Canadian Companies Lead Global Mobile Adoption, but Require Greater CEO Buy-In for Successful Digital Transformation, Accenture Study Shows

TORONTO, April 7, 2014 /CNW/ - Canadian companies have a leading edge over other countries when it comes to the adoption of mobile technology, but an increase in senior executive sponsorship is required to enable Canadian companies to become major disruptors among their competitors, the Accenture Mobility Insights Report 2014 found.
 
Almost all Canadian enterprise respondents (85 percent) have effectively adopted and deployed mobile technologies, markedly higher than the average global response of 69 percent among 14 other countries surveyed. Despite this, there is an opportunity for Canadian organizations to leapfrog international competitors, as currently less than one-third (31 percent) of Canadian respondents reported that their chief executive is directly involved in mobility strategy, slightly lower than the global average of 35 percent.
 
"To stay competitive and become digital disruptors in industries that have gone through years of disruption from new entrants, CEOs need to become more engaged in creating and implementing their digital strategies with their IT teams," said Stephen Gardiner, Managing Director of Accenture Digital, Canada. "The entire business strategy must be fully aligned and integrated in order to take advantage of digital technologies, including continuing the strategic shift to mobile that Canadian businesses are doing so well at. Mobile, cloud, social and analytics are rapidly – and permanently – transforming industries. Every business is now a digital business, and leaders who understand this and use it to capitalize on the benefits of digital are most likely to succeed in the long term."
 
The impact on businesses in Canada from the convergence of digital technologies is significant, as 26 percent expect to generate additional revenue; 25 percent plan to build entirely new digital businesses or services, and 29 percent expect to penetrate new markets altogether.
 
When asked to consider their investments in digital technologies, more than half (56 percent) of Canadian respondents named mobility in their top two priorities – significantly higher than the global result of 43 percent.
 
Specifically, the top mobile priorities for Canadian businesses are to drive revenue through customer engagement on mobile devices (57 percent); drive revenue through transactions on mobile devices (48 percent); improve field service/ customer service delivery with instant data access, capture, and processing (40 percent); and open new sales or marketing channels (38 percent).
 
To date in Canada, strategic, organizational and operational challenges have made it difficult for companies to take full advantage of mobility's promise. Seven in 10 struggle to keep pace with new mobile devices and systems – in line with global results.
 
Accenture Mobility surveyed 150 Canadian C-level executives in 10 industries to understand how Canadian companies are applying digital technologies – especially mobility, a key enabler of a digital business – to improve their organizations. The research was part of broader outreach to nearly 1,500 executives in 14 countries around the world, to understand how companies currently view and use digital technologies, including social, mobile, analytics, cloud and connected products.
 
Learn more about Accenture's Canadian results in the Accenture Mobility Insights Report 2014 Mobility.
 
Methodology
Accenture's mobility study was designed to explore how companies are applying digital technologies –especially mobility – to help improve various aspects of their business. Accenture conducted an online survey of senior executives between December 2013 and January 2014. A total of 1,475 executives completed surveys. Executives' titles spanned the C-suite, with the majority serving in a technology-related role. Respondents' companies represented 10 industries and 14 countries, and were predominantly large: One-third have annual revenues of more than $10 billion, with 11 percent reporting sales of more than $50 billion. The countries included were: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Korea, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, UK and USA.
 
About Accenture
Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, with approximately 289,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world's most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. The company generated net revenues of US$28.6 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2013. Its home page is www.accenture.com.
 
Accenture Mobility, part of Accenture Digital, plans, implements and manages mobility solutions for businesses and public organizations, including developing and implementing enterprise mobility strategies; incorporating applications and managed services; creating and delivering mCommerce solutions; and supplying credible, business ready Connected Product offerings. Accenture Mobility services are based on deep industry insights and technical expertise that helps clients across all industries achieve growth, efficiency and manage a successful transformation as they adopt the tools of a digital business. Find out more by following @mobilitywise and visiting www.accenture.com/mobility.
 

SOURCE: Accenture

Theresa Ebden, Accenture, + 647 622 8394, [email protected]; Jason Ip, NATIONAL Public Relations for Accenture, + 416 848 1704, [email protected]