Digital transformation investment will continue in 2021

Software AG has published the results from its ‘Situation Report’ global survey of IT Leaders and their digital transformation investment strategies. The global COVID pandemic served as a dramatic backdrop for a year of innovation and digitalisation in businesses around the globe. 97 percent of IT directors surveyed said that their company went through digital transformation efforts in 2020, the same number expect that investment to continue in 2021.

 

The research highlighted some priorities and assumptions that companies have in common, and some areas where opinion is divided on the best way forward.

 

What companies have in common:

• 97% believe their business is resilient
• 95% believe technology will help them tackle future challenges 
• 90% believe that customer expectation will increase in the next year

 

Where companies differ:

• Whether to consolidate (50%) or diversify (48%) tech portfolios 
• Whether to prioritise product and process (48%) or customer support and service (52%) improvements
• Who the biggest beneficiary of digital investments has been, or will be, with customers, employees and ‘the business’ all cited as top priority

 

“The COVID pandemic redefined digital transformation in the enterprise,” commented Dr Stefan Sigg, CPO, Software AG. “While transformation has been an imperative that IT leaders have been championing for years, it took these historic circumstances for many business leaders to make it a priority. The resulting acceleration was nothing short of miraculous, albeit necessary. Organisations had to take some big dramatic steps – and in some cases a leap of faith – to make their businesses work in the most difficult circumstances. The reward is that the benefits will be stretch well beyond the pandemic.” 

 

Of the technologies essential in 2021, global IT leaders listed the following as areas of focus: Cloud computing (67%), 5G (51%), AI (43%) and Integration (43%). 

 

Closer look at global trends:    

• A majority of American and German IT professionals say they need more diversification in their IT infrastructure, while the majority of British and French say they have a good amount of technologies and suppliers 
• American and British IT professionals have more confidence in their IT infrastructure than their French and German counterparts, the former are more likely to say their IT infrastructure is “definitely” resilient, the latter are more likely to say it “probably” is 
• American and British IT professions are more likely than French and Germans to say a “better digital experience” is most important to customers, while French and Germans are more likely to report that customers want a “faster service” than Americans and British
• British IT professionals are most likely to say their Board of Directors are the most influential decision maker when it comes to transformation