag, a mobile application where you get cash back by shopping goods and services online through Cashbag’s affiliate links, has been continuously amongst the most downloaded apps on Google Play. This has proved the demand for online shopping is soaring.  

To grasp this opportunity, the Software Development Centre (SDC) of the University of Da Nang developed a free online videoconferencing tool for the educational sector called Click&Meet in mid-April.

Dr Trinh Cong Duy, Deputy Director of the SDC, said that Click&Meet can run your meetings free-of-charge with up to 200 people on video. He added the purpose of the app is to help schools and government agencies nationwide use a ‘made-in-Viet Nam’ and highly confidential software.

According to technological experts, digital transformation in organisations and businesses is the process of changing from traditional models to digital enterprises by applying new technologies such as big data, the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence and cloud computing. It also changes operation and leadership methods, working processes and corporate culture.

The use of new, fast changing digital technology brings many benefits such as cutting operating costs, reaching more customers in a shorter time, quicker and more accurate decisions thanks to timely reporting systems, thereby enhancing the operational efficiency and competitiveness of organisations and businesses.

By PHONG LAN - Translated by MAI DUNG