While many company leaders feel prepared for the upheaval that emerging technologies represent, few are apparently truly ready for the operational, competitive, cultural, and security shifts that are already taking place.
That’s the primary finding of a new study, “Technology is Transforming Everything: Businesses Struggle To Change With It,” published by consulting firm West Monroe Partners. The survey not only attempted to pinpoint how ready companies are for the “historic upheaval” posed by technological change but also how ready they think they are.
It identified and measured the gaps in knowledge, activity, and structure that businesses must close to survive and thrive in the evolving technology landscape, said Greg Layok, managing director and leader of the technology practice at West Monroe who also authored this study.
“The impact of technology will only continue to accelerate. The winners and losers are more clearly defined in this digital age, so businesses cannot afford to be complacent,” he stressed in a statement. “To capitalize on opportunity, now is the time for action.”
Layok’s research indicated a “clear division” between organizations that extract value from data and those that only collect it. It also illuminated a “gulf” separating companies investing in “dynamic core systems” and those that throw money at solutions, implementing them poorly or in isolation.
He added that the study highlighted which businesses are truly vigilant to cybersecurity threats and how others fall short and, despite widespread appreciation of the enormous opportunities and risks, the report showed that most leaders “appear disoriented” by what their companies possess technology-wise and what to do with it.
Key findings include:
- 68% of business and technology leaders do not believe competitors are successfully leveraging their data.
- 42% did not classify disruptive technologies as threats.
- 96% of business and technology leaders are concerned about cybersecurity, but 25% still report having reactive cybersecurity strategies.
- Only one-third of respondents reported having customer-experience-focused technology initiatives in the works.
