12 February 2021
Digitalization and data work in companies have a strong impact on our working lives: This is one of the findings from a new study called “the factlights 2020” by the data and analytics experts QUNIS in cooperation with the partners CA controller akademie, Liebich & Partner, HEUSSEN and WTS ITAX.
Frontrunners, Discoverers and Adopters
Employees and managers from more than 1,000 companies from German-speaking countries and all sectors and divisions were surveyed. The survey focused on the relationship of the companies to digitalization, the resulting change processes and effects on product development and services.
First of all, three distinguishing features were defined, which characterize the surveyed companies as frontrunners, discoverers and adopters – depending on the progress of digitization, data affinity, willingness to invest and digital products. The frontrunners are among the most advanced “digitalizers”, the discoverers have an average level of digitalization, and the adopters have a low level.
Based on these clusters, the study reveals numerous differences with regard to the use of digitalization potentials and opportunities, but also with regard to the change of product and service offerings. According to the study, just 40% of adopters report that digitalization has had a significant influence on their product and service offerings, compared to 99% of frontrunners. A similar picture emerges for the provision of smart additional services: While 51% of the adopters and 76% of the discoverers are well positioned here, the frontrunners are far ahead with 87%.
Value creation potential through data
The aspect of data use is also viewed extremely differently, especially in a comparison of sectors: for example, companies from the information and communication technology sector identify their own data portfolio as an economic asset (62 %), while the automotive sector (29 %), administration (25 %) and construction (24 %) show only little interest in adding value to their data.
If the study has shown one thing: There is potential for digitalization in every sector and every company. Every company can put what it has achieved to the test, what it still wants to achieve and how this is possible.