According to a new Salesforce global survey of 600 CIOs and IT decision makers, 91% of respondents report that demand for automation from business teams has increased over the last two years.
As Salesforce reports, companies are faced with a variety of macroeconomic uncertainties (eg. hiring, costs), leading to a renewed focus on efficient growth, cost savings, and increased productivity by CEOs and business leaders. Automation, in turn, drives immediate value across all areas of business
Where is the highest demand? Four departments lead the way:
- Research and development (39%)
- Administrative/operations (38%)
- Customer service (33%)
- Marketing (26%)
The survey also dove into existing technology stacks, finding that:
- 96% respondents said that “modifying and rebuilding automations is a challenge as systems and business requirements change.”
- 4 in 5 respondents said “restructuring existing application and data landscapes to support automation would likely compound their organization’s technical debt.”
“Organizations across every industry want to automate processes and customer experiences as quickly as possible. However, if they try to go fast with the wrong tools and techniques, they’ll actually impede true innovation,” said Matt McLarty, Global Field CTO & VP of the Digital Transformation Office, MuleSoft.
Getting automation right
The key with automation is making sure all benefits are accessed, leading to quicker, more efficient growth.
According to the study, 44% of respondents are now using integration and API management capabilities to fully support their business process automation efforts.
McLarty also outlined why we need a new mentality with respect to automation in business: “Organizations should never just think that once a process is automated the job is done,” he said.
“The organizations that thrive in the digital economy are the ones that adapt to changes the fastest,” continued McLarty. “For established companies, that means focusing on three things: growth with efficiency and sustainability, agility with safety at scale, and continuous innovation.”
Learn more about the study and further automation trends from Salesforce/Mulesoft.
