MOVEMENT BRIEF

Digitalization
Noun
Using technologies to transform a business model;
making the shift to a digital way of doing business.

Digitalization has arrived. The time is now.

While digitalization has been part of the market vernacular for several years, it continues to evolve
and impact new market segments. Today, digitalization has reached maturity in many sectors of the
economy—from media, to finance, to technology, and beyond. In each of these sectors, digitalization drives
results. In fact, research indicates that industries who have most embraced digitalization demonstrate greater
productivity than those who have not digitalized, or who have done so to a lesser degree.1 In the maritime
industry, digitalization is making waves across all organizational levels and industry verticals.

40 PERCENT 2 IN 3
of all technology spending goes to shipping companies have
digital transformations, which are started on their digital journey,
being driven by operational efficiencies and 69 percent are currently
achieved through connectivity.2 exploring digital solutions.3

The maritime space has been historically slow to adopt new
technologies, yet in recent years, organizations in this space
are increasingly embracing digitalization and its transformative
potential. Roughly two thirds of shipping companies have started
on their digital journeys, and 69 percent are in the process of
exploring digital solutions of some kind.4 More than $500 million
in venture capital and investment has poured into the startups
beginning to shape the future of maritime commerce.5
Maritime shipping is ripe with opportunities for transformation.
Digitalization can help eliminate bottlenecks and accelerate
processes within complex maritime workflows, improving
productivity and profitability over time. According to some
estimates, if maritime updated IT systems and shared more
data, supply chain processes could be improved by 50 to
60 percent.6
While the maritime space has acknowledged the need for
digitalization, the pace at which digitalization will reach
maturity remains to be seen. In fact, 63 percent of survey
respondents in a 2019 poll felt the shipping industry would
not be completely digitalized by 2025.7 For vessel owners,
tonnage charterers, and commodities traders who are
able to act quickly and effectively, digitalization promises
significant competitive advantages.
The Benefits of Digitalization
Digitalization has countless applications and In a recent interview with Greg Wilkins,
substantial benefits. The following touches on four VP of Commercial Solutions at Veson, we
discussed the digitalization movement
primary benefits of digitalization in the maritime space.
and its effects on the maritime space.

Operational Efficiency Is digitalization here to stay?

By automating existing processes and functions, maritime
businesses can increase the efficiency of day-to-day operations
and decrease the risk of manual error or duplicate entries.
Time-consuming functions like regulatory compliance and claims
management can be handled systematically, reducing operational
burden and risk.
Business Agility
The speed and access afforded by a digital solution eliminates
the delay between event and action, breeding organization-wide
agility. In an industry that rewards those who are constantly moving,
digitalization enables maritime enterprises to outpace competitors and
fully capitalize on evolving market conditions and opportunities.
Enhanced Decision-Making
Through digitalization, the maritime industry can finally make
the millions of data points it generates each day actionable.
By breaking down silos and adding standards and context to data,
digitalization empowers maritime users to surface relevant insights
and make more informed, proactive decisions.
Improved Profitability
A digital solution can streamline and automate the management
of complex maritime contracts. By consolidating data into a single,
integrated workflow, digitalization ensures each contract term is
met and managed throughout the voyage while reducing costs and
improving profitability.
Digitalization is more than a passing trend. It’s
a permanent shift in the way businesses work
and make decisions. Industry leaders have the
unique opportunity to also become leaders in
the digital transformation of the maritime space,
and the solutions we adopt today will be the
foundation for the technologies of tomorrow:
big data, artificial intelligence (AI), augmented
reality (AR), internet of things (IoT), and more.
Is it worth the investment?
Yes, achieving maturity in digitalization involves
a financial investment. But, you’ll quickly
realize benefits you can measure in the form
of reduced costs and improved profitability. In
the case of commercial maritime technology,
preventing even a few missed claims can mean
millions. A fleet managed and operated by a
digital solution benefits greatly, and it will more
than make up your investment.
How do maritime businesses know
where to start?
A full transformation won’t happen overnight—
digitalization is a step-change journey that
often begins in one area and continues until
the entire business is transformed. Select a
few operational areas that need to see critical
improvement, and begin there. Once you start
realizing small areas of value, the transformation
will progressively unfold.

