Digital maturity: An asset for Québec businesses

In today’s business environment, the digital transformation of Québec’s companies is essential. It needs to be accelerated. For this reason, la Caisse works towards elevating the digital maturity of Quebec businesses. Discussion with Christian Dubé, Executive Vice-President, Québec.

La Caisse | Statistics show that Quebecers are very active Web users, with online purchases totalling close to $300 each month. Yet, Québec businesses seem to be slow to make the shift to digital technology. How can this digital transformation be accelerated? 

Christian Dubé | New companies created these days operate in a digital world. They are automated, connected in real time and use digital technology to offer a personalized customer experience and improve their goods and services, productivity, etc.

Things are very different for existing businesses, which are forced to deal with new business environments and even new business models, often not without difficulty. They have to quickly integrate new technology to stand out and remain competitive, but also—more fundamentally—to survive.

Figures show that digital technology makes companies more competitive.  Consider the manufacturing sector: In Canada, 40% of manufacturers have still not made the shift to digital technology. Those that have made this transition are up to 60% more productive and have cut their operating costs by 50% on average.  

In the business environment, our companies currently operate in, a high degree of digital maturity is a definite asset for an investor like la Caisse. 

La Caisse | Why look at digital maturity in analyzing risk?

Christian Dubé | Because this is a crucial transition that must be made. A high degree of digital maturity allows a company to be more competitive and to grow more quickly, both here and abroad.

That’s why our teams analyze all potential financial, legal and reputational risks before investing in a company. We recently added digital maturity to the list of aspects to consider in making an investment decision, as we did for climate risk.

We therefore now establish a digital maturity score for each investment target and each company in our portfolio.

La Caisse | What elements allow you to determine a company’s degree of digital maturity?

Christian Dubé | We look at three things more closely in establishing a digital maturity score.  

We begin by looking at the degree to which company operations have undergone a digital transformation, the level of automation and the degree to which data and technology are interconnected. We also analyze the digital and technological skills of the company’s employees.

We then consider the customer experience and the company’s online presence. A solid online presence (e.g. via a website, social networks, e-commerce, customer portal, mobile apps, etc.) and a strong, coherent customer experience as part of an omnichannel approach (purchases made online, in person or by phone) are also key assets that we consider in our risk analysis.

Lastly, the third factor that we consider is the company’s digital goods and services offerings. Does the company offer smart, connected and customized goods and services? Is it able to embrace new business models? These are the types of matters that we consider before investing in a company.

La Caisse | How does la Caisse help companies accelerate their digital transformation?

Christian Dubé | We are active on two fronts. We support the digital transformation of existing companies that are shifting to digital technology, but also assist businesses that are accelerating their transformation throughout the digital value chain.