U.K. Firms Meet Economic Challenges With Digital Solutions

Post-pandemic conditions lead companies to digitally transform for improved customer experience, supply chain, sustainability and other outcomes, ISG Provider Lens report says

Many enterprises in the U.K. are responding to changing economic conditions and challenging markets by carrying out digital business transformations, according to a new research report published by Information Services Group, a leading global technology research and advisory firm.

The 2022 ISG Provider Lens™ Digital Business Enablement and ESG Services report for the U.K. finds companies are working to align their processes with the new economic realities that have emerged in the past three years. They have implemented data-driven approaches to improve customer experience (CX), supply-chain intelligence and other capabilities.

“After benefiting from the digital technologies they deployed to stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic, companies in the U.K. have stepped up digital transformations in its wake,” said Anthony Drake, ISG director in the U.K. “Digitalization has been a lifeline for enterprises, allowing them to scale up their capabilities even in the current economic crunch.”

“Digitalization has been a lifeline for enterprises, allowing them to scale up their capabilities even in the current economic crunch.”

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Improving customer experience is one of the major objectives of enterprise digital transformations in the U.K., ISG says. With the help of service providers, companies are using AI, automation, AR/VR and other technologies in solutions to better engage with customers over multiple channels. Providers have responded to growing demand for enhanced CX by delivering services tuned to specific industries and use cases.

The pandemic created complex supply-chain challenges in the U.K. that have not yet been fully resolved even with many enterprises adopting digital supply chains, the report says. Shortages, unpredictable demand, stagnant goods, changes in regulation and economic upheavals have disrupted supply chains in Britain for nearly three years. Companies are implementing digital solutions, including supply chain control tower systems and AI-powered analytics, to enhance awareness and control of their systems.

With strong backing from the national government, the public and private sectors in the U.K. are also adopting digital solutions to achieve environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals, especially around sustainability. The government’s plan for national net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 includes a massive Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme and goals for many of the country’s major industries. Service providers are helping enterprises deploy big data, AI, IoT devices and other technologies to enable net-zero strategies.

“Decarbonization efforts by enterprises have grown dramatically since 2021,” said Jan Erik Aase, partner and global leader, ISG Provider Lens Research. “Leading service providers understand their requirements and have built solutions for particular use cases, both in-house and with partners.”

The report also explores other digital business services trends affecting U.K. businesses, including the rising need for advisory and consulting services and for organizational change management as part of digital transformation.

The 2022 ISG Provider Lens™ Digital Business Enablement and ESG Services report for the U.K. evaluates the capabilities of 37 providers across four quadrants: Business Consulting Services, Customer Experience Services, Supply Chain Transformation Services, and Sustainability and ESG Services.

The report names Accenture, HCLTech, IBM, TCS and Wipro as Leaders in all four quadrants. It names Capgemini as a Leader in three quadrants and Atos, Cognizant and Infosys as Leaders in two quadrants each. BCG, EY, GEP, Hexaware, McKinsey, PwC, Siemens and Tech Mahindra are named as Leaders in one quadrant each.

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