Report reveals growing cloud adoption in UK

A recent report reveals growing cloud adoption in UK businesses. The report, released by Salesforce, highlights the most significant effects of the recent pandemic on the world of manufacturing.

Data that Salesforce has shared shows the growing trend in business switching to new strategies to cope with the effects of economic uncertainty.

The report also includes new models used to negotiate these changes, key challenges in achieving business transformation and the use of new technologies.

One of the most notable trends has been the rise of a ‘digital divide’ between businesses that have the technological mastery to adapt in a post-COVID world, and those that do not.

The Salesforce report surveyed 750 global leaders in manufacturing from across the world, including respondents from the UK.

Respondents were categorised as either ‘future ready’ or ‘unprepared’. This was based on participants who felt their systems and technologies were well-positioned to handle business challenges over the next 10 years and those that were less confident.

Following a questionnaire, the following themes were examined:

  • Economic pressures meant that agile business practices were more necessary than ever, as well as the imagination to reconsider certain business functions
  • Many customer-adjacent roles have been changed by the pandemic and this is expected to be permanent
  • Digitised sales and operations is key to an agile, future-ready business
  • New business models (such as servitization) are an important part of forward-looking manufacturers’ strategy

Below are key insights from local respondents in the UK:

 

Permanent change post-COVID

One of the key findings of the report was that, not only has COVID-19 changed the way business works in 2021, it will also have far-reaching implications that reach far into the future. 80% of the total respondents in the UK described their production capacity as being significantly or somewhat changed by the pandemic. Importantly, 70% of these respondents also expected the changes to be permanent. It is increasingly clear therefore that the effects of COVID-19 will lead to lasting change – for better or worse.

 

Differentiated products and services

Based on the major disruption and change that is anticipated to be permanent caused by the pandemic, many businesses are looking for new ways to keep their customers engaged. This is often done by diversifying product and service offerings in order to keep up with the competition. Over the next 2 years, manufacturers expressed their highest priorities would be to develop new products (88%) and new services (90%).

 

A need for data driven insights

One of the key challenges to accurately forecasting sales can be a lack of transparent data – or in the worst situations, no data at all.

This is often exacerbated by siloed teams within manufacturing organisations, yet accurate forecasting is becoming increasingly important in the challenging economic climate we currently face.

Roughly half of UK respondents (48%), felt that difficulty in extracting data was the biggest challenge they currently face. Coupled with 88% believing legacy tools pose an issue. It is therefore apparent that the industry must shift to an increasingly digital mindset to derive the most value for their businesses and customers.

Want to learn more about how your business can adapt to economic challenges with the help of ERP? Get in touch with a CBO expert here.

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