WA backs digital transformation of SMEs

The West Australian government has committed $6.6 million to drive the digital transformation of the state’s small to medium businesses.

The funding will be rolled out over the next three years as part of the state’s Local Capability Fund (LCF) – Digital Transformation Round, providing grants of up to $25,000 on a matched basis.

Innovation and the Digital Economy Minister Stephen Dawson said the Digital Transformation Round of the LCF helps businesses adopt and use digital and data technologies to improve their competitiveness, resilience, safety and productivity.

“We are encouraging local businesses to take the next step with a $6.6 million support program over the next three years to enable them to undertake a digital transformation,” Dawson said.

“This round of the LCF supports a range of key outcomes outlined under our Digital Industries Acceleration Strategy released earlier this year.

“By supporting our small to medium enterprises to embrace digital technology, we are increasing business efficiency and increasing their opportunities to make data-driven decisions.”

Manufacturers have been recent recipients of previous funding rounds, which supported projects including automating packaging and industrial processes, adopting digital design and fleet management technologies.

The fund has also been used to improve businesses cybersecurity capabilities.