Industry Insights

Global Technology Executive Survey Industry Insights

View the detailed results of our global survey by industry group. Reach out to your Protiviti contact for more detailed insights or contact us.

Go deeper – Consumer Products and Retail

Go deeper – Technology, Media and Telecommunications

Does your company have clearly defined innovation goals?

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Yes	87%	84%	82%	72%	78%	74%	70%
No	13%	16%	18%	28%	22%	26%	30%
I don't know	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%

Which of the below best describes the status of your company's technology innovation strategy?

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
We have a clear innovation strategy	69%	58%	61%	51%	53%	42%	42%
We are currently developing an innovation strategy	27%	35%	36%	46%	43%	50%	49%
We have no plans to create an innovation strategy	4%	7%	3%	3%	4%	8%	9%

What percentage of your company's current innovation activity is focused on each of the following areas?

Shown: Mean scores

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Optimisation (of current systems, products, processes etc.)	39%	40%	42%	43%	38%	42%	48%
Building Resilience (against disruption)	30%	27%	27%	26%	30%	27%	36%
Growth (new markets, revenue, etc.)	31%	33%	31%	31%	32%	31%	16%
Other	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%

Does your company have a dedicated lab or think tank that focuses on innovation?

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Yes	68%	63%	67%	52%	54%	53%	44%
No	32%	37%	33%	48%	46%	47%	56%
I don't know	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%

Which of the following best describes your organisation's top three challenges when it comes to innovation?

Shown: Ranked #1

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Architectural constraints (including technical debt)	5%	8%	8%	4%	8%	12%	10%
Board/executive buy-in	6%	2%	4%	5%	2%	5%	6%
Culture (collaboration, curiosity, exploration)	4%	6%	14%	2%	6%	10%	6%
Justifying investment in innovation	11%	11%	7%	9%	12%	12%	10%
Lack of diversity of perspective	8%	5%	11%	13%	6%	8%	11%
Lack of governance and infrastructure	11%	10%	7%	9%	11%	13%	5%
Operational challenges (for example, prioritising "business as usual" over innovation)	10%	6%	8%	11%	9%	4%	5%
Organisational structure (teams, processes)	5%	7%	4%	12%	10%	7%	4%
Regulatory and compliance requirements	16%	14%	14%	17%	15%	18%	14%
Security risks	12%	16%	12%	14%	13%	7%	13%
Talent (upskilling, staff retention, resource capacity)	7%	11%	9%	4%	6%	3%	14%

Who is the key person responsible for driving innovation at your company?

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Chief Executive Officer or equivalent	4%	5%	2%	4%	3%	4%	10%
Chief Information Officer or equivalent	8%	12%	5%	6%	16%	13%	14%
Chief Innovation/Strategy officer of equivalent	53%	35%	52%	55%	34%	52%	46%
Chief Operations Officer or equivalent	6%	3%	6%	6%	11%	3%	4%
Chief Product Officer or equivalent	3%	6%	4%	1%	5%	5%	2%
Chief Technology Officer or equivalent	26%	39%	31%	28%	31%	22%	24%
A different person than above	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	1%	0%
There is no-one driving innovation at my company	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%

Which of the following type(s) of technologies, if any, does your company use?

Shown: "Currently using" responses. Multiple responses permitted.

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
5G	64%	64%	44%	44%	54%	46%	50%
Artificial intelligence/machine learning	49%	49%	49%	59%	46%	53%	38%
Augmented reality and/or virtual reality	18%	37%	46%	32%	28%	30%	6%
Blockchain	52%	42%	46%	49%	41%	42%	28%
Cloud	71%	79%	79%	76%	68%	79%	68%
Edge computing	44%	48%	50%	44%	43%	52%	39%
Internet of Things	65%	67%	74%	78%	73%	68%	66%
Metaverse	8%	11%	13%	2%	12%	3%	3%
No code/Low code	32%	38%	46%	26%	26%	32%	38%
Quantum computing	19%	24%	24%	20%	24%	27%	10%
Robotics	23%	28%	17%	24%	31%	19%	30%
Web 3	22%	31%	21%	21%	25%	12%	37%

How concerned are you about the security risks (for example, breaches, data loss, improper controls, poor access management) associated with implementing innovative new technologies?

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
5 Very concerned	48%	50%	42%	54%	35%	42%	25%
4	40%	34%	36%	29%	45%	36%	55%
3 Moderately concerned	12%	14%	22%	16%	18%	22%	20%
2	0%	1%	0%	1%	2%	0%	0%
1 Not at all concerned	0%	1%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%

Which of the following areas do you consider the MOST important for maintaining an innovative organisation?

