EDITORIAL: Adopt digital skills to compete with world

Revelations that only four percent of chief executive officers in East Africa are willing to train their staff to match required digital capabilities are worrying.

It is shocking to learn that despite the world being on 21st Century there are some corporate honchos who are not willing or lack the wherewithal to drive their respective companies on a growth path.

The findings in the 2019 East Africa CEO outlook report should be a wake-up call for company chiefs in the region.

The world is moving at a fast pace hence the need for all companies to ensure that they equip their employees with the requisite skills.

The survey found that majority of the CEOs are not willing to give their staff skills that can match the wave of disruption being witnessed across the world.

According to the report, 66 percent of the CEOs have prioritised investments in new technology over developing workforce capabilities.

You may have the best technology in the world, but all this will end up being meaningless if your staff have not been trained on how to use the latest tools.

Leaders of the regional corporate scene should know that the world will not wait for any laggards hence the urgent need to scale up efforts to ensure that their companies are able to compete with their global counterparts.

It goes without saying that the African continent holds a huge potential that is only waiting to be tapped.

The corporate industry in the region has a good opportunity to drive growth in various sectors, but this can only be achieved if there is goodwill from the organisations and their leaders.

Imparting the right skill sets is imperative if East African companies want to compete with the very best around the world.

The only way the corporate sector can help drive the regional economies is by ensuring that the manpower is well trained.

With the emerging technology, it is inevitable that companies ensure that workers possess the appropriate skills to perform their duties with ease.

A major lesson from the survey is that East African companies must move away from their comfort zones if they want to grow.

There are no two ways about it. Either restrategise and prosper or relax and perish.