Covid-19 has underscored the importance of building resilience through technology. This matter is deeply felt in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), which is expected to be a leading hub of technology and innovation in five years but is currently being challenged by a shortage of talent.
According to the recent GBA Business Technology Report by CPA Australia, 98% of surveyed accounting and finance professionals in the region reported that their business used at least one of the advanced technologies over the past 12 months. These include artificial intelligence (AI), cloud, data analytics and visualisation software, business intelligence (BI) software, customer relationship management software, enterprise resource planning (ERP), and video conferencing and group collaboration tools.
“These advanced technologies have two different aims. Technologies such as AI and BI software enable a company to have better service quality and discover more business opportunities, while IT infrastructure such as ERP enhances the productivity and reduces the cost for a company,” says Paul Sin, a member of CPA Australia’s GBA Committee.
Source: CPA Australia
Respondents from Hong Kong, Macau and mainland GBA cities used video conferencing and group collaboration tools frequently in the 12 months. But, generally speaking, Hong Kong and Macau tend to lag behind their mainland GBA counterparts in using advanced technologies, especially in areas such as AI and customer relationship management systems.
“As open and externally oriented economies, Hong Kong and Macau respondents prioritize these types of tools to enable them to collaborate and interact with non-local clients, stakeholders and employees. On the other hand, as businesses in mainland China have access to a greater pool of data, they are more likely to use data-relevant technologies such as data analytics, AI and BI to improve their business performance and meet customer needs,” Sin observes.
Shortage of technology talent is still one of the major challenges for the innovation-focused GBA. Although 68% of respondents believe that the current workforce in the GBA possesses moderate to high levels of technological skills, over one-third of respondents indicate that a shortage of talent is a major issue hindering further business technology adoption.
The lack of talent is a pain point for larger companies in particular. According to the report, 40% of the respondents from companies with more than 500 employees agree that a shortage of tech talent is a challenge, followed by complex legacy systems (38%) and cybersecurity concerns (37%).
Source: CPA Australia
Smaller companies with less than 500 employees tend to have more concerns about financial constraints (40%), but 31% of such respondents are still troubled by the lack of talent. With the tightened regulation on personal data usage in China, these companies also show concern for data privacy (29%).
“On top of recruiting new tech talent, improving existing employees’ tech capabilities is also important,” notes Albert Wong, a member of CPA Australia’s GBA Committee. “Talent supply and data assets are conducive to creating a sustainable ecosystem to nurture more technology companies in the GBA and to support the digital strategies of non-tech businesses. We suggest that GBA governments consider introducing more resources and policies to attract and retain tech-savvy talent or to upskill or reskill the current workforce with the relevant technical skills,” Wong suggests.
Going forward, GBA is expected to further enhance its technology adoption. According to the report, 68% of the respondents expect their business to increase investment in or use of technology in the next 12 months.
“Further financial integration is likely to provide a boost to the development of the GBA as a global financial centre,” says Eden Wong, deputy president of CPA Australia in Greater China.
About 61% of the respondents predict that the GBA will become a world-leading technology hub within five years.
