As a part of the Outlook, 150 UK business leaders were asked how technology was affecting their business. Charting their views, the majority of respondents (37 per cent) feel that their organisations are struggling to keep pace with technological advances. They also believe that piloting emerging technologies, attracting strategic talent and building data collection capabilities are their top worries over the next three years.
Nonetheless, even though 40 per cent of the CEO cohort expect technology innovation to cause major disruption in the coming three years, they remain optimistic about the opportunities it brings. Over two-thirds said that technology destruction is more of an opportunity than a threat.
Tudor Aw, UK head of technology sector at KPMG, commented: “With technology increasingly core to every kind of business, from retailers to healthcare providers, it is disrupting everyone. It is encouraging to see that UK CEOs view this disruption as more of an opportunity than a threat. It is essential that UK companies continue to be quick to adopt and exploit the power of disruptive technologies, in products, marketing, manufacturing and operations.
“New, disruptive technological innovations are emerging at a rapid pace. Today’s hot tech breakthrough could soon be yesterday’s news. With so many options to choose from, it’s extremely hard to methodically scan, assess, pilot, and deploy new technologies – but it’s essential that UK Boards ensure the effect of emerging technology on business models is a regular Board room topic. This may also require new roles or personnel at Board levels.”
