A Practical Playbook for Trinidad & Tobago’s Digital Transformation
By Alison Cathles
Why Digital Transformation – Practically Defined-Matters Now
Digital transformation is an organisational process in which digital technologies trigger strategic responses and operating model changes that reshape how value is created and delivered (adapted from Vial, 2019).
Likewise, according to the Oslo Manual (OECD/Eurostat, 2018), innovation can be "New to the world," when innovations are introduced globally for the first time; "new to the market," when innovations are new within a specific market or region; and "new to the firm," when existing technologies or practices are adopted by a particular business for the first time. All three matter for competitiveness.
Across Trinidad and Tobago, evidence shows unevenly distributed and relatively low levels of digital technology adoption. Whereas nearly 25% of firms in the European Union introduced information processing and communication methods in the past three years, only 8.8% of firms had done so (IFPG, 2020 and CIS, 2020). And while 90% of large firms in Trinidad and Tobago had a website, only 56% of small firms did (IFPG, 2020). These adoption gaps matter, because digital technology adoption at the firm level has been shown to have a positive effect on productivity, especially when accompanied by changes in management practices. In an increasingly digital world, closing these gaps is essential to realising productivity gains. In order to measure progress, it will be vital to have regularly updated statistics about digital technology adoption and use in Trinidad and Tobago.
Engage: Build Stronger Bridges Between Market Needs and Solutions
Engagement is about connecting minds and markets, such as industry–academia collaboration, public–private partnerships, and peer‑to‑peer learning among SMEs and scale‑ups. Speakers throughout the Tech Hub Islands Summit (THIS) 2025 referred to the vast (yet not fully tapped) potential within T&T’s talent pool and strategic geographic position as a gateway between the Americas and the Caribbean.
To truly engage in digital transformation at a country level, strong linkages within the digital innovation ecosystems, particularly between industry and academia, are needed. Initiatives to create spaces where cutting-edge research produced in T&T’s universities can be further experimented upon and commercialised by the private sector via start-ups or innovative firms are crucial. Publicly funded research centres of excellence or even grant money should build in incentives for collaboration, and incubators and accelerators in the country should be strengthened. Training and financial support opportunities for digital entrepreneurs or groups of small businesses (for example, in creative industries) to support them in different stages or aspects of their digital transformation processes would be ideal.
To do that successfully, the firm needs to know how digitally mature it is. Auto diagnostic tools, like the IADB’s/Caribbean Export Development Agency’s digital check-up tool (https://digitalcheckup.carib-export.com/#!)will help MSMEs in the Caribbean standardise their assessments about their digital maturity across six key dimensions. These dimensions include Technology and Use, Communications, Digital Sales Channels, Organisation and People, Strategy, Data & Analysis, and Digital Processes.
The tool provides a comprehensive snapshot of a business's current digital capabilities and offers tailored recommendations to guide its digital transformation journey. By identifying strengths and gaps, the Digital Check-up supports MSMEs in becoming more competitive, resilient, and better positioned for growth in the digital economy.
Execute: Building Infrastructure, Skills, and Solutions
Execution blends hard enablers (connectivity, cloud, cybersecurity, data platforms) with human enablers (skills, change management, incentives). Without both, pilots stall. The backbone of digital transformation is a solid digital tech infrastructure. Data is the new currency in the digital economy, demanding world-class data centres, high-capacity computing power, and connectivity. These elements require investment, but they are fundamental to enable local businesses to store, process, and analyse data efficiently, and those capabilities are foundational building blocks for digital transformation.
While digital infrastructure is a necessary condition, it is not sufficient. Execution also means investing in people. Bridging the digital skills gaps at all levels, from the most advanced (i.e., developing data scientists, engineers, analysts, and cybersecurity experts) to intermediate (i.e., mastery of Microsoft Office tools and commonly used business software tools) to broad inclusion to equip all workers with at least basic digital skills, are critical inputs for firms. Partnerships between higher-education institutions and industry mentioned above, build a pipeline of talent from early on, increasing education quality and opportunities to learn digital skills at all stages of people’s educational pathways.
Strong execution is backed by well-balanced regulatory frameworks that can provide safeguards for the newest and least well-known technologies but at the same time, leave room to incentivise innovation, startups, and scale-ups. Emerging technologies such as AI offer exciting opportunities across sectors, as many speakers at THIS 2025 highlighted.
Evolve: Adapting Mindsets, Policies, and Innovation Ecosystems
Trinidad and Tobago’s future depends on its ability to evolve, to embrace agility, resilience, and continuous learning. These will be necessary for dealing with the unpredictable and keeping pace with the speed at which digital technologies are evolving.
Evolving means cultivating a workforce equipped with not only technical skills but also creativity, critical thinking and emotional intelligence—qualities machines cannot easily replicate. Digital transformation must be inclusive. Social innovation and technological advances can be a mechanism to foster inclusion. And access to digital tools may provide vulnerable populations with new opportunities, but it is unlikely to happen without concerted efforts.
Lastly, thriving in the digital era demands a vibrant innovation ecosystem—where entrepreneurs can experiment, fail fast, and scale solutions.
The Road Ahead:
· Establish responsible and balanced AI guardrails that enable innovation while protecting privacy, security and fairness (IDB, 2025).
· Build digital capabilities in firms and people with inclusive access: ensure that MSMEs have targeted outreach, mentorship and financing to adopt digital channels and payments. Ensure that all people have access to digital skills training and education opportunities.
· Knowledge loops: share “what worked” across clusters (ICT/digital services, creative industries, business services).
The recent Tech Hub Islands Summit was more than just an interesting gathering of minds. It was a call for Trinidad and Tobago to engage broadly, execute tightly, and evolve continuously in a world increasingly defined by rapid technological change—so digital transformation compounds into measurable, inclusive growth.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alison Cathles is the Senior Specialist, Competitiveness Technology and Innovation (CTI) Division, at The Inter-American Development Bank.