IT teams fall behind in automation

While businesses are focused on digital transformation to deliver greater efficiency and higher profits, IT teams themselves are falling behind the curve according to a new report.

The survey from IT services and solutions provider Dimension Data shows that IT staff only spend 14.5 percent of their time on innovation and new projects. Automation is seen as a key enabler for optimized IT operations, but only 20 percent of surveyed companies say their IT operations are fully automated.

Nine percent of organizations say they have no automation, 13 percent have limited automation, 32 percent have a medium level of automation and 25 percent are highly automated. Most companies that participated in the report say they still monitor and tune their IT in a disjointed manner, with only 14 percent reporting that their infrastructure is positioned for digitization.

Yet according to Dimension Data, adopting automation accelerates an organization’s path toward digitalization with less risk, greater productivity and increased ability to innovate. It can allow IT staff to manage 2.5x more devices lowering support time and costs.

"Savvy IT organizations understand that if they don't focus on efficiencies today they could miss the greater market opportunities of the future," says Dimension Data Group executive for services, Bill Padfield. "Dimension Data's automation and orchestration skills put more processes and business activities into 'business as usual' for our clients. They require fewer resources, and they're able to spend more time focusing on staying competitive, innovating new sources of value, engaging with customers on their channels of choice, and exploiting their data to optimize operations."

More detail on the report's findings is available on the Dimension Data website.

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