Junaid Hussain, head of digital services support at Ricoh South Africa.
In an economy as complex and constrained as South Africa’s, businesses don’t always have the luxury of expansion. When margins are tight and costs are rising, growth depends on how efficiently companies use what they already have.
Operational efficiency has become one of the few remaining levers leaders can pull. Companies can’t always hire more people. They can’t always raise prices. But they can improve how the business runs day to day.
Research has shown that companies digitising over 70% of core processes saw 31% lower operational costs and 42% higher revenue per employee. Plus, businesses with fully integrated operational data systems cut product time-to-market by 41% and increased cross-sell success by 37% compared to those using siloed systems.
South African companies that have embraced digital tools are seeing clear results. A 2024 study based on World Bank Enterprise Survey data found that firms using digital systems were up to 25% more productive than those relying on manual operations. The gains held steady across industries and company sizes, pointing to operational efficiency as a key driver of business performance.
There is a noticeable shift in the market. Businesses are no longer talking about digital transformation as a future goal. It’s a present need.
Whether it’s delays in order processing, disconnected data, or repeated manual tasks, inefficiency is eating into profitability and pushing customers away.
Companies do not need to start from scratch. In many cases, the right tools already exist but are not being used properly.
In one recent engagement, a client’s quoting process required 12 manual steps before it could be approved. These weren’t specialist tasks. They were basic checks and handovers that could have been automated. Once redesigned, the process that used to take days could be turned around in under an hour.
Changes like this aren’t aimed at reducing headcount, but at making it easier for teams to work efficiently.
From patchwork to integrated workflows
Many businesses rely on a mix of disconnected systems: one for finance, another for sales, and a separate tool for operations. These systems often don’t communicate, forcing staff to export data, re-enter it manually, or rely on spreadsheets to bridge the gaps.
It wastes time, increases errors, and makes it hard for managers to get a clear picture of what is going on. When experienced staff leave, critical knowledge often leaves with them.
I have seen this play out in logistics and retail, where entire supply chains run on paper-based systems. There is little visibility into stock levels, order timelines, or fulfilment issues. Once those systems are integrated and automated checks are in place, businesses can track performance in real-time and act before problems escalate.
Companies do not need to start from scratch. In many cases, the right tools already exist but are not being used properly, or are not connected in a way that supports day-to-day operations.
One manufacturing client had invested in solid software, but staff were bypassing it because they did not trust the results. Once the workflow was redesigned and involved users in the process, adoption followed naturally.
It’s important to understand that operational efficiency isn’t just about doing things faster. It’s about doing the right things with the least waste − of time, effort and resources.
In another example, a company had a high return rate from customers due to incorrect shipments. After mapping out the order fulfilment process, a manual step was identified where staff were copying delivery instructions from one system to another.
It was a small task, but it created big problems when errors slipped through. By automating that data transfer, accuracy improved, returns dropped and customer satisfaction scores increased.
These are the kinds of changes that make a real difference. They don’t always grab headlines, but they shift the day-to-day experience of employees and customers. Over time, that adds up to serious value.
Let teams do what they’re actually good at
Most people don’t go to work hoping to spend the day reconciling spreadsheets or chasing down approvals. Yet this is what poor systems often force them to do.
Efficiency is not about making people work harder. It’s about helping them spend more of their time doing what they were hired to do.
A well-functioning process lets a finance manager focus on insights, not data entry. It lets a sales team follow up on leads, not fight the CRM. And it gives leaders space to plan, instead of firefighting.
Companies also reduce risk. The more they rely on people to manually bridge the gaps between systems, the more exposed they are when something goes wrong.
Start with the business problem, not the tech
Technology is only useful when it solves a business problem. Start with a process review. Where are the delays? Where are the costs rising? What do staff complain about most? These are the indicators that help identify what to fix first.
Often, it’s not the most complex processes that need the most attention. It’s the repetitive, routine ones that slip under the radar but drain hours every week. Fixing those creates capacity, which gives teams the headroom to take on more without burning out.
Operational efficiency is no longer an operational issue. It’s a strategic one. The businesses that treat it as a core pillar of their growth strategy are the ones that remain agile, keep customers happy and retain good people.
There is no universal template. Every organisation is different. But the starting point is always the same: understand how work gets done, identify where it breaks down, and then apply the right digital tools to make it better.
Because in this market, standing still is the same as falling behind.
