05/04/2026

ON SUNDAY April 5, 2026 theSunday Special XII

Transformation falters not because SMEs lack ambition but because too few JCXG UQOGQPG VQ ECTT[ VJG GHHQTV DG[QPF VJG ƓTUV DKI OGGVKPI The people problem behind digital dreams BY MUHUNDHAN KAMARAPULLAI

One SME moved away from the stan GDUG ¿[HG IHH YHQGRU FRQWUDFW ,QVWHDG they signed an outcome-based arrange ment with a local tech partner. Payment was based on man-hours saved, not features deployed. The conversation shifted – from “Which dashboard looks better?” to “How does this reduce admin work by 40%?” Another business, a family-run manufacturer, played the long game. The owner persuaded a trusted technolo gist – Malaysian-born, then working in Singapore – to return to work for her, but as a partner in a new joint tech venture. They co-developed tools tailored for her IDFWRU\ ÀRRU Once the system worked for her own factory, they opened it up to other fac tories in the industry. What started as a solution for one SME quietly became a solution for many. In both cases, the success wasn’t about ÀDVK\ WHFK ,W ZDV DERXW RZQHUVKLS Someone must carry the torch We know that digital transformation, especially in SMEs, doesn’t need a grand ³'LJLWDO 2̇ FH´ ,W GRHVQ¶W UHTXLUH D IXOO stack of new hires. But it needs one thing above all: Continuity. Not a title. Not a budget. A human anchor. Someone who stays when the consul tants leave and knows which WhatsApp group actually moves things. Someone who can explain to “Uncle Lim” at the warehouse why the barcode scanner is better than the old ledger book. This is not a new insight. But it’s one that’s often overlooked because it sounds too simple. Boards and agencies chase “strategy” and “scale.” But without someone to carry it day to day, even the best-laid plans quietly dissolve. And it’s not just SMEs. We’ve seen this in larger organisations too. The system goes live and the emails are sent. But within months, it’s business as usual with slightly nicer slides. Digital transformation doesn’t fail because of tech. It fails because people move on. Priorities shift. Daily pressures UHVXPH $QG WKH H̆ RUW VORZO\ ORVHV LWV champion. This is why capacity-building matters. Not just training for the sake of training. But helping internal champions build FRQ¿GHQFH LQ GHFLVLRQ PDNLQJ +HOSLQJ leaders spot and grow the ones who can carry the change. Without that, the journey never really begins. Not theory. Just what I’m seeing. Shaped by years in technology, Muhundhan Kamarapullai explores the uncomfortable space between innovation and execution. He writes for people who suspect the problem is never the technology.

D IGITAL transformation is often framed as a top-level decision, made in an owner’s office, boardroom or even over coffee with a consul tant. There’s usually a strategy deck, a consultant-led workshop and eventually a vendor proposal with diagrams, acronyms DQG SURPLVHV RI VWUHDPOLQHG Ḣ FLHQF\ The plan gets signed, a budget is ap proved and everyone exhales. Transfor mation is “underway”, so to speak. But in reality, especially among Malay sia’s small and medium enterprises, this is where the real challenge begins. Because transformation doesn’t hap SHQ RQ SDSHU LW KDSSHQV RQ WKH ÀRRU DQG in back offices, through quiet changes in how things are done and who takes responsibility when things go wrong. Most importantly, it happens when someone LQVLGH WKH RUJDQLVDWLRQ FDUULHV WKH H̆ RUW long after the launch photo is taken. I once asked an SME owner during a digital readiness consultation: “What worries you most about going digital?” He paused for a second, looked up and said, “Muhu, I don’t know who my right hand is for this.” He wasn’t talking about money or technology – more about continuity. He instinctively knew that without someone internally to own the change, nothing would sustain.

know digitalisation is no longer optional. But what slows them down is this: They don’t know who will drive the change from within. Digital adoption feels fragile without that person. Systems are introduced but only half-used. Staff revert to manual backups and vendors end up steering decisions by default. Clearly, no one owns the follow-through. There is no villain here. This is simply what inertia looks like when change is left to fend for itself. Still, I’ve seen SMEs get it right in clever and grounded ways.

He didn’t need a Chief Technology Officer. He needed a steady hand who understands his business and can explain WKLQJV WR KLV VWD̆ LQ WKHLU ODQJXDJH QRW IT jargon. Someone who wouldn’t panic when the system hiccupped or people pushed back because “the old way worked ¿QH ´ It’s a common story. Ambition is not the problem In workshops and site visits across Ma laysia, I’ve heard similar refrains. Owners are often interested but they’re not techno phobes. They’ve read the reports and they

Digital transformation needs one thing above all: Continuity.