Proactive application but "everyone does their own thing
Recently, it is not difficult to encounter small businesses using sales software, QR payments or social networking platforms to reach customers. This is a positive sign showing that awareness of digital transformation has gradually spread to the individual economic sector.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Minh - owner of a grocery store in Hanoi - said that she has used sales management software to track revenue, and sell through social networks to expand customer base. However, the fact that each platform operates separately makes it difficult for her to summarize data, control inventory and evaluate business efficiency.
“There is separate management software, separate sales channels, and then payment applications. Each thing has a different style, cannot connect with each other, so many times we have to manually start over,” Ms. Minh shared.
This reality is not isolated. Many business households have initially digitized but in a spontaneous, undirected way and without integration between systems. This leads to data dispersal, inconsistent operating procedures, and even additional costs and effort arising.
Assessing this issue, technology expert Vu Thanh Thang - Chairman of AIZ Joint Stock Company - said that the biggest bottleneck today is not the lack of technology, but the lack of a synchronous ecosystem.
According to Mr. Thang, many business households are approaching technology piece by piece, there is no intercommunication between solutions. When data is not connected, the value that digital transformation brings will be significantly limited.
Digital transformation is not just about using software or selling online. The important thing is that these tools must "talk" to each other, forming a unified system. Otherwise, the effectiveness will be very low, even counterproductive" - Mr. Thang assessed.
Request to change approach
Discussing this issue, Mr. Nguyen Phu Tien - Deputy Director of the Department of Digital Economy and Society (Ministry of Science and Technology) - said that management agencies have recorded the reality that many business households have applied technology to business operations. However, the solutions are still lacking in connection, deployed loosely, so the effectiveness is not high.
From that reality, the Ministry of Science and Technology is coordinating with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Thai Nguyen Provincial People's Committee, digital technology businesses and banks to implement a pilot program of support models in a synchronous direction for wholesale and retail business households.
The goal of the program is to access, survey and evaluate the level of digital transformation of all businesses, stores, and retail households in the area. On that basis, build data to serve management and policy planning in accordance with reality.
Mr. Nguyen Phu Tien said that the new point is the direct participation of technology businesses in supporting each business household. Units will guide appropriate digital transformation, assess readiness and propose solutions, including using software, electronic invoices and digital signatures.
The program is implemented in 92 communes and wards in Thai Nguyen province, with the participation of 6 digital technology businesses. Each unit is in charge of 10 to 20 communes and wards as assigned. Through the initial implementation process, more than 5,000 business households have been accessed. According to the plan, the program aims to have about 15,000 business households in the province accessed and used digital platforms by June 2026.
From the initial results, the Ministry of Science and Information Technology is continuing to monitor and evaluate to complete the model. Some localities such as Da Nang, Bac Ninh, and Dong Nai have proposed implementation, showing a great need to find appropriate approaches to digital transformation in the individual economic sector.
