One-third (34%) of global firms are choosing to view the pandemic as a chance to take advantage of market opportunities and to scale, and are pivoting technology focus to achieve this, the 2021 Global Managed Services Report from NTT shows.
The report finds that while some organisations consider cost optimisation as a way of creating greater resilience, others are focused on being “bold and brave.”
The figure rises to 42% if an organisation currently has at least three-quarters of their IT managed by third parties.
On the other hand, if an organisation has little to none of their IT managed by a third party, the percentage drops significantly to just 26% prepared to pivot focus.
“While not all organisations view disruption as an opportunity, one-third have adjusted course because they see a chance to do things better and take advantage, particularly in relation to enabling a more distributed workforce and innovative technologies,” said Damian Skendrovic, EVP at NTT.
The report is based on research of 1,350 organisations conducted online by Jigsaw Research on behalf of NTT across 21 countries in six regions in October and November 2020. Of these, 330 were based in Asia Pacific.
In APAC, 90% of business and IT leaders agree COVID-19 has caused significant changes to their operating processes, while 92% say it has accelerated their digital transformation strategy.
Also, 92% of technology teams globally agree their overall technology strategy is aligned, either fully (50%) or partially (43%) to the organisation’s business strategy needs.
However, despite greater strategy alignment, some disconnect in priorities exists between the business and IT. Globally, 70% of operations teams believe the need for a technology strategy that drives business efficiency opportunities is crucial, yet only 48% of IT teams agree.
Further, 70% of operations teams globally consider speed and agility a key component of technology strategy, in contrast to only 53% of IT teams.
In APAC, 94% of business and IT leaders agree emerging technology is crucial for their technology strategy, but less than half (44%) believe they have the technology available to meet the organization’s immediate objectives.
