IT department: Business enabler instead of internal service provider

In light of digitization and new customer and market requirements, the role of IT in companies is changing. Management and business departments increasingly expect IT to contribute value to the company, for example, by driving the development of innovative products and services that enable the company to stand out from the competition. The days when IT was regarded merely as an internal service provider seem to be over. This is the conclusion of the current Lünendonk study “Future of IT – the role of IT in digital business transformation”.

Is your IT ready for the change?

Multi-layered transformation

The new role of IT as an enabler of innovation and digitization certainly has something to do with the fact that many companies are currently in a phase of intensified transformation – whether with regard to IT modernization, cloud computing, data management or process automation. This is associated with the demand for IT to take a leading role in this multi-layered transformation.

Future tasks for IT

That the increase in importance goes hand in hand with a budget increase for IT is reported by 62% of those surveyed. Nine out of ten CIOs and IT managers have set their sights on realizing cross-company data exchange by modernizing existing process and IT landscapes over the next two years. In addition, four-fifths of IT decision-makers are concerned with the question of how IT can better support the business units in meeting the increasing demands that customers are placing on products and services. 70% of respondents name accelerating product development cycles, shortening time-to-market and implementing sustainability strategies as other topics on the IT agenda.

Digitization pays off for sustainability

IT can make important contributions to meeting sustainability goals in particular. Possible starting points include optimized use of resources on the basis of digital technologies or the establishment of appropriate reporting, with which companies can meet their reporting obligations under the EU Taxonomy Regulation. According to the Lünendonk survey, 77% of companies are currently implementing projects aimed at optimizing the use of resources through the deployment of intelligent technologies. And 71% of IT managers are working on making process chains more resource-efficient on the basis of digitization, networking and automation.