How do we pick the right partner?

Beware of Roadblocks The importance of the partner cannot be
overstated. You have to find a partner that
If not addressed effectively, the following can become
completely understands and addresses
roadblocks on your path to digitalization. the needs of your individual business. They
need to know the maritime industry and all
Processes: Have you accounted Safety & Security: Have you of its nuances, and they should be invested
for the process changes that prepared your organization to in continuing to develop their technology
will come with increased use protect mission-critical data—from over time. Most importantly, they must be
of digital technologies? the user to the enterprise level? committed to partnering with you throughout
your journey. A bad partner can ruin the journey
Cross-Stakeholder Buy-In: Clear Focus & Goal: Have you to digitalization. A good one? They can do
Have you involved key clearly defined the objectives for your wonders for your business.
stakeholders from every area digitalization initiative and aligned
of your maritime business? corporate incentives accordingly?
Getting Started: 3 Critical Success Factors
The path to digitalization is essential for success in the modern maritime market; but
where should you start? More specifically, how do you know that your approach to digitalization
today will remain effective and relevant as technology and business realities continue to evolve?
Three critical success factors can help keep you on course:

1 Build a Solid Foundation

Leading-edge technologies like big data, AI, AR,
and IoT have started to make their way into the
2 Ensure Effective Change Management
maritime space. While these technologies are exciting
and unlock new possibilities, it is essential that maritime
businesses first build a solid digital foundation upon
which more advanced digital initiatives can be added.
By embracing a comprehensive and open digital platform
across their core maritime business, ship operators and
tonnage charterers can maximize scalability and usher in
new efficiencies.
Change is inevitable, but it must be effectively
managed. Employing the right digital solution—
and executing the implementation process well—
empowers your organization to derive real value
from its technology investments. A critical step in the
change management process is empowering super
users throughout your enterprise to serve as internal
subject matter experts that champion the system,
resolve questions, and maximize adoption.

3
Future-Proof Your Ecosystem
Finally, make sure the investments you are making in digitalization today will
remain relevant as your business needs continue to change. Solutions that provide
automatic updates and have a rapid pace of innovation will keep your business ahead long
into the future. Furthermore, solutions that feature open APIs will enable you to plug in new,
best-of-breed capabilities over time.
Veson’s Approach
One Proven Partner for Maritime Digitalization
Founded to transform the way the maritime world works and
makes decisions, Veson is the global market leader in developing,
implementing, and supporting the solutions that propel maritime
commerce. As a luminary in the digitalization movement, Veson extends
its valuable insight and proven partnership to the world’s leading
vessel operators, commodities traders, and tonnage charterers as they
navigate their digital journeys.

The Veson IMOS Platform

The Veson IMOS Platform (VIP), our cloud-based freight and fleet
management solution, empowers ship owners and tonnage charterers
to realize all of the exciting benefits of digitalization in a future-proof
investment that evolves with their businesses.

Industry-proven, future-forward.
Built on the reliable business logic that has run maritime operations for
nearly two decades, VIP elevates and extends this solid foundation with
an agile, cloud-based architecture to support global access, advanced
data sharing, and seamless integration.

One source of truth, one set of tools.

By providing a single source of truth spanning every part of the voyage,
VIP empowers leading maritime businesses to operate with greater agility
and make more informed, timely decisions.

Widely-trusted, highly connected.

With a robust user community of more than 15,000 professionals at
over 300 leading maritime enterprises, VIP is the platform of choice for
maritime stakeholders around the world.

As digitalization continues to transform the maritime

ecosystem, the right platform and partner are
essential to remaining at the helm of the movement.

Are you ready to embrace digitalization

in your maritime business?

Request a Demo

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