1. Introduction

Internationally, the fourth industrial revolution is redesigning the way of working in different companies. Colombia is no stranger to this global phenomenon, a process that has been accelerated by the unprecedented conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially for SMEs. Those that survived showed a detriment in the evolution of business, sales, and demand; therefore, they were forced to reinvent themselves using technology to stay competitive. By 2019, there were about 1,620,000 companies in Colombia: 6,793 large companies, 109,000 SMEs, and 1,500,000 micro-enterprises (^{Economía Aplicada, 2019}). According to the Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadisticas [DANE] (Colombian Statistics Department) and the Confederación Colombiana de Cámaras de Comercio [Confecamaras] (Colombian Association of Chambers of Commerce), Ministerio de Trabajo [Mintrabajo] (Labor Ministry), ²⁰¹⁹; ^{Economía Aplicada, 2019}), SMEs represent more than 90 % of the national production sector, creating 35 % of the GDP and 80 % of jobs of Colombia. According to the Asociación Nacional de Industriales [ANDI] ^{(Colombian Association of Businessmen) (2019)}, in 2019, 63.5 % of Colombian companies had a digital transformation strategy, and 57 % of large companies were partially ready to adopt it. In the case of SMEs, only 27.7 %, and in micro-enterprises, it dropped to 24.1 %..

Technologies provide organizations with the agility to offer new products and services, improve the customer experience, and manage data and processes, but what about human talent? Do SMEs in Bogotá fully identify the impact of adopting 4IR technologies on their human talent? This research develops a diagnostic instrument to understand the challenges involved in the development and transformation of employment in the context of competitiveness in the market to remain current due to the adoption of technologies in SMEs in Bogotá. This adoption requires that human talent develop or acquire new skills very quickly, changing the quality of employment or reinventing the way of performing functions, among others. Additionally, an analysis prototype is developed from three pivotal elements: impact, enablers, and perception.

This diagnostic tool was applied to SMEs through electronic surveys with Likert scale-type questions Net Promoter Score (NPS), dichotomous, and multiple choice) about customer experience. It seeks to investigate the degree of knowledge of technological trends and their effect on the human business fabric, the possible scenarios and alternatives to take advantage of, retain, promote, and attract human talent, and their interests in frontier technologies and how they have been involved in them.

Below we present the theoretical framework with the primary theoretical and methodological references consider in the research. Subsequently, there is a brief discussion about the method and the context of the analysis categories, describing the instrument used and systematizing the results obtained from its application. These results allow proposing a diagnostic instrument grouped into three pivotal elements of analysis deemed relevant in the context of SMEs in Bogotá (perception, enablers, and impact), broken down into variables to recognize the impact of 4IR technological trends on human talent. Finally, the conclusions show the implications of the results.

Given that in the existing academic sources, there is no evidence of an instrument that helps SMEs recognize and assess the impact of technologies on their human tissue, this study’s specific analysis model is introduced in response to this problem.

2. Theoretical Framework

The national and international literature was analyzed by searching academic data sources such as Google Scholar, Scopus, Dialnet, Redalyc, and Scielo. It is grouped into three themes: The first involves the context of the evolution and trends of digital transformation from the beginning of the industrial revolution to the era of knowledge management in Industry 4.0. The second is addressed from the perspective of associations and Colombian government agencies on the challenges and benefits of adopting frontier technologies for SMEs. The third describes the evolution of employment globally, from the beginning of the digitization of companies to the present, and its impact on human talent.

The digital transformation began in the 1980s when a technological revolution based on the accelerated increase in the capacity of microprocessors to store data and process information emerged as the beginning of digitalization. It later reached a new and most developed stage, 4IR, from the generalization of digital and cyber-physical products such as robotization, Artificial Intelligence (AI), automation, and technologies for handling large volumes of data (big data, internet of things, blockchain, and digital platforms) (^{Carvajal Rojas, 2017}; ^{Nava and Naspleda, 2020}). Some trends in digital transformation have evolved into Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, implants in the human body, machines that work in a collaborative and coordinated manner, autonomous systems for decision-making and problem-solving with the ability to learn, virtual customer service advisors, 3D-printed artificial organs, and smart cities, among others. A seamless integration between humans, machines, and robots that harness the full human potential (^{Xiang and Kong, 2018}; ^{BANCOLOMBIA, 2019}; ^{Oztemel and Gursev, 2020}) and achieves a reliable, dynamic, and real-time human-cyber-physical symbiosis that helps processes and, generally, improves the production system is critical for the success of Industry 4.0.

