Accenture has published a new report, titled “Sky High Hopes: Navigating the Barriers to Maximizing Cloud Value,” to analyze businesses’ cloud investments, initiatives and strategy, the company announced on Monday.
“Cloud-based transformation offers companies the most powerful way to reinvent their businesses, unleash the expertise and creativity of their people, enhance their sustainability efforts and create new stakeholder value,” said Karthik Narain, global lead, Accenture Cloud First.
In its latest report, Accenture surveyed 750 senior business and IT professionals at large enterprises across 11 industries and 17 countries, finding that 37 percent of companies say they are achieving the full value expected on their cloud investments, with a two percent increase since Accenture’s original research report in 2018.
45 percent of business and IT leaders say they are “very satisfied” with their cloud outcomes, and 29 percent are completely confident that their organization’s cloud migration initiatives will deliver the expected value at the expected time.
Accenture’s report highlights that, when businesses have gone more heavily into the cloud, outcomes are significantly better. Forty-six percent of high adopters report fully achieving their expected cloud benefits, compared to 36 percent of moderate adopters and 28 percent of low adopters.
“The reality is that not every company is unlocking the full potential value of the cloud. In fact, our newest report shows a surprisingly small two-year improvement in returns on corporate cloud initiatives, suggesting that a more thoughtful and holistic approach is needed,” Narain said.
Accenture’s report found that 80 percent of business executives now look to cloud as a means of mitigating business uncertainty and lowering risk. In addition, 87 percent view cloud as a critical component of their strategy for achieving their corporate sustainability goals.
“Competing in the age of COVID-19 and beyond requires that companies implement a cloud-first strategy, in which every element of their business leverages the power of the cloud, right now,” Narain added.
The findings also show that 54 percent of CEOs are completely confident in their organizations’ ability to deliver cloud initiatives with the expected value at the expected time, versus 34 percent of CIOs and 28 percent of CFOs.
“The good news is that by taking a rigorous, outcomes-centric approach to devising a customized cloud strategy, partnering with the right experts and addressing challenges outside of the technology itself, such as upskilling their people to be more productive, businesses can achieve the results and return on investment they’re seeking,” Narain added.
About Accenture
Accenture is a global professional services company with leading capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries, we offer Strategy and Consulting, Interactive, Technology and Operations services—all powered by the world’s largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers.
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