91制片厂

Adapt to Uncertainty With a Technology-First Action Plan

Cost cutting in times of crisis works; doubling down on innovation works even better.

Analyst perspective

Cost cutting in times of crisis works; doubling down on innovation works even better.

CIOs occupy the one seat that spans every data stream, workflow, and control point, making them the first to detect how tariffs, tighter budgets, shifting regulations, and talent shortages ripple through the business. Because each shock ultimately shows up as an information or process-velocity problem, the technology function is where early warning meets rapid response.

Fortunately, the tech-enabled toolkit can now neutralize these headwinds: hyperautomation absorbs compliance overhead, Gen AI copilots close skills gaps, FinOps reins in cloud costs when input prices spike, and privacy-preserving analytics keep the business compliant while still monetizing data. Acting now lets the CIO frame tech spend as an 鈥渦ncertainty hedge,鈥� unlocking resilience and cash before the board defaults to blanket cuts. Proactive digital leadership today prevents passive strictness tomorrow 鈥� and no other executive is better equipped to lead it.

91制片厂 a technology-first action plan that can turn today鈥檚 volatility into tomorrow鈥檚 value.

Brittany Lutes

91制片厂 Director,
91制片厂

Please note: This research was developed with the assistance of generative AI. For information about how, please see in the Appendix

Executive summary

Your challenge

In 2025, organizations faced a series of unexpected macro-vulnerabilities that drastically impacted how they functioned

Spending Scrutiny & Budget Cuts

On the surface, the commitment to reducing spending throughout the public sector might seem localized to those industries. But the reality is that many other organizations are dependent on a stable public spending budget that is being used to purchase private sector products and services. A reduction in public sector spending is a reduction in spending for all.

Escalating Trade Conflicts

While the United States increased the average tariff to 24% (EY, 2025), we were already witnessing massive trade impacts due to increasing tensions between several countries. Organizations that import goods have been struggling to either find new suppliers or come up with costs to cover the additional tariff fees 鈥� which are changing at a moment鈥檚 notice.

Abundant Policy & Regulation Changes

Globally, we are seeing an increased involvement of government organizations in how they regulate and oversee public and private organizations. Some of these regulations are increasingly technological in nature with AI or data protection concerns, but others relate to taxes, vendor compliance, the environment, and workforce mandates. Failing to understand these mandates will be costly.

Executive summary

Common obstacles

For CIOs and IT leaders, these vulnerabilities present challenges to achieving their technology mandates

Forced to Be in Crisis Response

For most CIOs and IT leaders, being in a reactive or operational state is the norm. In fact, based on our IT Maturity Scale, 81% of organizations are considered trusted operators or less by their organization (Info-Tech CIO Business Vision, 2024). When macro-risks impact the organization, IT is not seen as the partner or innovator, but as the firefighter expected to react and respond how it鈥檚 told. This outdated view leaves IT forced to slash innovation budgets.

Accessing Critical IT Skills & Knowledge

Ongoing budget constraints have exacerbated challenges within the IT talent market that was seeing double-digit percent increases in salary only a few months ago. Unfortunately, despite most (90%) of IT leaders facing a talent gap, salary increases are likely not something that the organization is responsive to during times of uncertainty (Robert Half, 2025). Like everywhere else, IT departments are facing hiring freezes and stagnant salaries, requiring a new approach to learning and development to get the skills you need today.

IT Sourcing & Vendor Complexity

Given that 62% of IT spend is on vendors, this is a particularly important area for IT leaders to focus their time and effort when experiencing this level of macro-economic uncertainty (Info-Tech Spend & Staffing Benchmarking, 2024). As a result of current tariffs, organizations are being forced to increase their diversity of suppliers to limit disruption while simultaneously reducing the IT portfolio of vendors providing applications or platforms.

Executive summary

Resolution

Explore the entire suite of research that supports these pillars by visiting our research center IT鈥檚 Moment: A Technology-First Solution for Uncertain Times.

• Lead the Organization, Not Just IT

  Neutralize Uncertainty Now

• Fund Innovation by Cutting Costs

  Run IT by the Numbers

• Pursue IT Excellence

  Don鈥檛 Take Your Foot off the Gas

• 91制片厂 an Adaptive IT Workforce

  Lead at the Pace of Change

• Slash Your AI Transformation Timeline

  Deliver Impact Now

• Execute and Prepare to Pivot

  Adapt on the Fly

Info-Tech鈥檚 Approach

• Phase 1 鈥� Assess Uncertainties & Opportunities
• Phase 2 鈥� Review Budget, Staffing & Contracts
• Phase 3 鈥� 91制片厂 Your Technology-First Action Plan
• Phase 4 鈥� Get Ready to Execute!

