Essay on Opportunities and Challenges Faced by Organizations Today

Organizations face challenges and opportunities in the digital age faced with contemporary issues such as cybersecurity, authenticating information, online ethics, and cyberbullying. For a digital organization to operate effectively, its leaders and employees must have basic digital confidence, curiosity, and competence level. The push to undertake digital transformation creates a lot of opportunities for organizations to grow. Syncona Limited, a company driven to build leaders in life science, can take advantage of digital technologies to achieve its goal. However, Syncona Limited should consider challenges associated with contemporary digital issues such as the threat of data security, privacy issues, and lack of technical skills.

Opportunities

Digital platforms and technologies can reduce transaction costs for organizations and make it easier to acquire new customers. These technologies can completely change how a business operates. Digital organizations can apply digital technologies to remake their business to more profitable and more efficient. For instance, suppliers relying on e-Commerce can be able to reduce delivery costs (UNCTAD secretariat, 2019). Also, e-commerce can help Syncona Limited with financial opportunities and learn methods of building verifiable online transaction records. Such a reputation can help the company to attract new business partners and customers. Enhanced data collection is another opportunity associated with contemporary digital issues. Syncona Limited aims at building global leaders; therefore, it must have a more enhanced platform to research various companies in healthcare. Digital technologies can make it easier for the organization to gather the correct data and fully incorporate it for business intelligence (UNCTAD secretariat, 2019). Also, they can help different departments within the organization to convert raw data into useful information.

Digital technologies provide an opportunity for greater resource management (Hinkelmann, 2019). Syncona Limited is a company that requires greater utilization of all resources meant to build and fund companies in life science and healthcare. Therefore, digitalization will help the company’s management to track the utilization of resources in every functional unit. However, it is not advisable for Syncona Limited to invest in a company with a bad reputation. Therefore, tools such as social media can help the company to read some of the customers’ reviews to determine whether an organization is worth the investment. Social networking provides opportunities of the organization to connect with customers and potential partners (Hinkelmann, 2019). It is through the social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram where a company can mine information on customers’ needs and preferences.

Challenges

Some of the main challenges associated with technology include threats to data security, privacy concerns, job insecurity, and digital media manipulation. Digital technologies may lead to data tampering, unauthorized access to stored information, lack of accountability, and data theft. For instance, AI has intensified data security, but it has helped attackers improve their tactics. AI tools can be used by hackers, thieves, and phishers to execute a cyberattack. Also, the growth of smartphones and tablets threatens the security of the company’s data. Today, people spend most of their free time online, whether at home or at the place. Therefore, this addictive behavior causes employees to use the company’s computers to log in to their social media accounts. Social media engages users to share their ideas, information, and thoughts through web-based applications. Therefore, cyber attackers can easily obtain the company’s information by hacking the computer used to log in the social media accounts. As a result, the company may lose important information that competitors can use against it.

Privacy concern is another challenge posed by digital technologies. For instance, today, one can easily identify the location of a company using Google Maps. Also, it is possible to obtain other information about a company on the internet. Therefore, overreliance on technology can expose the company to attacks. Information privacy is a social consideration and an important policy. Privacy of information can be achieved by using passwords. However, it has become difficult to secure information in the digital era without exposing it to a third party. Unless a company uses hard copy information, it needs to hire individuals with great computer coding and hacking knowledge. However, there are very few individuals with the ability to conduct basic tasks such as storing data and setting up a firewall.

Contemporary digital issues affecting business organizations

Cyberbullying

The internet comprises a system made up of groups, cliques, and communities (Bawden-Davis, 2018). However, not all individuals on the internet are positive; some engage in harassment or intimidation. Syncona Limited has gained a positive reputation for the past few years, but it should be warry of cyberbullying since it is a considerable problem in business. Cyberbullying in business can cause a reduced employee morale, loss in revenue, and reduced customers. Cyberbullying on businesses is very sophisticated and professional, and cyberbullies can destroy the company’s reputation by creating public confusion about the company causing a serious threat to the brand. Cyberbullies can be customers or even competitors planning on destroying a certain brand. These bullies may post negative reviews, comments or create a fake and negative story about the company (Bawden-Davis, 2018). For instance, they can associate the company with sexual harassment issues, employee discrimination, and poor-quality products and services.

