Generative AI drives major boost in digital enterprise maturity

A new report by F5 highlights the transformative impact of generative AI on digital enterprise maturity across various industries. The 2024 Digital Enterprise Maturity Index provides insights into how organisations can leverage AI to modernise their enterprise architectures, enhance automation, and improve data management practices.

Key findings of the report indicate that 29% of organisations are now leading in digital transformation, a significant increase from the 4% reported last year. The integration of generative AI has been pivotal, with the technology substantially enhancing automation and data management.

The report reveals that 82% of leading companies operate hybrid applications, signifying their readiness for advanced digital technologies. In terms of security, 92% of digitally mature organisations have adopted zero-trust principles, enhancing their security frameworks.

"Generative AI is fundamentally changing digital operations, significantly enhancing automation and data management," the report states. Organisations that integrate AI technologies show higher levels of digital maturity across multiple categories, according to the findings. Furthermore, 97% of digitally mature organisations have adopted or plan to adopt Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) practices to scale AI-driven operations and maintain performance.

Lori MacVittie, Chief Evangelist and Distinguished Engineer at F5, commented on the transformative nature of generative AI: "The rapid evolution of generative AI is not just a technological advancement; it’s a transformative force that is reshaping the entire landscape of digital business. Organisations that embrace this change and modernise their enterprise architectures to integrate AI-driven automation and data management will not only stay competitive but will also lead their industries into a new era of efficiency and innovation." MacVittie added that the 2024 Digital Enterprise Maturity Index offers a roadmap for organisations to understand their current standing and the steps they need to take to achieve digital maturity.

Pratik Shah, Managing Director of India and SAARC at F5, mentioned, "According to our Digital Enterprise Maturity Index 2024 report, 29% of organisations are already pushing ahead on their digital transformation efforts in areas such as AI, application delivery, and security. We have been witnessing the same trend among organisations in India where they are increasingly turning to AI, multicloud networking solutions, and sophisticated API management to ensure seamless and secure digital experiences."

The report also categorises organisations into three distinct groups: doers, who are making significant strides; dabblers, who are in the early stages of their digital journey, and dawdlers, who show little to no progress in advancing their digital capabilities. This classification aims to highlight the varying levels of digital maturity and readiness for AI integration.

Beyond the impact of generative AI, the 2024 Digital Enterprise Maturity Index delves into several key areas crucial for digital transformation. The report underlines the importance of infrastructure modernisation, noting that organisations need a flexible and adaptable enterprise architecture to keep pace with rapid technological advancements. It also stresses the critical nature of application delivery and security, data management, and operational efficiency.

The report highlights that 40% of organisations have automated application and API security functions, but only 23% have automated application delivery, indicating a significant area for improvement. Additionally, a robust data strategy is deemed essential to overcome challenges such as data silos, faced by 58% of doers. The operational hurdles identified include budget constraints, complexity of tools, and skillset gaps, with 49% of doers citing interoperability issues and the presence of too many tools and APIs as significant blockers to automation.