1: Lead the Organization, Not Just IT

Neutralize Uncertainty Now

1. Defuse Uncertainty Drivers: Understand organizational impact.
2. Lean Into the Curve: Apply Exponential IT.
3. Pick Your First Bets: Deliver use cases now.
4. Claim Your New Mandate: Technology-first or go out of business.
5. Get the Word Out: Tell the entire organization now.

Start by assessing the impact of global uncertainty on your organization. Develop and communicate mitigation options based on likelihood and immediate impact. Counter the global uncertainty with a technology-first action plan.

2: Fund Innovation by Cutting Costs

Run IT by the Numbers

1. Don鈥檛 Bet the Farm: Set the innovation budget.
2. Find Real Dollars Quickly: Cut costs now.
3. Demonstrate Technology Impact: Benchmark spend and shift.
4. Shorten the Cycles: 91制片厂 a flexible budget (finally).
5. Sharpen the Pencil: Renegotiate vendor contracts.

20%

Only 20% of CFOs are happy with the impact tech investments make on their business (Remini Street, 2024).

91制片厂 a significant cost reduction plan to free up budget, people, and resources. Overshoot any cost-cutting mandates and use the overage to fund innovation.

3: Pursue IT Excellence

Don鈥檛 Take Your Foot off the Gas

1. Get the Baseline: Understand your maturity.
2. Focus on What Really Matters: Improve your critical capabilities.
3. You Can鈥檛 Do IT Alone: Guide your team.
4. Enable Everyone: Provide tools and training.
5. Aim High Selectively: Leapfrog for impact.

85%

85% of core processes are ineffective on average across all IT organizations (Info-Tech IT Management & Governance Diagnostic, 2024).

Don鈥檛 let uncertainty derail your path to systematically pursue IT excellence. Focus on the capabilities proven to have the highest impact and leverage your team to execute.

4: 91制片厂 an Adaptive IT Workforce

Lead at the Pace of Change

1. Knowledge Is Power: Stop the drain.
2. Drive Adaptability: Be it and teach it.
3. Lead the Pack: Autonomize aggressively.
4. Fill Your Gaps: 91制片厂 critical skills.
5. Win the Race for Talent: Money isn鈥檛 everything.

IT positions that are going unfilled are costing organizations in the United States an average of $187 billion in lost revenue each year (CompTIA, 2024).

Global uncertainty is putting pressure on the workforce. As traditional skill procurement sources change, you need to prioritize retaining knowledge and developing in-demand skills from within.

5: Slash Your AI Transformation Timeline

Deliver Impact Now

1. Just Do It: Deliver AI now.
2. Stop Saying No: Democratize AI.
3. Spend, Spend, Spend: Overfund innovation.
4. Have ONE Strategy: AI Strategy = IT Strategy = Enterprise Strategy
5. If in Doubt, Buy Over 91制片厂: Select the right vendors.

CEOs believe that the researching and implementing AI is the top IT priority (Foundry, 2025).

Agentic AI is here. Pivot from long-term transformation roadmaps to certain ROI delivery today, mostly leveraging vendor capabilities. Use freed-up funds to drive organizational outcomes.

6: Execute and Prepare to Pivot

Adapt on the Fly

1. Aim for Impact: Say yes to promising pilots.
2. Measure What鈥檚 Real and Fund What Works: Fund based on outcomes.
3. Let Things Go. Kill failing projects quickly.
4. Shatter the Org Chart: Match talent to impact.
5. It鈥檚 Not Bragging If It鈥檚 True: Share wins and failures.

Constant change means no time to slow down. Create mechanisms to successfully implement your action plan. Monitor the progress of your initiatives and adapt rapidly and in real time.

Organizations that accelerated their digital transformation during the pandemic significantly outperformed their peers

The growth advantage that companies that are technology leaders had over laggards went from 2x to 5x post pandemic.1

Organizations that shifted their IT budgets from being operations-centric to innovation-centric 鈥� labeled 鈥渓eapfroggers鈥� 鈥� managed to significantly reduce their digital transformation timeline and outperform laggards by four times.1

Companies that are 鈥渇uture-ready,鈥� having gone through digital business transformation and developed the capabilities that enable them to innovate and to engage and satisfy customers while reducing costs, have significantly higher financial performance, with average revenue growth 17.3 percentage points and net margins 14.0 percentage points above industry average.2

1. Accenture, 2021
2. MIT CISR, 2022

Cost cutting in times of crisis works.
Doubling down on innovation works even better.

Innovation outpaces austerity

While your peers and competitors look for ways to follow cost-cutting mandates, look for ways to demonstrate why investment in innovation will take the organization further faster.

Starve waste, feed a revolution

Cut costs relentlessly now to avoid having to give up innovation budget, so you can transform the organization when it is needed most. It is through innovation that the organization will be exposed to new ways of generating organizational value.