Cybersecurity

Most digital organizations use digital devices to store employees’ information, financial data, and company strategies. Cybersecurity is an important tool to protect a company’s information from damage and theft (Thames and Schaefer, 2017). However, without a cybersecurity program, a company cannot defend itself from data thefts. Also, digital technologies such as AI and big data have made companies vulnerable to malware and phishing attacks. Cyber threats can originate from any level of the organization. For instance, employees with limited knowledge about data security may jeopardize the company’s data. It is always challenging for all employees to avoid identity theft, frauds, scams, and spam while navigating the web while using the company’s computer (Thames and Schaefer, 2017). Therefore, Syncona Limited may face serious data breaches, theft, and damage. A single breach in the company’s system can lead to the loss of huge amounts of private information into the hands of business rivals, criminals, and other malign entities.

Online ethics

Online ethics requires companies to conduct their businesses without violating ethical behavior. The most digital organization has less knowledge about online ethics, and all they are focused with is wining more clients and making profits. The top online issues include lack of trust, confirmation bias, and data theft. Many companies have failed to win customers’ trust in digital platforms. For instance, Syncona Limited has provided brief information about itself on the internet. Therefore, customers or potential customers may not be fully aware of important details of the company. Data theft has become so common among digital organizations. Some market players use illegal means to obtain important information about a certain company. Therefore, they fail to promote integrity and transparency, the core values guiding professional behavior. Also, it is unethical for a company to destroy the name of another company.

Authenticating online information

The internet is a source of a wide range of information published by various individuals, groups, organizations, and governments. Syncona Limited may face a challenge in obtaining accurate information about a company or a certain region. This company aims at building global leaders in science and healthcare; therefore, inaccurate information may make Syncona Limited invest its resources in the wrong company or region. However, this remains a challenge since it is very difficult to determine whether it’s biased, relevant, and true information from the internet.

Digital tactics and strategies are undertaken by business organizations to address the issues.

Digital organizations need to function as a learning organization, be experienced in transferring, acquiring, and creation of knowledge, and modification of behaviors to reflect new insights and knowledge. Learning organizations are skilled in experimentation with new approaches, systematic problem solving, and efficient and quick knowledge transfer throughout the organization. Digital technology poses a lot of challenges if not used in the right way. Therefore, companies need to first research more about these technologies before implementing them. The best way to escape cyberbullying is by being proactive and have customers and allies at the ready (Bawden-Davis, 2018). Syncona Limited, for instance, has garnered a lot of positive feedback comments, and reviews on social media platforms. Therefore, a few negative reviews cannot have a big impact on the firm. Syncona can have customers and allies available to respond quickly to negative reviews by posting rebuttals.

Most digital organizations have installed a firewall to prevent the company from data breaches. Storing information behind a firewall has been very effective in defending the company from a cyberattack (Thames and Schaefer, 2017). A firewall system blocks brute force attacks targeting the company’s system before they do any damage. Digital organizations often ensure that their systems and software are up to date. Most cyberattacks happen when a system is not fully up to date; thus, it is weak. Therefore, organizations invest in the patch management system to manage all system and software updates and keep the system resilient. Organizations have been training their employees on cyber-security and digital technology (Thames and Schaefer, 2017). Most companies lose data to cybercriminals through employees. Therefore, training them on cyber-attacks prevention has eliminated the threats of cyber-security.

Some ways businesses maintain online ethics include following online selling laws, web accessibility, and giving a piece of true information about the company. Some online selling laws include online marketing laws and data compliance and privacy laws. Understanding and practicing these regulations keep the firm from violating ethical business practices. Syncona Limited allows everyone to use and access their websites without any limit. This is an ethical practice but also helps to learn more about the company. Web accessibility ensures that everyone can use the website with or without disabilities. The last practice is to provide true and accurate information about the company and the product it deals with. For instance, Syncona Limited gives all its detail, in summary, to give potential customers and partners to evaluate the company and as a part of observing online ethics.

References

Bawden-Davis, J., 2018. Protecting Your Company From Business Cyberbullying. [online] Business Class: Trends and Insights | American Express. https://www.americanexpress.com/en-us/business/trends-and-insights/articles/protecting-company-business-cyberbullying

Hinkelmann, J., 2019. Digitalisation: opportunities and challenges for entrepreneurs. Roedl.com. https://www.roedl.com/insights/digitalisation/opportunities-challenges-entrepreneurs

UNCTAD secretariat., 2019. Digital development: Opportunities and challenges Note by the UNCTAD secretariat. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. https://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/tdb66_d5_en.pdf.

Thames, L. and Schaefer, D., 2017. Cybersecurity for industry 4.0. Heidelberg: Springer.