Digital transformation affects organiza­tions, some more than others, with human talent being the most impacted resource, which is why it is essential. The country’s organizations are becoming aware that employees must be engaged in this transformation, emphasizing employee training (Ministerio de las TIC [MINTIC]) (ICT Ministry), ²⁰¹⁸; ^{Goodrebels, 2016}). Technology has changed how companies interact with consumers, who are more demanding and knowledgeable, and value immediate service through omnichannel and digital media that allow customizing products and services (^{Porter, 2015}; ^{Nagamachi and Mohd, 2015}; ^{Córdoba Roldán et al., 2016}). In 2016, ANDI created the Vice Presidency for Digital Transformation to turn Colombia and its entrepreneurs digital, promoting a change of mentality that facilitates the transformation of business models, helps to improve the quality of life of Colombians, and increases the productivity of companies thanks to the adoption of exponential technologies. The results of the Digital Transformation Surveys of 2018 and 2019 noted an increase in knowledge on the part of the companies about what the 4IR means, the use of exponential technologies, and the growth in the number of companies that have initiated a digital transformation strategy (^{Dinero, 2020}; ^{ANDI, 2019}). They also revealed that some organizations already have talented workers specialized in technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, IoT, and e-commerce, among others, and train their employees on these topics.

Digital transformation has changed the working world. Historically, its characteristics have constantly been changing. The Industry 1.0 worker performed manual labor, supported by hand-operated tools (1700-1960), while the Industry 2.0 worker used CAX tools (computer-assisted technologies), operating systems, and business information systems (1960-1970). The Industry 3.0 worker cooperated with robots, machines, and computer tools, also known as human-robot collaboration (1970-2000). Finally, Industry 4.0 workers are characterized by an automation-human symbiosis to improve the workforce capabilities Organización Internacional del Trabajo [OIT] (International Labour Organization) (²⁰¹⁹); ^{Hernandez et al., 2020}; ^{Deloitte, 2017a}; ^{Dominik et al., 2020}; ^{Serrano, 2016}). Industry 4.0 brings significant challenges to improve workers’ quality of life, close the gender gap, and reverse the ravages caused by inequalities worldwide, among others, but also deepens uncertainties. It is considered that the workers likely to lose their jobs will be those who are least prepared to face digital transformation. Those who develop the skills required today will have the opportunity to apply for jobs in the near future.

The reduction in employment, especially in routine tasks, is associated with computers, robots, or platforms replacing labor; 44 % of the companies that reduced their workforce since 2008 did so by automating tasks (^{McKinsey Global Institute, 2011}) and producing changes in the structure of the labor market (^{Autor and Dorn, 2013}; Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe [CEPAL] (Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean) ²⁰¹⁷; ^{Acemoglu and David, 2011}; ^{Deloitte, 2017b}). The workforce requires time to adapt to the transitions caused by the technologies that can replace it and to receive training in the new technologies.

Moreover, 36 % of Colombian companies are fully qualified, and 72 % will invest between 300 and 2,000 million Colombian pesos in digital transformation. The smallest enterprises are the least qualified.

The existing literature on digital transformation in SMEs does not identify its possible effects on the human talent of companies in Bogotá, the new skills necessary to implement frontier technologies, and the abilities to work in collaborative and virtual environments. These factors could result in labor displacement in operational and repetitive activities replaced by technology (^{The Millennium Project Global Futures Studies & Research, 2017}; ^{Goodrebels, 2016}; ^{Orellana Dauben, 2020}) and the reallocation of production factors in SMEs in the capital city. The international literature has no evidence that these have been studied because they focus on research on the business context of the most developed countries.

