We have arrived at a significant moment in time – the dawn of the fourth industrial revolution.This new era builds on the landmark breakthroughs of the technological age that began in themiddle of the 20th century – mass scale computing, unprecedented processing power, computerstorage, the rise of the internet, etc. – by blurring the lines between physical, digital, andbiological frontiers. It will fundamentally alter the way we live, work and relate to each other.

Capitalising on this phenomenon is the key to innovation and growth. From the rise of AI,machine learning, chatbots and the Internet of Things, to the mountains of data, mixed realityand the next frontiers, the challenge for businesses will be to harness the disruptive force oftechnology to shape their own destiny. Naturally, this comes while navigating the expectationsof a changing workforce, addressing evolving cybersecurity threats, and managing a host ofother challenges.

In response, companies are embarking on digital transformation journeys that are creatinghuge opportunities. But digital transformation is not simply about technology. This transitionto the fourth industrial age is shaping entire business strategies. Indeed, this study reports thatnearly half of all UK leaders believe that their business models will cease to exist within the nextfive years. The threat of disruptors entering new markets and reshaping entire industries is alsovery real with more than half of all organisations expecting disruption to impact their industrieswithin the next two years. These are core business challenges requiring urgent attention.

So, disruption is very real and heading straight for us. How will businesses and otherorganisations react? They will need to fully grasp the concept of digital transformation and itspotential to more effectively engage customers, empower employees, optimise operations andtransform products and services. This report suggests that many organisations are still limitingthe scope of their digital transformation strategies to customer experience and operationalprocesses. This is a missed opportunity – digital transformation should be regarded as atransformation of business culture in a digital age. This requires leaders to re-envision entirebusiness models and embrace a different way of bringing together people, data, and processesto create value for their customers. But how do you transform for success in the future whilerunning your business today?

That’s the key objective for this report – to better understand how UK organisations are thinkingabout disruption and their own digital transformation journeys. I’d like to thank all those whohave played a role in producing it, particularly the research participants and respondents whohave provided the real-world views and insights on which this report is based.

I hope you find it a valuable guide for your own digital transformation journey.