WITH the evolving digital landscape, businesses and organisations must consider investment in areas that meet and counter the challenges associated with it.

This was highlighted by Westpac International chief financial officer Rod Jackson who was a guest speaker at the 45th Fiji Institute of Accountants congress at the Shangri-La’s Fijian Resort and Spa in Sigatoka over the weekend.

Mr Jackson, while presenting on the international megatrends and opportunities and challenges for businesses, said technological advancement was changing the way businesses delivered things in delivering goods and services, prices and to businesses.

“In the area of data, this is really opening up tremendous opportunities and possibilities become easy who have access to their own customer base or to alternative database to reveal customer mind behaviour or the abilities they have,” Mr Jackson said.

But Mr Jackson said this needed to be managed carefully taking into account privacy and cyber security.

“A real problem with access to information particularly online, it increases the risk of cybercrime,” he said.

“It’s a challenge and a problem that is faced globally that every government has to deal with.”

Mr Jackson said one of the biggest challenges they faced was identity theft, something that the international banking industry in particular is looking into.

“It’s not surprising given the challenges we face every day and the amount of cybercrime continues to rise,” he said.

“Our investment in this space has to meet that challenge.

“Every organisation and industry has to think very carefully about this.”

Meanwhile, Mr Jackson also talked on the other megatrends such as demographic and social change; shift in global economic power; climate change and resource scarcity and rapid urbanisation.

“It’s something that is clearly global and not just unique to Fiji, Australia or US, it’s a global trend that’s happening,” he said.

“These are major forces that are shaping and impacting the world in many ways through our social, economic and legal systems.

“For governments, this is obviously fundamental in setting policies for the future, understanding the changing megatrends of the world and what they mean is very important.

“Many organisations are also doing this, for Westpac we take this very seriously and what’s happening in terms of our business models as we evolve and as we go forward.”