DALLAS, Sept. 12, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- BT today announced
the findings of new global research based on a survey conducted by
the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) with 400 CEOs in 13
countries* across five continents, which reveals the critical
importance of digital transformation in multinational
organizations. The research shows that nearly 40 percent of CEOs
currently have digital transformation at the very top of their
boardroom agenda, with almost a quarter of them personally leading
their company's transformation programmes.
There is a high level of confidence — amongst three quarters of
CEOs surveyed — that their specific programmes will help them
achieve their strategic objectives, which include making
operational efficiencies, improving customer service and innovating
for the future, with security as a key differentiator.
Despite this, 86 percent of CEOs encounter challenges in
delivering the ideal infrastructure on which their digital
programmes rely. They identify inflexible technology (43 percent),
lack of technology skills (40 percent) and security concerns (39
percent) as the main obstacles in building better digital
infrastructure. CEOs highlight better integration, reliability,
security and cost effectiveness as being the most critical factors
needed to deliver the infrastructure which will build the digital
business of the future.
When it comes to achieving their digital ambitions, more than a
quarter of CEOs regard security as a key differentiator. This view
is especially prevalent in consumer-facing sectors, rising to
almost 50 percent for CEOs who operate in the financial services
industry. Despite this, 22 percent of CEOs view cybersecurity
measures as a 'necessary evil'. The findings suggest that, while
CEOs feel perceived security risks should not hold back their
digital transformation progress, they nevertheless continue to view
security as one of the chief barriers and concerns when considering
a digital strategy.
Customer service — and specifically the digital customer
experience — is seen by the survey respondents as highly important,
with 79 percent of CEOs saying they already offer a "good" or
"excellent" digital customer experience today. However, barriers
remain in the form of insight into what customers actually want and
the technology skills required to deliver this.
CEOs display a similar level of confidence in the digital
experience of their employees, where their focus is on retaining
talented employees, increasing innovation and reducing costs.
The research also revealed that CEOs regard the Internet of
Things (IoT), cloud computing, mobile computing and social media as
the technology trends which are likely to have the most significant
impact on their organizations over the next two to three years.
In summary, the research shows that there is sustained focus on
digital transformation at the very top of global organizations.
While confidence is high, the research also reveals areas that CEOs
and CIOs need to work on together, primarily around security,
infrastructure, technology skills and customer insight. The
opportunity to evolve businesses through digital technology
continues to grow and many organizations are actively looking at
the methods by which they can gain competitive advantage.
Bas Burger, CEO, Global Services,
BT, said: "Our most recent research confirms that digital
transformation has become a prevalent topic on the boardroom
agenda. It also shows that CEOs all around the world identify the
skills shortages, lack of insight into what customers and employees
really want or need, and security as the main obstacles to
delivering an optimal digital experience. It's interesting that
these are primarily human factors and it illustrates that digital
transformation strategies should always be built around people. We
see this as a great encouragement for BT to accelerate its own
digitalization, and are taking on board this new insight to make
sure that our global portfolio is more firmly positioned than ever
around the strategic objectives highlighted by our customers."
In addition to the research report, BT has created a series of
whitepapers covering the issues identified by the survey around the
themes of security, digital business, digital customer and digital
employee. These whitepapers include practical recommendations on
how customers can move along their digital transformation
journeys.
To find out more and download that content, visit
www.bt.com/digital-ceo.
*Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Netherlands, Singapore, South
Africa, Spain, Switzerland, UK and USA
About the research
This Digital CEO research is based on a survey of more than 400
CEOs conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and insight from
BT's digital transformation experts. The sample spans 13 countries:
Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, India, the
Netherlands, Singapore,
South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and Ireland and the USA and involved CEOs of businesses with
revenues of $500m or greater. Sectors
covered by the research are manufacturing, energy & resources,
financial services, travel, transport & logistics, retail,
consumer goods, and automotive industries.
About The Economist Intelligence Unit
The Economist Intelligence Unit is the world leader in global
business intelligence. It is the business-to-business arm of The
Economist Group, which publishes The Economist newspaper.
The Economist Intelligence Unit helps executives make better
decisions by providing timely, reliable and impartial analysis on
worldwide market trends and business strategies.
More information can be found at www.eiu.com.
About BT
BT's purpose is to use the power of communications to make a
better world. It is one of the world's leading providers of
communications services and solutions, serving customers in 180
countries. Its principal activities include the provision of
networked IT services globally; local, national and international
telecommunications services to its customers for use at home, at
work and on the move; broadband, TV and internet products and
services; and converged fixed-mobile products and services. BT
consists of six customer-facing lines of business: Consumer, EE,
Business and Public Sector, Global Services, Wholesale and
Ventures, and Openreach.
For the year ended 31 March 2017,
BT Group's reported revenue was £24,062m with reported profit
before taxation of £2,354m.
British Telecommunications plc (BT) is a wholly-owned subsidiary
of BT Group plc and encompasses virtually all businesses and assets
of the BT Group. BT Group plc is listed on stock exchanges in
London and New York.
For more information, visit www.btplc.com
CONTACT: Vicky Harres,
victoria.harres@bt.com
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SOURCE BT