Djoni Herlambang is a dynamic technology leader with over 35 years of experience in the retail industry, specializing in IT, operations, and digital transformation across Southeast Asia. He is renowned for driving scalable IT systems, cloud adoption, and sustainable modernization initiatives.
In an insightful interaction with CEO Insights Asia Magazine, Djoni shares his insights on the challenges CTOs face in driving digital transformation in retail, the role of emerging technologies, and the importance of balancing innovation with operational efficiency.
To learn more about his perspective on leading digital change, read the full article below.
What do you think is the biggest challenge CTOs face when driving digital transformation in retail?
One of the biggest challenges CTOs face in driving the digital transformation in retail is aligning rapid technological change with the organization’s ability to adapt. Retail operations are used to long-standing systems and processes, which can make it harder for teams to shift to digital tools. While emerging technologies such as AI, automation and advanced analytics offer enormous potential, the real obstacle lies in transforming mindset at processes. Transformation slows down if employees do not understand how it benefits them or hesitant to adopt it. CTOs must focus on building trust, offering clear communication, and providing training that feel simple and practical. Balancing new technology with human readiness becomes the most difficult part of making digital change successful in any retail business
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Was there a defining moment when a high-stakes technology bet nearly failed, and what leadership recalibration did that crisis demand from you?
There was a moment when a high‑stakes technology decision almost disrupted our digital transformation, and it forced me to rethink my leadership approach. In that situation, I had to act quickly and bring together teams from other departments and IT to ensure alignment. Beyond stabilizing the immediate issue, we also had to think ahead and explore how we could rapidly design or prepare another system as a potential replacement, ensuring business continuity if the original plan failed. That experience reinforced the value of transparent communication, cross‑department collaboration, and strategic readiness especially when driving fast, large‑scale digital change across the organization.
As the retail industry moves toward hyper-personalization, what technologies do you believe will define customer engagement over the next 5 years?
Over the next 5 years, customer engagement in retail will be shaped by technologies that make every interaction feel truly personal and effortless. AI-powered recommendation engines will become far more intelligent, using customer purchase history and behavioral data to predict what shoppers want even before they begin searching.
In physical stores, computer vision and smart sensors will help retailers understand how customers move, browse, and react, allowing them to tailor offers instantly.
Conversational AI and voice assistants will act as personalized shopping companions across all channels. Together, these technologies will transform how customers discover products, interact with brands, and build lasting loyalty.
When innovation budgets tighten, how do you evaluate experimental technologies like generative AI or edge computing through a lens of measurable retail ROI rather than industry hype?
When innovation budgets tighten, evaluating technologies like generative AI or edge computing becomes a discipline rooted in measurable retail impact, not industry excitement. My focus will always be the retail problem we are solving, whether it is reducing operational costs, improving on‑shelf availability, speeding up store processes, or increasing customer conversion. I then run small, rapid pilots in real store conditions with focused KPIs such as shrink reduction, labour‑hour savings, forecast accuracy, or uplift in personalized sale.
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If the technology cannot demonstrate meaningful improvement at this controlled scale, it will not advance to broader investment. This ensures every investment remains commercially sound, customer‑centric, and aligned with the realities of retail operations.
In scaling digital platforms across geographies, how do you prevent technical debt from compounding while still enabling rapid localization and differentiated customer experiences?
Scaling digital platforms across different countries is always a balance between moving fast and keeping the system healthy for the long term. To avoid technical debt piling up, I focus on building one strong global platform that stays consistent everywhere, while allowing each country to customize only the parts that matter for local customers. This means the core features stay the same, but each market can adjust language, and promotions without changing the main system.
I also make sure teams follow clear standards, document what they build, and clean up temporary fixes quickly. By doing this, we can offer personalized experiences in every country without creating a messy, hard‑to‑maintain system over time.
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For future leaders in retail tech, what advice you would share for balancing innovation with operational efficiency in such a fast-evolving industry?
Balancing innovation with operational efficiency starts with understanding that both are equally important in a fast-evolving retail industry. My advice to future retail leaders is to always focus innovation in real customer and business needs. New ideas should simplify work for stores, improve customer experiences, or strengthen the bottom line and not add unnecessary complexity.
Move fast but start small. Pilot new technologies in controlled environments, learn quickly, and scale only when the value is proven. At the same time, build strong relationships with other business unit because innovation only succeeds when the whole organization can adopt it confidently. Finally, stay curious, stay adaptable, and lead with empathy. Technology may drive the future, but people determine its success.