What is your scope of work? 

I am responsible for the organisation’s quality, OHS management systems and BizSafe certification.

I also assist in the review and streamlining of operational and system processes to improve efficiencies. Other responsibilities include quality control of products and services provided by the group.

 

What was it like before digitalisation?

Documentation using hardcopies created a lot of wastage from paper, printing costs and the carbon footprint were also a lot higher. Storage space for all the hardcopy documents were also required, which in turn needed additional time to sort and manage the files.

 

Did Digitalisation make things more convenient or how has digitalisation helped you?

Digitalisation has definitely made things more convenient for everyone. It also encourages people who are not that proficient in computer skills to up-skill themselves.

Digitalisation allowed me to connect and make decisions more easily with colleagues, clients and suppliers from around the world, especially when we shifted towards a remote working environment during the first lockdown due to the pandemic – it helped us maintain the business process and operations.

On a personal level, it has helped significantly reduce hardcopy paper work, especially when everything is being uploaded into a server and is accessible online at any point of time through the use of a VPN.

Meetings with colleagues and clients no longer had to be physical, which meant I saved a lot of travelling time.

As I deal a lot with the documentation, getting e-signatures from different parties is also much easier for me as well as for them, because now it can be done through a click of a button, remotely.

 

Can you give some examples?

Last year (2020) was the first time the company did internal and external audits remotely. As most of the documents were in hardcopies, we struggled in the initial stages before digitalisation. However, we managed to successfully get re-certified for our QMS and OHSMS through remote audits once we were completely digitalised.

Another instance was when I was on board as acting Project Manager, I was able to comfortably access my company’s database through VPN to work on my ISO and audit works, which were mostly in hardcopy files for past records.

I was also able to swiftly raise Purchase Requests for any materials I required at any point of time through the ERP system, making it efficient and productive.

 

How long did it take for you to transit from the old system to a digitalised system?

I believe there can only be more pros than cons for digitalization of processes. I transited to a digitalised system about a couple of months after joining the organisation. Right now we are planning for the next phase of digitalisation to streamline the processes even more.