On average, only 48 percent of digital initiatives meet or exceed their targets, according to Gartner’s annual global survey of more than 3,100 CIOs and technology executives and more than 1,100 non-IT executives (CxOs). Digital pioneers have the highest success rate: 71 percent of their digital initiatives achieve or exceed the specifications.
(Image: Gartner (November 2024))
“These digital pioneers differ from the rest of the CIOs and CxOs because they approach digital implementation together,” says Raf GeldersVP Research at Gartner. “CIOs and CxOs are equally responsible and involved in implementing the digital solutions their companies need. This is a radical break from the traditional paradigm of IT delivery and business project ownership that dominates most organizations.”
“To be a digital leader, CIOs in EMEA need to prioritize four areas – making digital platforms easy for the employees who develop digital solutions; to teach them the interdependencies between technology and business; Helping business leaders become innovation leaders in the digital space; “Expand digital capabilities beyond the IT department,” recommends Daniel Sanchez-Reina, VP Analyst at Gartner.
Changes in the 2025 investment budgets
In 2025, over 80 percent of CIOs in EMEA plan to increase their investments in cybersecurity, AI/generative AI, business intelligence and data analytics.
“CIOs who are digital leaders are not just investing in these technologies so that their IT staff can use them. They also make them easy to use for potential or actual technologists outside of IT,” says Gelders. “On average, 26% of non-IT business and corporate employees are involved in developing, implementing or managing technology. Many of these technologies naturally lend themselves to reducing workload across the organization, accelerating time to market and value creation, and increasing CxO accountability.”
At the other end of the spectrum, 43% of CIOs in EMEA said they want to reduce their investments in legacy infrastructure and data center technologies. This is a trend that has become increasingly common in recent years, largely due to the migration to cloud-based solutions. In comparison, 33% said they will increase their investments, driven in part by those companies that have purchased on-premise infrastructure, to experiment with and develop GenAI solutions.
And only 14 percent of EMEA CIOs will prioritize building an enterprise-wide technology workforce in 2025.
The survey is based on data from 3,186 CIOs and technology executives (including 1,376 CIOs in EMEA) in 88 countries and all major industries. It was supplemented by insights from 1,126 executives outside of IT.
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