More than three-quarters of organizations use multiple artificial intelligence (AI) models, but 90% say they have difficulty integrating AI with other systems, according to MuleSoft’s 2024 Connectivity Benchmark Report.
MuleSoft’s ninth annual report, in collaboration with Vanson Bourne and Deloitte Digital, was compiled from interviews with 1,050 IT leaders (senior management and above) from around the world (public and private sectors with at least 1,000 employees). ). The report summary suggests the following:
- The growth of AI amplifies the need for a cohesive IT strategy.
97% of IT leaders say digital transformation is changing. AI is further complexifying the technology landscape, with 991 applications in the average business. IT budgets are increasing to meet this growing demand. - AI adoption is exploding, with integration and security issues the biggest hurdles.
The AI genie is out of the lamp, with more than three-quarters of organizations reporting they use multiple AI models. Fully 90% say difficulty integrating AI with other systems is a barrier, followed by 79% reporting security concerns. - CIOs recognize that data silos and systems fragility are holding back their businesses.
98% of CIOs say they face digital transformation challenges. The main challenges are the persistence of data silos (81%) and the fragility of tightly coupled and highly dependent systems (72%). - Automation remains a subject of contention between CIOs and business management.
Business users benefit greatly from automating their work (1.9 hours per employee per week) and demand more flexibility to automate. However, the majority of CIOs still need to figure out how to enable this automation in a secure manner and with good governance. Two thirds (66%) of automation projects have the IT department as the sole guardian. -
Virtually all companies (99%) use APIs, but few have made it a strategic lever.
APIs remain a driver of productivity and revenue, with a third of revenue attributed to API-related offerings. However, managing and securing data at scale has become increasingly complex due to the proliferation of APIs. This is the reason why a quarter of APIs are not managed.
Let’s dig deeper into the report’s key findings by focusing on the first three: the growth of AI, the explosion of AI adoption, and the negative impact of data silos.
The growth of AI amplifies the need for a coherent IT strategy – 3 key findings
- Businesses rely on CIOs to guide the implementation of AI and automation. Alone 75% of respondents say their CIOs communicate a strategy.
- IT budgets are increasing to meet the growing demand for new projects. The average budget is $10.5 million over the past 12 months, and 77% expect the IT department workforce to increase further in the coming year.
- AI has made integration strategies more complex. Organizations today use an average of 991 applications in their digital assets, with an average lifespan of four years.
The report notes that CIOs believe the nature of digital transformation is changing – and this change means the role of the CIO is becoming more critical than ever. The nature of the customer experience and its expectations are also evolving. Customers expect more, but data silos stand in their way.
Nearly three-quarters (70%) of customer experiences are digital, but only 26% of organizations say they provide a complete connected user experience across all channels. To add to the challenge facing IT, organizations must balance nearly 1,000 applications to create a cohesive experience for end users, with each application having a lifespan of less than four years.
But there is good news for CIOs: budgets will increase to meet demand. CIOs spent an average of $10.5 million on IT staffing over the past 12 months. And more than three-quarters (77%) expect their IT staff numbers to increase further to meet growing project demand. The increase in budget will also lead to an increase in demand for IT services. The number of projects requested from IT teams increased by 39% compared to 2023.
AI Adoption is Exploding, and Integration and Security Issues Are the Biggest Obstacles – 3 Takeaways
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80% of organizations report already using multiple AI models. And AI adoption will increase by 78% over the next three years. - AI is considered a solution if used correctly: 85% of CIOs say the application of AI has increased developer productivity within their organization.
- But obstacles remain. More than 90% say integration issues hinder AI adoption, 79% have security concerns and 64% are concerned about the ethical use and adoption of AI. Only 2% say there are no significant barriers to using their data for AI.
If the adoption of AI continues to explode, so will the IT assets of companies. CIOs are then turning to AI to see what can be done in this area. Additionally, CIOs are balancing AI adoption based on the ethical concerns and obstacles they encounter. As AI adoption grows rapidly, 64% of CIOs are concerned about the ethical use and adoption of AI.
And the success of AI depends on integration. While most respondents believe AI increases productivity, it depends on data integration. Nearly half of CIOs plan to adopt an AI solution in the coming year, but only 28% of applications are connected. 62% of respondents believe their organization is unable to fully harmonize their data systems to take advantage of AI technologies. The concerns related to integration are twofold:
- The difficulty of integrating generative AI functions with other software systems
- The need for integration between existing systems
Data silos and fragile systems prevent businesses from moving forward – 3 key ideas
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80% of respondents say data silos hinder their digital transformation effortss. 72% believe that their current IT infrastructure makes their systems too dependent on each other. - CIOs struggle to integrate effectively: 98% say they face digital transformation challenges. Skills gaps and compliance concerns top the list of challenges.
- The inability to connect analyzed data insights to user experiences is the most commonly cited integration challenge by 75% of organizations.
The report reveals that 81% of CIOs name data silos as the biggest barrier to digital transformation. Integration remains a top priority for implementing a digital transformation strategy, while new technologies also emerge and create new challenges.
With only 72% of applications integrated/connected, CIOs must focus on increasing productivity to close this gap. All teams are looking for better integration. Teams across the organization depend on the effective use of data from separate systems, according to CIOs who say almost every department needs greater integration.
Almost all organizations (98%) report facing digital transformation challenges, including/
- Lack of skills and experience (38%)
- Risk management and compliance (37%)
- Infrastructure heritage (34%)
- Migration of application assets (34%)
- Integration of siled apps and data
The big question of automation
Since 2018, CIOs have faced an average increase of 36% each year in the number of planned projects. The report suggests that the path to efficiency lies in better integration plans and better execution. Organizations that have adopted an integration strategy have reported a wide range of benefits, including a boosted customer experience and more significant ROI.
The Connectivity Benchmark 2024 report also discusses automation in depth. Automation is always a source of disagreement between the IT department and business management. Business users want self-service, but 66% of automation is still governed by IT. Growth in robotic process automation remains stable, with 31% of teams opting for this solution. This is a substantial increase from 13% in 2021.
Automation continues to demonstrate its value by driving, among other things, operational efficiency (reported by 56% of automation users) and productivity (reported by 52%). The report states that IT continues to struggle with an automation lag. About two-thirds of IT developers implement and manage automations for business users.
Towards the development of the API economy
However, only 22% of CIOs believe their strategy for enabling non-technical business users to integrate API-powered applications and data sources is current. There is also a trend towards using citizen developers to help IT departments catch up – no-code and low-code solutions must be part of the innovation and development strategy.
The report concludes by recalling that almost all companies use APIs, but few of them have made it a strategic lever. This reality is largely explained by business income. API-related offerings drive a large portion of revenue. 33% of all revenue comes from APIs and API-related offerings. Additionally, APIs helped increase revenue for 39% of respondents and reduced operational costs for 35%. If you are interested, you can learn more about the 2024 Connectivity Benchmark Report.
Source: “ZDNet.com”