The honeymoon for digital transformation is over. Forty percent of 1,070 CIOs claim to have reached scale for digital initiatives that leverage technology to drive business change, a hefty increase from 17 percent in 2018, according to Gartner's 2020 CIO Agenda survey.
But the majority of enterprises are merely improving existing business models rather than transforming themselves, which leaves them vulnerable to any crisis that might require holistic change, Gartner analyst Andy Rowsell-Jones tells CIO.com.
"There is a relentless march toward digital maturity," says Rowsell-Jones, who presented the survey findings Monday at the Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo in Orlando, Florida, but "digital is no longer a differentiator" for combatting changing business conditions.
6 tips for weathering existential threats
For example, 90 percent of enterprises surveyed said they have experienced a “turn,” including organizational disruption (47%), operating cost pressures (38%), and adverse regulatory issues (34%) as well as other disruptions such as acquisitions and changing consumer tastes.