Institut Teknologi Bandung

Dr.rer.pol Achmad Fajar Hendrawan, S.T., M.S.M. analyzed the suitability of this digital mindset in the ITB Engineering Rubric on Tuesday, November 30, 2021. He was inspired by the narrative of David Velez, the creator of Nubank, a successful digital bank in Brazil. David Velez was able to lead his business to success because his thinking is in sync with the exponential era of digital business.

According to Benke (2013), "a digital mindset is a collection of knowledge structures based on mental experiences that are produced as a result of living in a digital society that is related with digital technology every day."

Dr. Achmad went on to say that the cognitive component, which refers to knowledge, and the action component, which refers to the rejection or acceptance of the use of digital technology, are the components that make up the digital mindset.

According to him, research done by Parapat and Hendarman (2021) revealed a substantial association between a digital mindset and human capital preparation towards Industry 4.0.

However, the readiness of a digital mindset is still low, particularly in the banking, manufacturing, and telecommunications sectors. The sample results of various other surveys done between 2019 and 2021 revealed that there were still knowledge gaps in certain sectors related to Industry 4.0 and individual hard skills.

"This gap suggests the need for more initiatives in organizations or companies in expanding knowledge and hard skills based on components consistent with the concept of a digital mindset," he explained.

Individuals' cognitive components or knowledge can be increased by actively engaging in digital literacy through multimedia sources, knowledge sharing programs, digital-themed training, technology, IT, or other contexts related to Industry 4.0, or even by participating in short educational programs.

To boost the action component, activities such as strengthening hard skills through certification to improve skills (up-skilling and re-skilling) in using digital technology, job rotation, and experiential learning can be carried out.

It is not only the responsibility of each company or organization to improve the readiness of this digital mindset. On the other side, the government has reinforced the acceleration agenda for 4.0 digital transformation. As a result, the necessity of enhancing the community's digital mindset is highly appreciated, and various measures are required to prepare for it. "The readiness of the community's digital mindset in general, including self-regulation, self-motivation, and self-leadership, can be explored," Dr. Achmad stated.

Individuals must practice self-regulation in order to accept the existence of new technology and have the belief that technology exists to be studied in a disciplined and consistent manner. Meanwhile, self-motivation is a method of increasing confidence in employing new technologies, so increasing the power of invention, exploration, and risk-taking. Self-leadership, on the other hand, refers to the ability to develop a digital mindset independently, optimistically, and visionarily in order to become a digital leader for oneself.

Dr. Achmad stated that efforts to address the community's lack of digital mindset plainly require the participation of all sections of society and stakeholders. Digital ecosystems and culture must be established in unison, both at the company or organizational and community levels. On the one hand, as the primary sponsor of the digital transformation acceleration program, the government plays a more prominent role, particularly in establishing a digital mindset through educational institutions.

"The first step in developing a digital mindset is to increase the willingness to learn and explore the digital world, particularly in relation to the industrial context 4.0, such as big data analytics, cloud computing, AI, augmented reality, virtual reality, simulation, robotics, and so on," he concluded.

Reporter: Achmad Lutfi Harjanto (Urban and Regional Planning, 2020)

Translator: Sekar Dianwidi Bisowarno (Bioengineering, 2019)