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Building the right processes and activities	18%	19%	22%	26%	26%	29%	23%
Enabling an agile technology environment	26%	24%	24%	24%	20%	23%	35%
Fostering an innovative culture	41%	38%	37%	32%	37%	32%	31%
Hiring the right talent (different roles and specialisms)	14%	18%	16%	18%	16%	15%	11%
None of the above	1%	1%	1%	0%	1%	1%	0%

What skills-related gaps, if any, impede innovation at your company?

Multiple responses permitted.

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Collaboration	19%	20%	19%	24%	13%	19%	14%
Communication and organisation change enablement	27%	24%	22%	28%	24%	10%	25%
Design thinking	31%	37%	45%	25%	37%	48%	38%
Enterprise agility	32%	31%	35%	31%	35%	49%	34%
Lack of training	25%	16%	19%	14%	21%	18%	22%
Leadership	12%	11%	13%	9%	18%	17%	14%
Project management	23%	24%	18%	21%	16%	22%	26%
Solution architecture	44%	39%	29%	36%	46%	34%	31%
Strategic thinking	29%	28%	28%	31%	31%	28%	30%
Technical knowledge	38%	30%	24%	32%	31%	25%	37%
Other	0%	0%	0%	1%	0%	0%	0%
None	1%	2%	1%	1%	3%	0%	1%

Are you using any of the following approaches to help drive innovation at your company?

Shown: "Yes, and it enables our innovation, helping us to deliver the results we would like" responses.

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Agile	76%	59%	68%	63%	70%	58%	59%
Design thinking	58%	54%	52%	62%	59%	58%	56%
Hackathons	51%	39%	39%	46%	25%	40%	31%
Journey mapping	57%	48%	49%	51%	49%	58%	50%
Lean start-up method	31%	38%	41%	38%	37%	34%	29%

How well do innovation leaders bridge the gap between technology and business needs at your company?

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
5 Very well	39%	31%	29%	29%	27%	24%	22%
4 Somewhat well	55%	56%	58%	54%	57%	58%	62%
3 Neutral	6%	12%	13%	16%	16%	18%	15%
2 Somewhat poorly	0%	1%	0%	1%	0%	0%	1%
1 Very poorly	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%

When it comes to innovation, how well do your company’s business and technology leaders collaborate in the following areas?

Shown: Top 2 Box scores (aggregate percentage for "Very well" (5) and "Somewhat well" (4) on our 5-point scale).

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Educating non-technical board members on the benefits of investing in innovation	60%	68%	56%	64%	57%	62%	43%
Governance, risk and compliance	72%	74%	77%	81%	72%	78%	77%
Innovation culture	67%	69%	71%	61%	65%	66%	69%
Innovation processes	70%	69%	68%	64%	69%	67%	73%
Innovation strategy	82%	81%	79%	81%	82%	75%	82%
Knowledge sharing	79%	81%	78%	78%	78%	78%	83%
Strategic leadership	82%	79%	82%	72%	80%	79%	81%
Talent upskilling and retention	71%	70%	68%	66%	56%	70%	83%
Transformational change	74%	72%	72%	73%	69%	67%	78%

What impact is technical debt having on your ability to innovate?

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
5 Significant impact	31%	24%	18%	18%	19%	18%	20%
4	47%	50%	53%	43%	51%	50%	42%
3 Moderate Impact	21%	25%	27%	37%	28%	31%	38%
2	1%	0%	2%	2%	1%	1%	0%
1 No impact	0%	1%	0%	0%	1%	0%	0%

What percentage of the resources below would you estimate is dedicated to resolving technical debt?

Shown: Mean scores

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
IT budget ($)	36%	33%	32%	27%	34%	33%	25%
IT effort (human resource)	21%	21%	21%	24%	20%	22%	19%

What are the top three strategies that your company prioritises when dealing with technical debt?

Shown: Ranked #1

	Financial Services	Technology, Media, Telecommunications	Consumer Products & Services	Healthcare	Manufacturing & Distribution	Energy & Utilities	Government
Appointing a technology leader as responsible and accountable for technical debt solutions	11%	10%	5%	9%	9%	12%	7%
Educating teams on technical debt and how to report it	12%	12%	14%	10%	15%	13%	14%
Formulating and following guidelines to managing technical debt	9%	15%	8%	6%	11%	14%	10%
Having a knowledge base to provide information even when specific employees have left the team or business	15%	10%	12%	10%	16%	11%	6%
Having a process in place to track and report technical debt	11%	8%	14%	15%	11%	10%	17%
Incorporating technical debt management into innovation strategies	9%	9%	12%	10%	9%	8%	12%
Revamping software, hardware and systems where technical debt occurs (e.g., refactoring code, etc)	9%	9%	10%	8%	11%	10%	14%
Tracking software, hardware and systems where technical debt occurs	10%	16%	11%	16%	9%	14%	11%
Tracking technical debt in new systems	14%	11%	14%	16%	9%	8%	9%
Other strategies	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%

Which of the following technologies, if any, is your organisation using to help reduce or alleviate technical debt?