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Increased Automation Reduces Web Operations Outsourcing
Web operations outsourcing is a well-known managed service in which organizations continue to expand their efforts. This shift toward web-enabled business processes and e-commerce has prompted many companies to reassess their online strategies. Many have turned to managed service providers to deliver highly available and reliable web and e-commerce systems. However, the rise in automated solutions and perhaps even generative AI may have given companies the confidence to tackle these tasks on their own. This Research Byte summarizes our full report on Web Operations Outsourcing Trends and Customer Experience.
February, 2024
VR/AR Adoption Low, For Now
Businesses are in the early stages of adopting virtual reality and augmented reality (VR/AR) solutions. While widespread adoption of VR/AR has not yet fully materialized, businesses are actively experimenting with these technologies. However, the ROI and TCO are favorable for early adopters. This Research Byte summarizes our full report, Virtual and Augmented Reality Adoption Trends and Customer Experience.
February, 2024
Finding the Synergy Between AI Capabilities and Human Agents to Enhance Customer Experience
Enterprises are strategically aligning their priorities to emphasize customer experience while concurrently optimizing costs. This approach has fueled the surge in nearshore outsourcing, underpinned by considerations such as data security, cultural alignment, and the imperative for swifter response times. The increased usage of digital channels, coupled with the integration of generative AI and cloud-based solutions, signifies a paradigm shift in the contact center outsourcing landscape. This technology integration is poised to drive the growth of contact center services as organizations increasingly seek tailored solutions by leveraging data-driven insights to navigate the intricate dynamics of the contemporary business environment. Demand-side and supply-side trends are covered in our Contact Center Business Process Transformation 2023–2024 Market Insights™ and Contact Center Business Process Transformation 2023–2024 RadarView™, respectively.
January, 2024
Transforming Legacy Construction Processes Using Digital Technology
In the face of challenges such as cost pressures, climate compliance needs, labor shortages, and supply chain disruptions, the engineering and construction industry is aggressively pouring digital investments and adopting cutting-edge technologies — generative AI, advanced analytics, digital twin, and virtual reality — to address these challenges. Leveraging connected construction platforms, project management solutions, drone-based inspections, and modular construction, they aim to enhance project efficiency, reduce costs, and prioritize worker safety and technology usability. As this requires strong technological expertise and delivery capabilities, engineering and construction enterprises are collaborating with service providers for digital transformation. Both demand-side and supply-side trends are covered in our Engineering and Construction Digital Services 2024 Market Insights™ and Engineering and Construction Digital Services 2024 RadarView™, respectively.
January, 2024
Reinventing Digital Commerce through Infrastructure Upgrade and Next-Gen Commerce
Enterprises are increasingly shifting their focus from traditional e-commerce models like B2B and B2C to D2C, B2B2C, and online marketplaces to increase market reach and drive business agility and growth. To enable this, they are adopting new order fulfillment strategies that help reshape digital commerce operations, boost delivery speeds, and reduce costs. They are also upgrading their legacy digital commerce infrastructure and uplifting customer engagement through next-generation commerce to drive scalability and flexibility. Further, personalization boundaries are being pushed by digital commerce platform vendors who integrate generative AI capabilities in their current solutions. Aligned with these trends, service providers’ priorities are underscored by investments in next-generation commerce, expanding partner ecosystems, and practice growth. Both demand- and supply-side trends are covered in Avasant’s Digital Commerce Services 2023–2024 Market Insights™ and Digital Commerce Services 2023–2024 RadarView™, respectively.
January, 2024
Disaster Recovery Plan Testing: A Formal but Inconsistent Practice
In today’s unpredictable business environment, there is an increasing reliance on data and digital systems to operate efficiently. With this comes the need for robust disaster recovery (DR) plans and testing to reduce the impact of unforeseen events. The effectiveness of a DR plan can only be truly validated through routine testing. However, while this practice is growing, few organizations are testing their DR plans formally and consistently. This Research Byte summarizes our full report on disaster recovery plan testing as a best practice.
January, 2024
Click with Caution: Why Every Company Needs to Enforce Personal Use Policies
Policies for personal use of IT resources are policies that explicitly restrict or permit use of the organization’s IT resources for personal reasons. The good news is that 90% of survey respondents have adopted personal-use policies, at various levels of commitment. However, despite high adoption, not all companies consistently and formally practice them. This Research Byte summarizes our full report on policies for personal use as a best practice.
January, 2024
Rightsizing ERP Support Staffing
Rightsizing the support staff for an ERP system can be difficult. This is because many factors affect the support staffing ratio. These include the type of ERP system, its age, the extent of modification, and the industry sector. Nevertheless, understanding support requirements for ERP systems is vital for IT leaders. This research byte summarizes our full report on ERP support staffing ratios.
January, 2024
SAP S/4HANA: Reducing Time to Market Through Industry-Specific Solutions and Generative AI Capabilities
Migrating to SAP S/4HANA presents a challenge for enterprises encompassing multiple business processes across the value chain, intricate data structures, and several customizations. Current macroeconomic headwinds have made this transition more complex as customers reassess their SAP S/4HANA implementation strategies to develop a cost-optimal road map and seek quick ROI on their IT investments. Service providers are also addressing these trends, reducing time to market for clients through industry-specific solutions with preconfigured process workflows. They have also invested in generative AI solutions to strengthen horizontal capabilities, such as testing and documentation.
January, 2024
Striking a Balance with Low-Code/No-Code Platforms
Low-Code/No-Code (LC/NC) platforms are becoming increasingly popular in enterprise software development. They enable non-technical users and citizen developers to quickly create software applications with little to no manual coding. However, LC/NC tools are not just meant for personnel outside of the IT organization. They are also incredibly useful for professional developers. This Research Byte is a summary of our full report, which covers LC/NC adoption and investment trends along with the economic experience and overall satisfaction rates for LC/NC platforms.
January, 2024
Generative AI Commands C-Suite Leadership
In this, our first survey-based report on generative AI strategy, spending, and adoption, we provide metrics on how much enterprises are spending on this ground-breaking technology, where they are spending it, and how they are governing it. Given the hype, it is not surprising that our survey respondents rank generative AI as strategically important to their organizations. In fact, it is so important that the C-suite is typically leading the effort. This research byte is a brief description of some of the findings of our eight-chapter report on Generative AI Strategy, Spending, and Adoption Metrics.
January, 2024
Generative AI: A Key Enabler of Personalized and Intelligent CX
Generative AI is poised to transform customer-facing functions, including marketing, sales, commerce, and customer service. This research byte explores the enterprise applications and use cases of generative AI within the customer experience (CX) landscape, from automating content creation, personalizing product recommendations, and analyzing customer feedback to self-service automation. It also highlights how generative AI can significantly boost personalization and drive intelligent CX. Finally, it lays out key considerations for enterprises when adopting generative AI in their CX endeavors, including the need for unified customer data, external partners to speed up implementations, and ensuring content quality and data access control.
December, 2023