In today’s world technology is everywhere. We don’t spend a day without interacting with it, at home and at work. It should come as no surprise then that a 2018 study done by Gartner showed that some of the top priorities for current CEO’s focus on technology – from integration of more technology to growing their digital business.
As technology has shown in recent years, it’s here to stay. Companies are still focused on growth, but their growth strategies are now trending toward making changes in their IT structure and their business technology assets to build a strong foundation for growth now and in the future.
Let’s take a quick look at some of the CEO’s current top priorities, as reported by the Gartner survey:
Growth
Growth has, and may always, rank number 1 in this survey. However, from 2017 to 2018 it’s importance dropped 18% showing that CEOs are making a real shift in their thinking. It’s not that CEOs are less focused on growth but they are focusing on growing in a different direction. They are shifting their focus and strategies on how to grow and the most effective growth strategies to support long-term growth and keep up with the readily changing marketplace.
Corporate
While this priority has always made the list, it rose to number two in 2018. The corporate category in the Gartner survey focuses on strategy, corporate partnerships, and acquisitions. The rise in ranking of this priority shows that CEOs are looking for new ways to grow their companies to stay on track in the digital space and to keep up with their competitors.
IT
Making corporate IT a priority and scaling business technology has become one of the top three areas of focus for CEOs. Many companies are focused on making a “digital transformation” at this point, namely using their digital products to help their businesses run more efficiently and transforming their digital products from good to great. It’s obvious by the ranking that CEOs are betting on their technology changes to push company growth.
Workforce
With the unemployment rate continuing to stay low, CEOs can now focus on building the right workforce for their company needs. This priority rose from seventh to fourth between 2017 and 2018. Companies cannot grow effectively or efficiently, especially in the digital and technology space, without the right talent on board.
In order to find, and keep, the right employees some businesses are having to make some deep culture changes within their companies – shifting to a more customer-center, employee empowered, innovative workplace. These shifts tend to happen within companies as they start building their digital space and initiatives. By making these changes companies are able to attract the high-priority talent that they need to help move their business along in the technology marketplace.
Looking at these priorities you can see the common technology theme among them. Technology is changing rapidly and making itself more and more of a presence, everyday, in the workplace. Those companies that can’t catch up and keep up are likely to see themselves losing market share and customers in the near future. CEOs are taking notice and trying to make changes rapidly so as not to let their companies lose their places in the market.
If your company is in need of a technology or IT boost, contact Whole I.T. Solutions.
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