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As the UK economy seeks to ‘build back better’ from the Covid-19 pandemic, connectivity funding is revealed as the key to successful business growth however, many UK businesses are in danger of suffering stunted growth due to a lack of investment in core IT connectivity systems.
A new report, conducted by internet access and business connectivity provider Neos Networks, which gathered results from 247 medium-to-large UK organisations, and data, cloud and network infrastructure service providers, has found that four in every five UK firms are unable to scale plans to their fullest potential with current connectivity arrangements. Just 20 per cent of UK businesses state they are in a position to undertake digital transformation plans.
This comes as 84 per cent of enterprise organisations state their digital transformation plans have accelerated due to Covid-19. For almost half (49 per cent) of the firms surveyed, these plans have been accelerated by a year or more. Almost every firm (98 per cent) said they consider digital transformation to be important to their future strategy, underlining just how integral digital plans are to the growth of UK business.
The report found that 81 per cent of companies saw a “highly successful” digital transformation success rate when up to 20 per cent or more of the digital transformation budget was devoted to connectivity or networking. For companies allocating 10 per cent or less of their budget to connectivity or networking, the success rate dropped to 19 per cent and the number of unsuccessful initiatives rose to 62 per cent. This illustrates the fundamental role that connectivity plays in digital development.
The findings highlight challenges businesses face in ‘building back better’, what’s needed to ensure UK business has future-ready systems and just how many companies need connectivity investment to grow.
The report highlighted 14 ‘keys to success’ surrounding digital transformation. The following factors are those most common to highly successful firms:
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90 per cent of highly successful firms — recognition of significant benefits conferred by SD-WAN (which include proactive management, better performance information and control of applications)
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74 per cent — IT department is always involved in specifying and implementing connectivity solutions used in digital transformation
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72 per cent — connectivity and networking budget is 10% or more of the overall digital transformation budget
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72 per cent — have a ‘very supportive’ telecoms partner
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63 per cent — seeing securing remote internet connections as very important
Industries that embraced these digital transformation indicators are more likely to enjoy “highly successful” digital transformation outcomes. Energy & utility firms are best positioned, holding seven ‘keys to success’, on average. They are closely followed by the transport sector, which has just under seven keys.
The industry with the lowest score was the government & public sector, with just over five indicators met.
However, the reality is that organisations from all sectors have work to do, with none demonstrating more than half of the 14 ‘keys to success’ identified.
Pete Asman, Managing Director for Public Sector and Enterprise at Neos Networks, said: “It’s clear that UK business needs greater investment, particularly after all the commercial challenges and changes the pandemic brought. This report only serves to highlight how integral connectivity and smart technology is to firms hoping to enact digital transformation – and the success of digital initiatives.
“The pandemic has acted as a catalyst in some ways, moving digital ever closer to the heart of businesses. It’s only natural that some industries have more catching up to do than others. What’s important now, however, is that we see investment in connectivity, especially if we want to see real economic growth in the post-pandemic landscape.”
To read the full report click here.
Informa, the organisers of Facilities Show, together with FMJ magazine, have teamed up to launch a questionnaire which aims to offer a useful snapshot of where the facilities management sector is now, and an outlook on the future.
For instance, are you asking workers to begin to return to the office with a hybrid home/office work schedule? Are you revising your premises to enable more flexible ways of working and as such have your workplace strategies, including sustainability, wellbeing and engagement had to be radically rethought?
Your anonymised answers will contribute to a report on the biggest challenges and opportunities facing facilities managers; now, and anticipated in the next 12 months.
To take part click here.
