They are exploiting that link by investing in new or more sustainable products and services along with improving customer experiences. Improving cost control and making operations more sustainable are their top strategies for bolstering operations. To battle risk, they are strengthening their supply chains, avoiding damage to their reputations, and protecting against cybersecurity attacks.

These findings show how companies can remain competitive: by transforming business processes to support innovation and flexibility. Learn more about our findings.

Revenue Growth Drivers

Sustainability is a top revenue driver, and it lies at the core of some respondents’ growth strategies.

More than one-third of respondents said that increasing the sustainability of their products and services is one of their top three priorities, about equal to those choosing traditional tactics, such as creating new products and improving customer experiences.

Efficiency Drivers

Operating sustainably is important to gaining greater efficiency.

Making operations more sustainable ranks second as a priority for improving business efficiency, closely behind improving cost control and spend management.

Future Global Risks

Leaders see future business risks stemming from a wide range of economic and social concerns, including climate change.

Economic stagnation looms as the top future global risk that respondents said they need to prepare for, with climate change rounding out the top five.

Risk Reducers

In the near term, businesses will be focused on reducing rooted in current threats.

Respondents are prioritizing risks that seem to emanate from near-term threats, such as supply chain vulnerability, reputational harm, and cybersecurity exposures, rather than such perennial market risks as fending off existing competitors and new market entrants.

Process-Enabling Technologies

Businesses are turning to technologies that help them improve processes that came under pressure during the pandemic.

Collaboration tools top the list of process-enabling technologies respondents say are important, with cloud, cybersecurity, and business intelligence also ranking highly. These choices reflect challenges that companies have faced recently, such as the need to support employees working at home or in hybrid environments and protection from increasing cybersecurity threats.

Critical Areas for Innovation

Respondents see sustainability as an essential area for business innovation.

Respondents cited technological innovation as most important to their business in the near future. Innovations in products/services, sustainability, and digital experience follow in a three-way tie as the next most critical area.

Competition and Profitability

Successful business transformation is critical to companies’ long-term profitability and competitiveness.

Overwhelmingly, leaders see a positive link between their performance and business transformation efforts.

Needs for Process Change

To improve their processes, businesses need to become more flexible, agile, and collaborative.

Respondents see increased flexibility as their top priority for improving their performance, followed by speed of execution and supporting increased collaboration outside of their industry or domain.

Process Transformation Journey

Many companies expect to still be in the earliest stages of business transformation in two years.

Although a majority of respondents expect to have transformed at least part of their business in two years, a quarter will be in their earliest stages or not yet begun.