Just 50 years ago, Blue Bird Group emerged to create the standard for transportation and logistics in Indonesia, leading the years ahead. Fast forward to the 2000s, Blue Bird Group used Radio Mobile Data Terminal and Slgteg Device to simplify taxi orders. Looking back in 2011, Blue Bird Group tapped into the corporate technology innovations with the Taxi Mobile Reservation application for Blackberry. Years later, after the launch of Gojek and Grab, Blue Bird Group seems to have found its heavy rivals in the transportation industry. How did it happen? Gojek and Grab established themselves to be the more seamless and convenient way for everyone to order safe, fast, and cheap transportation. Fitting for the busy lifestyles of Indonesians in big cities, Gojek and Grab grew to be a multibillion-dollar company – surpassing Blue Bird Group as the top transportation service in the country. Gojek and Grab motorbike and car transportation service numbers were inclining, while Blue Bird Group’s cabs plunged 53% in 2015 according to Asia Nikkei. Throughout the years, Gojek and Grab embarked on digitalization and added more features to ease day-to-day transportation and even activities, in which Blue Bird Group had lacked. Falling behind in the race of the industry, Blue Bird Group refused to give up and they slowly rebuilt their strategies from the ground up. Realizing digitalization was the game, Blue Bird Group started its transformation by relaunching its application My Bluebird including features that allow cash and cashless payments. Through the force of digital transformation, Blue Bird Group was also willing to collaborate their service with Gojek and used easy ride innovation to increase customers’ flexibility through their app. 2018 was a promising year for Blue Bird Group as they rebranded, adding more innovative features to their digital app, and pushed partnerships with other service industries in the archipelago. Their digital transformation did not even stop when the pandemic hit with new developments in transportation and logistics services. Thus, Blue Bird Group reached its first net profit increase since 2015 and kept the innovation growing by investing in electric vehicle use, while also setting out new ventures with several digitalized businesses. Getting hit by disruption twice and still standing strong means that Blue Bird Group deserves incredible applause for breaking through technology and innovation barriers at the time. As Muhammad Suhada, former Vice President of Information Technology at Blue Bird Group shared in W.Media Awards, “...​​ this time technology is not only helping us to survive but it is also helping us to tap into future markets and opportunity because we already have the platform needed to grow.” Blue Bird Group’s growth in the digital landscape shows us that understanding the business, along with incorporating people, technology, and innovation are the bridge to reaching success. As of September 2023’s, Kontan.co.id shared that Blue Bird Group’s net profit reached 367,42 billion Rupiah growing 40,97% compared to 2022. Following the ever-growing technological advancements, it is crucial for companies and organizations to embrace digital transformation. From Blue Bird’s digital transformation journey, we learned that adaptability and agility will have a measurable impact on the future that the business holds. Living in a rapidly changing landscape, digital transformation not only will help you to survive, but also to provide your market with more relevant and compatible solutions. Sources: - Asia Nikkei: Grab and Go-Jek face resurgent rival in Blue Bird - Blue Bird Grup: Sejarah Bluebird - Kontan: Pendapatan Blue Bird (BIRD) Naik 28,74% Menjadi Rp 3,22 Triliun Per Kuartal III-2023 - W.Media: Digital Transformation takes flight at Blue Bird Group