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• U lags the US in digitalisation
• Digital businesses outperform non-digital ones in growth and job creation
In the fight against the Coronavirus, digital technology is playing an unprecedented role in the maintenance of daily life and economic and social activities, as well as in the recovery of industry and business. The Coronavirus pandemic is becoming a tipping point for digitalisation – the dawn of a new era – by accelerating the maturity of digital technology: what was once a ‘nice to have’ could now become a ‘crucial to have’. For businesses and organisations to thrive and become more resilient in the medium and longer term, it may be more relevant than before to revisit digital transformation plans in order to stay competitive in the ‘new normal’.
In this context, the new EIB report “Who is prepared for the new digital age? Evidence from the EIB Investment Survey” takes a look at the state of digitalisation in the EU and United States from a unique business perspective. The report shows, based on a company-level survey, that EU firms in most sectors are falling behind the US. It also spells out the key concerns of firms when it comes to the adoption of, and investment in, digital technologies. In particular, it highlights how access to management, skilled labour and the regulatory environment affect the digitalisation of European as well as US firms.
“If European policymakers want European firms to become more digital they need to address structural barriers to investment in digitalisation,” said Debora Revoltella, EIB Chief Economist. “Policy action should develop measures to fast-track the adoption of digitalisation. These include more advanced managerial skills and practices, improving the skills of workers through training and making it easier to finance investments in intangibles and digital technologies. The current Covid-19 economic crisis can be an opportunity to frontload some of those initiatives.”
The EU lags the US in digitalisation
The EIB Digitalisation Index, introduced in the report and based on firm-level data and perception, shows that the EU falls short of the US. Only four EU countries are ahead of the US in terms of digitalisation: Denmark, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Finland.
On average, European firms are less often fully digital and invest and adopt digital technologies less than their US peers. The difference between the US and the EU is particularly large in the construction sector, where the share of digital firms is 40% in the EU and 61% in the US. The difference in adoption rates between EU and US firms is 13 percentage points in services and 11 percentage points in the infrastructure sector. With regard to manufacturing, only 66% of firms in the EU, compared to 78% in the US, report having adopted at least one digital technology.
Compliments of the European Investment Bank – a member of the EACCNY.