The Opportunity for Midsize Companies to Become Intelligent Enterprises
As companies continue to adapt to the digital economy, they are looking for new and more efficient ways to drive revenue, empower employees, and respond to customer needs. By leveraging all their data assets, advanced technology, and process automation, companies are able to embed intelligence into their operations.
Companies of all sizes are moving to become “intelligent enterprises,” and many midsize companies take advantage of software with advanced capabilities such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to leap ahead of larger competitors. Agility and updated processes can make an important difference.
Best-run companies empower employees to focus on higher-value tasks, improve decision-making, explore new business models, and achieve their goals.
Midsize Companies Grouped Based on Key Performance Outcomes
IDC conducted a survey of 1,957 midsize companies (100-1,000 employees) worldwide to identify key factors associated with business success and progress towards becoming a best-run, digitally engaged organization. Commitment to customer engagement, employee productivity, and effective use of technology all distinguish best-run midsize companies.
IDC compared results over the last two years in four critical areas:
Revenue or sales/bookings growth
Profit growth
Customer satisfaction
Employee productivity
Based on this analysis, four segments emerged: laggards, survivors, strivers, and best-run.
Companies Identified as Best-Run Are Achieving:
- Revenue growth 8x greater than that of laggards
- Profit growth 8x greater than that of laggards
- Customer satisfaction improvement 7x greater than that of laggards
- Employee productivity increases 4x greater than that of laggards
Methodology
Findings for this InfoBrief are based upon an IDC September 2018 study of business and IT leaders in midsize companies around the world.
For this study, IDC surveyed 1,957 executives with decision-making or recommending authority for IT solutions and services. Respondents were located in 13 countries across North America, Europe, and Asia/Pacific and spanned a broad mix of industries.
For each respondent, IDC collected business KPIs including revenue growth, profitability, customer satisfaction, and employee productivity. IDC analyzed the correlations between these business success metrics and respondents’ IT policies and behaviors to determine best practices for IT digital transformation, which provided the basis for determining the four intelligent enterprise maturity categories.
