Accenture: China Digital Transformation Index 2023

Accenture released the "2023 China Digital Transformation Index", which shows that only 2% of Chinese companies are undergoing comprehensive and continuous digital transformation to drive long-term and sustainable growth.

The China Digital Transformation Index reflects cross-industry research and assesses the digital maturity of enterprises across China. The index analyzes five new capabilities, including strategy, operations and innovation, digital core, sustainability and talent, which are key to driving business reinvention.

The study shows that only 22% of companies are transforming all parts of their organizations, and only 28% recognize that digital transformation is an ongoing process. Companies lag behind in building the key capabilities needed for reinvention. Chinese companies scored 58 out of 100 in optimizing operations and 39 in building a digital core, which may hinder them from taking advantage of technologies such as generative AI. 46% of respondents said they will increase future investments in AI and automation.

These 2% of leading companies, or “reinventors,” focus on five key areas of action that, if prioritized, could help more Chinese companies achieve sustainable growth:

Setting new performance boundaries: Guided by a long-term approach, Reinventors lead strategy across the business, prioritize innovation, and inspire the industry to reach new heights. Only 14% of Chinese companies have set new performance levels in their industry, with the majority (66%) limiting their actions to the current market and competitors.

Integrating enterprise-wide change: Reinventors connect people, processes, and data to enhance value creation across the enterprise. Some Chinese companies (20%) are strengthening connectivity and capabilities across businesses and functions, while many (37%) are digitizing only one function at a time.

Strengthening the digital core: The technology landscape has changed, and companies need to build cloud-first infrastructure to create a data foundation for large language models and artificial intelligence, work seamlessly across technology platforms, and respond to security threats. In the next one to two years, Chinese companies will increase their investments in cloud computing (37%) and security (36%).

Integrate sustainability into strategy and operations: Sustainability can be an enabler of innovation and growth. Chinese companies must commit to integrating sustainability into every aspect of their business. Currently, only half of the companies surveyed (51%) use digital technologies in energy management and measurement to assess environmental impact.

Empowering future employees: Reinventing companies use their talent strategy as the core driver of successful transformation, providing employees with digital tools and skills to meet future needs. Only 33% of Chinese companies believe that talent is the core of driving successful corporate transformation; globally, this proportion is 52%.