Senior leaders holding new tech adoption back

IT managers in UK organizations believe their senior leaders are intentionally holding back the adoption of new technologies, as they fear that could endanger their position within the company. This is according to a new report by global cloud communications provider 8x8, which surveyed 260 IT managers in UK organizations.

Almost half (45 percent) of IT managers are suspicious senior leaders are holding technology back for reasons of "self-preservation". Same IT managers, a third of them (34 percent), believe their company is making full use of the latest technology. Among C-suites, that percentage is up to almost a half (49 percent).

Overall, almost two thirds (62 percent) of IT managers believe UK businesses are "too wary" when it comes to implementing new technology, while only 56 percent of the senior team invests enough to keep up with the pace of innovation.

"We frequently hear anecdotal evidence that IT managers face significant opposition from senior leaders when it comes to adopting new technologies such as cloud communications -- this research suggests this is something which is widely felt", comments Kevin Scott-Cowell, UK MD of 8x8.

"Certainly, many senior leaders fear replacing expensive legacy IT systems that they have invested in. Their reluctance to do so in order to preserve the status quo can be damaging to businesses who are losing out on the many benefits to staff productivity and, ultimately, the potential for business growth".

Published under license from ITProPortal.com, a Future plc Publication. All rights reserved.

Photo Credit: Kostenko Maxim/Shutterstock