Almost 60% of MSMEs Plan To Digitize Business Processes By 2025, Reveals Vi Business ReadyforNext MSME Growth Insights Study

·         On the World MSME Day, Vi Business publishes findings from India’s largest MSME study - MSME Growth Insights Vol 2.0 2024, covering 1.6 lakh respondents across 16 industries

·         Launches enhanced Digital Assessment Tool for MSMEs, both in English and Hindi

Key Highlights of the Study:

·         Sectoral Insights: The top three sectors that emerged as most digitally matured are IT-ITES, Fi­nancial services and Transportation. While these lead in digital maturity, sectors like Retail and Construction are also making significant strides.

·         Budget Allocation: 43% of MSMEs plan to increase their overall digitalisation budget by 2025. Sectors with lower Digital Maturity Index (DMI) are particularly inclined to increase their investments reflecting a growing commitment towards digital transformation.

·         Involvement of Senior Leadership or CEOs results in more comprehensive Digital transformation: Success rates of Digitalization were higher when championed by the Senior Leadership and CEOs.

·         Despite challenges like knowledge gaps and financial constraints, MSMEs are increasingly using technologies like cloud computing, IoT, and advanced workspace tools to boost productivity, collaboration, & market reach. Study revealed 40% of MSMEs from IT & ITeS, Retail and Construction have adopted IoT Solutions in Business.

·         During the pandemic, while MSMEs prioritized digitalizing their workspaces, in 2024, the focus has moved on to engaging with their customers digitally. The study recommends MSMEs to focus on digital security, and digitally engaging with both customers (customer service) and prospects (customer engagement), indicating emerging need to focus on digital strategies to meet evolving customer expectations.

·         Digitalization has a direct positive correlation with the turnover. Further, as the firm size increases, the variation in digital maturity level narrows indicating that medium to large firms have embraced digitalization and there is scattered digital adoption among micro and small firms.

·         Growing need of data security and data privacy solutions: 43% of MSMEs are currently using device security technologies, data and device protection. Furthermore, MSMEs with turnover of less than ?10 Crore are using public cloud while those in higher turnover bracket of ?10 to 100 Crore use private cloud, indicating the need for greater data security and privacy with the increase turnover of MSME.

For the detailed study, please click here: https://www.myvi.in/content/dam/vodafoneideadigital/business/msme/ribbonBanner/MSME-Growth_Insight_Study_Vol_2024.pdf

Medium, Small, and Micro Enterprises (MSMEs) are the backbone of India’s economy, currently contributing ~30% to the country’s GDP. There are several studies that suggest MSMEs will boost their GDP contribution to 35-40% by 2027. Hence, it is crucial for MSMEs to adopt digital transformation to unleash their growth potential and play a pivotal role in making India a Viksit Bharat (a developed economy) by 2047.  Recognizing the need for digital adoption, GoI has introduced several key initiatives and policies such as Make in India, Aatmanirbhar Bharat, Udyam Portal, Udyami Mitra and others to enhance productivity, streamline operations, and boost the overall competitiveness of the MSME sector.

As a steadfast partner to the GoI’s growth agenda, Vi Business, the enterprise arm of Vi, a leading telecom operator, has released a nationwide study – ‘Vi Business ReadyForNext MSME Growth Insights Study (Volume 2.0 2024)’, on World MSME Day. This comprehensive study delves into the digital maturity of MSMEs across 16 sectors namely, IT & ITes, Financial Services, Transportation, Construction, Retail, Agriculture, Media & Entertainment, Manufacturing, and others and how they are leveraging digitization and technology.

In addition to this, Vi Business has launched enhanced Digital Assessment Tool, both in English and Hindi as an extension of their dedicated MSME program, #ReadyForNext. The assessment focuses on three key pillars: Digital Customer, Digital Workspace, and Digital Business. Based on responses, the tool provides user specific report stating the digital maturity scores of business, benchmarked against the industry with relevant digital product recommendations. Click here to access the tool online:  https://www.myvi.in/business/enterprise-segments/smb/msme-readyfornext

Commenting on the study, Arvind Nevatia, Chief Enterprise Business Officer at Vodafone Idea, said: "At Vi Business, we recognize the crucial role that MSMEs play in India’s growth agenda and their significant contribution to the economy. Our extensive MSME study, highlights the encouraging progress being made by small businesses in India as well as the challenges that remain in their digital transformation. Moreover, the findings of the study, arguably India’s largest MSME based digital assessment study, provide effective and useful insights on the way forward for such organizations. Vi Business is a steadfast partner to drive forward India’s digital economy and help MSMEs accelerate their growth potential.’’

Report Methodology

Vi Business ReadyForNext MSME Growth Insights Study Vol 2.0’ is based on the survey of 1.6 lacs MSMEs in India across 16 industries, namely IT & ITeS, Construction, Transportation, Media & Entertainment, Mining, Retail, Financial Sectors, Agriculture, Professional Services, Education, Tourism & Hospitality, Healthcare etc. The MSMEs were categorized by sector, operating locations, and company size to highlight variations in digital proficiency. Questions were provided for different industries, with IT and Telecom receiving more technical queries due to their higher technological reliance, while Agriculture and Manufacturing faced questions suited to their slower adoption rates and resource constraints. MSMEs were further classified based on turnovers ranging from less than 10 crore to 250 crore.

About Vodafone Idea Limited

Vodafone Idea Limited is an Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone Group partnership. It is amongst India’s leading telecom service provider. The company provides pan India Voice and Data services across 2G, 3G and 4G platforms. Company holds large spectrum portfolio including mid band 5G spectrum in 17 circles and mmWave 5G spectrum in 16 circles. To support the growing demand for data and voice, the company is committed to deliver delightful customer experiences and contribute towards creating a truly ‘Digital India’ by enabling millions of citizens to connect and build a better tomorrow. The company is developing infrastructure to introduce newer and smarter technologies, making both retail and enterprise customers future ready with innovative offerings, conveniently accessible through an ecosystem of digital channels as well as extensive on-ground presence. The company’s equity share are listed on National Stock Exchange (NSE) and the BSE in India. The company offers products and services to its customers in India under the TM Brand name “Vi”.  For more information, please visit: www.MyVi.in