Digital mastery in Indonesia: the organization and individual contrast

Our research objective here is to contribute theoretically and empirically to providing a gap model of digital mastery development in a company. The gap model will be a reference for the companies to develop their digital mastery.

To gain deeper insights into the study, a mixed method of qualitative and quantitative was performed. The level of digital mastery of the organization was determined using quantitative techniques through a self-assessment questionnaire. Meanwhile, digital mastery at the individual level was measured by a qualitative method using an open-ended (essay format) survey questions.

The findings show a stark difference between the organization and individual regarding their digital mastery level. At the end of the paper, the authors suggest some remedies that will help those companies narrowing the gap and fulfill the agenda of their digital transformation.

Further research should analyze more industries or companies, conducting case studies to discover more detailed findings as to where the gaps are located or conducting digital readiness and leadership skills at the individual level to discover the direction of development of digital technology in a company. We expect this research can be replicated in other countries, so that wider general insights into the development of digital technology may be obtained.

Upper-area companies are indicated by their execution of partial digital initiative in the company which results in the lack of socialization of the ongoing digital activities into the individual level. Companies, especially Top Management, need to develop more knowledge about digital application and transformation to every individual in the company. Meanwhile, lower-area companies should improve their engagement across all organization members. The companies should be able to take advantage of their existing employees who possess knowledge in digital application and transformation and generated various artifacts to motivate other employees to jointly transform the organization into a Digital Master.

Our study compares the perception toward digital mastery at the organization and individual levels. Both levels are different and need to be compared, as suggested by Schuchmann and Seufert (2015) and Hinings et al. (2018). Comparison at both levels does not exist at the time of this study. Accordingly, what problems and challenges are faced by companies undergoing a digital transformation will largely remain unknown.