Technology powers smart decision-making

This is an opportunity to demonstrate to the organization that IT is not a follower, but a leader. Use your greatest asset 鈥� technology 鈥� and demonstrate to the organization how it can be used to enable better decision making.

Always be learning

The exponential rate of technology development and adoption means organizations will never close the skill gap again, especially for IT. Focus on establishing sustainable learning and development practices that allow staff to upskill and apply those skills quickly.

Change is constant; struggle is optional

Change is inevitable, but it doesn鈥檛 have to be hard. Establish adaptive practices in your change plan to ensure that it remains on track and continuously moving in the right direction.

Info-Tech鈥檚 methodology for building a Technology-First Action Plan

Key deliverable:

Technology-First Action Plan

91制片厂 a Technology-First Action Plan that demonstrates how IT can lead the organization in responding to ongoing uncertainties.

Each phase of this blueprint is accompanied by phases of the supporting deliverable to help you accomplish your goals:

Uncertainties & Opportunities Assessment

Identify how macro-uncertainties are generating new risks for your organization and opportunities to leverage technology more effectively.

IT Spend & Staffing Benchmarking

Assess the current IT spend across systems, contracts, projects, and the workforce to identify cost optimization opportunities.

Technology-First Action Plan Roadmap

Identify key initiatives that IT will pursue and deliver against over the next 12 months to reduce the impacts of uncertainties.

Communication & Execution

Define and prepare to communicate how the Technology-First Action Plan will deliver organizational value.

Blueprint benefits

IT Benefits

• Maintain full control over the timing and scope of any technology-related cost reductions.
• Reallocate freed-up budget to AI and other digital transformation initiatives that fuel continuous innovation.
• Gain early visibility into emerging risks that could impact both the enterprise and the IT function.
• Systematically enhance critical IT capabilities and translate them into measurable performance gains.
• Maximize existing technical talent through targeted upskilling and structured knowledge transfer.

Organizational Benefits

• Mitigate macro-level uncertainties through a proactive, risk-aligned action plan.
• Outperform competitors by remaining resilient and focused on opportunities during periods of volatility.
• Shift leadership effort from diagnosing uncertainty to executing decisive, innovative responses.
• Strengthen cross-functional collaboration to simultaneously reduce risk and capture new value.

Measure the value of this blueprint

The objective of this blueprint is to improve not just IT鈥檚 value, but the organization鈥檚 value.

ORGANIZATIONAL VALUE

Revenue Acceleration

• Year-over-year (YoY) revenue growth
• Monthly or annual recurring revenue (MRR/ARR) growth
• Customer lifetime value (CLV) growth

Cost Optimization

• Operating-expense ratio (OpEx as % of revenue)
• Procurement savings vs. baseline
• Support cost per customer interaction

Asset Efficiency

• Return on assets (ROA)
• Asset-turnover ratio (revenue 梅 total assets)
• Fixed-asset utilization (uptime vs. downtime)

Customer Satisfaction

• Net Promoter Score (NPS)
• Customer satisfaction score (CSAT)
• Customer effort score (CES)
• Churn and retention rates

• Revenue Acceleration: Launching new or enhanced offerings that open fresh revenue streams faster than the core business can mature.
• Cost Optimization: Optimizing operating expenses while maintaining required service and flexibility.
• Asset Efficiency: Squeezing more output or cash from every asset through higher utilization and faster turnover.
• Customer Satisfaction: Reliably exceeding customer expectations to earn loyalty and advocacy.

91制片厂 Note: Beyond Automation, Beyond Borders: Cultivating Your Talent in a New Global Reality

Fred Chagnon

Principal 91制片厂 Director
91制片厂

While the discourse around artificial intelligence, particularly generative AI, often emphasizes workforce displacement, a strategy fixated on replacing human workers with AI is shortsighted. True value creation in the AI era demands a strategic investment in people 鈥� employees and partners 鈥� to augment, manage, and innovate with these technologies.

This imperative is critically amplified by emerging de-globalization trends that are reshaping global talent pipelines and increasing the need for organizational self-sufficiency. Sustainable success, innovation, and resilience will therefore hinge on an organization鈥檚 commitment to cultivating in-house talent, focusing on skills for AI, cybersecurity, and adaptive leadership to effectively navigate a future defined by human鈥揂I cocreation.

鈥淭he evidence suggests that, rather than seeking to replace people with AI, organizations that prioritize employee development alongside their AI investments will be better positioned to innovate, navigate ethical complexities, build customer trust, and ultimately unlock the full, transformative potential of AI and other exponential technologies.

In an era where both technological disruption and geopolitical fragmentation demand greater organizational resilience, focusing on developing our people internally becomes the linchpin of any successful AI strategy and, indeed, overall business strategy.鈥�

Read the full article here (5-minute read)

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