Zim firms up digitisation drive
LIVINGSTONE MARUFU
The devastating Covid-19 headwinds have forced Zimbabwe companies to accelerate digitisation of their customer and supply chain interactions and internal communications as the pandemic has discouraged face to face interactions.
Company executives who spoke to Business Times this week said digitisation was no longer an option but essential for survival and success.
Covid-19 crisis, which has seen the country recording more than 33 000 cases since March last year and more than 1 000 deaths, has plunged Zimbabwe into a strict lockdown, forcing firms and financial institutions to make use of new applications to remain in business.
Some are making use of Facebook and WhatsApp platforms to sell their products.
Edgars Limited CEO Tjeludo Ndlovu told Business Times that trading online and using online platforms were the only ways to survive going forward.
The company suffered a huge blow due to closure of its outlets because of Covid-19.
“The retail chains – Edgars and Jet are trading online via the online stores and the WhatsApp business platform and this has allowed the business to continue operations and serve customers during this lockdown period,” Ndlovu said.
She said the relevant Covid-19 protocols are in place during collections and deliveries to ensure the safety of both the customer and our staff.
“The Carousel is operating mainly for the production of PPEs and the Financial Services arm which houses our retail credit division and Club Plus Microfinance are operating to ensure customers’ accounts are up to date and facilitate for customer loans via the Club Plus mobile app,” Ndlovu said.
The Edgars boss said the business was operational albeit at a reduced scale.
Banks are accelerating the digitisation drive with Stanbic Bank launching a virtual assistant/a chatbot, set to shorten the response time for customer queries as part of the bank’s digitisation drive.
The chatbot, Stan, has been designed to respond to queries from the bank’s social media pages and the webchat service on their website day and night.
Stanbic’s head of Marketing & Communications, Palmer Mugavha, said the launch of the chatbot was in line with the digital bank journey that the Standard Bank Group subsidiary has been on for the last few years.
“Our digitisation drive is gathering momentum and we are excited about this latest offering. The launch of Stan enforces our commitment to quality customer experience as it allows customers to receive quicker responses to their queries at any time.
As much as digitisation started well before Covid-19, the products we are introducing will definitely go a long way in mitigating against the menacing pandemic as they play a pivotal role in reducing face to face interaction at limited or no cost, while ensuring quality banking service to customers,” Mugavha said.
In December, Stanbic Bank zero-rated some of its platforms taking on the customer’s internet data cost as part of the digitisation strategy aimed at encouraging the uptake of digital banking strategies for convenience and adoption on first world banking technologies and practices.
Bankers Association of Zimbabwe vice president, Ron Mutandagayi, said the “most obvious change has been the swing to effective online models”.
“It has been an incredible transformation as banks have moved nearly all their interactions with customers to digital,” Mutandagayi said.