The central hypothesis of this research is that according to national and international literature, the determinants of emerging technologies such as hyper-connectivity, hyper-automation, native cloud platforms, artificial intelligence engineering, and decision-making with autonomous systems, among others, change the working conditions of human talent. These factors integrated into the business environment are not consistently recognized by the SMEs that carry on their business in Bogotá.

3. Materials and Methods

The research is mixed with documentary and field components from a triangular approach, integrating quantitative and qualitative elements worked on independently but simultaneously. The information is collected, analyzed, linked, and discussed, allowing for conclusion and identification from different points of view about the process through a strategy to meet the objectives set. It has a correlational explanatory scope. It seeks to identify the impact of digital transformation in SMEs in Bogotá on their human talent, understanding the cause-effect relationships associated with the transformation of work, technology, the 4IR, the rapid adaptation of human talent, labor displacement, the modification of working conditions, and the acquisition of new digital skills, among others.

The population under study were SMEs in Bogotá, with 41,062 small-sized and 11,851 medium-sized (Instituto Nacional de Contadores Públicos de Colombia [INCP] (National Institute of Public Accountants of Colombia), ²⁰²¹). The sample was adjusted to a 95 % confidence level, with a margin of error of 4.931 %. A representative sample of 392 Bogota organizations underwent a structured interview with 24 questions to recognize the factors that impact organizations and their workers when implementing new technologies.

The variables considered were the adoption of frontier technologies, the adaptation of workers to the transition to new technologies, highly qualified roles in technological trends, retraining and the acquisition of new skills, and the redesign of job positions.

A field diagnostic instrument, a survey, was applied as a structured electronic form. The first block of questions (1 to 5) characterized the type of companies that answered it, and the second block identified the factors that impact organizations and their workers when implementing 4IR technologies.

The analysis instrument considers the conditions that stand out in Latin America, such as labor displacement, the substitution of jobs, the redesign of current jobs, the time for retraining in new digital skills to face the unique challenges of digital transformation, and the creation of new positions or engagement of highly specialized resources in frontier technologies, making Colombia a country with better training and competitiveness in the region (^{Anzola Sarmiento, 2017}; ^{OIT, 2017}).

4. Results

4.1. Characterizing the SMEs in the study group

The company group surveyed focuses on small- and medium-sized companies in Bogotá (Figure 1).

Source: Authors’ own elaboration

Figure 1 Characterization of companies surveyed in Bogotá 

The analysis of results is grouped into three pivotal elements. One is called enablers, which includes factors such as the economic resources of companies, governance and strategy. The second is perception, which considers factors such as coordination and integration, change management, and qualified personnel required to take advantage of technology; finally, impact involves actions on human talent and factors such as digital skills. The results obtained are presented in Figure 2.

Source: Authors’ own elaboration.

Figure 2 Summary of the most relevant results of the applied instrument 

The detailed analysis of the impact results with the breakdown of the proposed subcategories is as follows.

5. Discussion

5.2. Activities or processes to be transformed

According to this study, the processes that new technologies will transform are strategic and support processes. Nonetheless, the reference literature states that technologies most likely affect operational, repetitive, and extensive data volume management processes.

As part of our results, an improvement to the analysis instrument is proposed by changing the grading scheme for all the evaluation elements in the interviews to allow the results to be compared between companies (Table 1).

Table 1 Grading prototype of the diagnostic instrument for the impact of technology on human talent 

