The Path to Future-ready Operations

As we move forward and the pandemic recedes, leaders must ask a fundamental question: What state are our business operations in? We wanted to better understand the connection between

business operations maturity and performance. So in 2020, we surveyed more than 1,100 C-suite and Vp-level executives across 11 countries and 13 industries. Using survey responses and external data, we identified four levels of operations maturity: stable, efficient, predictive and future-ready. Each of the four levels is underpinned by technologies that drive efficiency, insights and increasing capabilities.

Surprisingly, we found that only seven per cent of respondents fall into the ‘future-ready’ category. How can others catch up? Overall, there are three things you must know to become future-ready.

1. KNOW THE ULTIMATE GOAL

Organizations tend to approach operations improvements too incrementally. By contrast, those that are future-ready think big and start with the end goal in mind. They then consider the bold moves it would take to close the gap between their aspirations and their current set-up.

Among the future-ready organizations in our study, 82 per cent expect to scale leading practices across the enterprise within the next three years. And 86 per cent expect business and technology functions to collaborate fully during that period. That’s up from the 55 per cent that say they do so today. By comparison, 28 per cent of ‘efficient’ organizations expect to realize such levels of collaboration in three years. Just three per cent say they are doing so now.

2. KNOW THE KEY STEPS

Some steps between one level of maturity and the next just can’t be skipped. Here are three that we recognize as crucial:

Automate at scale. By 2023, nearly five times as many executives expect their operating models to run end-to-end digitized processes compared to today. Among organizations with future-ready operations, 38 per cent are scaling AI, with 63 per cent planning to have completed this in three years. In stark contrast, just one per cent of efficient organizations are currently scaling AI.

Augment human talent with technology. By fostering a human+machine workforce where technology helps people (not the other way around), organizations can allocate work to realize efficiencies. People will then be freed up for more creative and critical thinking — the best way to identify new sources of value. More than one-third (34%) of future-ready