An exploratory study into the impact of digital workforce on organisational performance at the road accident fund

Abstract

Digital workforce is the future for all organisations. An organisation needs to move to the direction of automation to ensure that organisational performance is improved to an optimal level. A digital workforce will ensure that there is increased data quality and validation. The automation process will reduce the time it takes for employees to process their work. Beyond automation, the ‘gig economy’ is also reshaping work arrangements in key service sectors, making the informal-formal dualism, which is common in labour markets of developing countries. The purpose of the research was to investigate the impact of digital workforce on organizational performance at the Road Accident Fund in Gauteng province. The researchers endeavour to explore and understand how the digital workforce impact organizational performance. This research was conducted via a qualitative approach with the subject of insider’s viewpoint. This study used 10 subjects as the sample size. When assessing the reasons behind the impact of digital workforce on organizational performance it was identified, that employee training should be prioritized for the digital workforce to be successful. Findings from the research highlighted that there is a lot of work to be done to ensure that employees are digitally equipped, and that the organization should invest in technologies that adapt to the digital environment. Having realized that the digital workforce does positively impact organizational performance the study submits the following recommendations: the Road Accident Fund to develop a digital workplace strategy that will clearly outline and define business objectives and technology priorities, provide employees with necessary training and communication on the benefits of the digital workforce, the Road Accident Fund should establish performance metrics to establish alignment to business and technology strategies and the Road Accident Fund in Gauteng province should establish automation capabilities