		0 -20 pts	21 -40 pts	41 -60 pts	61 -80 pts	81 -100 pts
IMPACT	Actions on human talent	Strongly disagree	Disagreement	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree	RESULT
	How many jobs will it impact?				75		65
	Do you consider redesigning the functions of the charges with the implementation of technology?			65
	What do you plan to do with the people in the jobs to be impacted?			55
	Digital skills	Strongly disagree	Disagreement	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree	RESULT
	Would it create an incentive for employees to be trained and certified in the digital transformation needs that the company requires?			50			60
	What % of employees do you consider have digital skills or abilities to leverage the digital transformation of your company?				70
	What is the expected time for human talent to retrain and acquire new digital skills?				60
PERCEPTION	Qualified personnel	Strongly disagree	Disagreement	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree	RESULT
	Are you satisfied with the academic training of your employees to face the challenges of digital transformation?					70	70
	How many employees does your company have?			60
	Do you think that digital transformation will be able to displace or replace labor?				80
	Change management	Strongly disagree	Disagreement	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree	RESULT
	What % of your income will you use to acquire technology?				65		60
	Did you incorporate or accelerate the implementation of new digital solutions due to the COVID-19 pandemic?				61
	In the next 5 years, do you think that your company’s technology will allow you to remain current in the market?			54
	Coordination and integration	Strongly disagree	Disagreement	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree	RESULT
	Would you use an instrument that helps you identify the impact on human talent due to the adoption of digital transformation?			50			50
	Is your company able to stay current, to the challenges and speed of technological changes?			45
	Which of the following are the processes that will be affected by the digital transformation to be implemented in your company?				56
ENABLERS	4IR technologies	Strongly disagree	Disagreement	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree	RESULT
	Are you implementing or planning to implement digital transformation in your company in the short term?					98	80
	What technological trends or digital solutions do you plan to implement in the short and medium term?			60
	Do you have customer service and/or digital sales processes?				81
	Governance and strategy	Strongly disagree	Disagreement	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree	RESULT
	Which of the following government entities and instruments that support and finance digital transformation in companies do you know?				70		68
	Do you have a defined digital skills training plan for your employees?			41
	Have you thought about hiring highly qualified personnel or with specific training in any digital solution?					90
	Do you consider retaining highly qualified human talent in digital transformation?				72
	Economic resources	Strongly disagree	Disagreement	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree	RESULT
	What % of your income will you allocate to educate or train your employees in the new technologies implemented or to be implemented?			50			40
	Do you have the financial capacity to develop a digital transformation plan in the short term?		30

Source: Authors’ own elaboration.

The preceding is a contribution to SMEs regarding incremental innovation in the organizational culture assessment models. It explicitly shows companies the implications for their human tissue in different dimensions such as training time, required training, the adaptation of human talent, the recruitment and hiring of highly qualified personnel, impacted processes, the redesign of functions due to technological changes, State financing instruments and entities, the promotion of training programs, professional growth, and learning of new technologies. This prototype is represented as a schematic for viewing results (Figure 3).

Source: Authors’ own elaboration based on the correlation of organizational culture assessment models.

Figure 3 Prototype of the schematic of results of the diagnostic instrument for the impact of technologies on human talent 

6. Conclusions

The research study conducted in Bogotá intends to contribute to understanding the reality of SMEs. The analysis did not show an instrument that allows evaluating, measuring, or assessing how human talent is affected by the implementation of 4IR technologies, which is why we propose a diagnostic instrument to recognize the different elements in this context.

According to the ^{McKinsey Global Institute (2011)}, companies seek to restructure their processes to reduce the number of employees during economic recessions, which occurs the most in large companies than in small enterprises. This condition is reaffirmed in part by the population subject to this study. They are highly interested in improving their processes with technologies without displacing their human talent, which is limited, given that 75 % have between 11 and 50 employees, and their absence would impact companies’ management.

Moreover, 90 % of the SMEs studied consider implementing new technologies in their short-term strategy, which impacts more than 50 % of the employees. There is an imbalance between the training plans established by the companies and the resources available to implement them, which do not have a particular scope for some employees. It is necessary to promote training on new technologies in SMEs through incentives from companies, government entities, academia, and technology parks.

Based on the research results, the following variables are put forward to strengthen and delve into additional aspects for analyzing the impact of technologies on human talent in the context of SMEs in Bogotá, with additional factors that enrich future research. These variables complement the improvement that unifies the grading scheme with the new factors and their unfolding (Table 2). We also propose improving the Perception and Enabling element, adding to the latter the subcategory “Skill Development for the 4IR” and its unfolding (Table 3).

We recommend evaluating the bank of questions presented in this section through various instruments, such as the group of experts, focus groups, or the survey of SMEs, to ratify or adjust the prototype of the diagnostic instrument. In addition, the functional prototype or minimum viable product (MVP) should be designed and developed in a second phase and tested in SMEs to continue iterating the proposed instrument in the face of technological trends and their direct or indirect effect on human talent to take advantage of, retain, empower, or attract it.