KUALA LUMPUR (May 26): About 78% of chief financial officers (CFOs) plan to maintain or increase enterprise-wide digital investments in the next two years.

In a statement on Wednesday (May 25), technology and consulting firm Gartner Inc said a survey of 199 CFOs and senior finance leaders on May 13 found that the CFOs indicated that they are planning cost reductions in other areas of the business if inflation persists this year.

Gartner finance practice chief of research Alexander Bant said companies that drive the right digital investments would have 2.7 times higher customer retention, 1.6 times higher customer satisfaction rates and 1.9 times higher average order value.

“Leading digital companies are also three times more likely to achieve above-industry revenue and margin growth.

“We also found that 67% of consumers will pay more for a great digital experience,” he said.

Gartner also asked the CFOs about their intentions for technology spend through 2023, both within their function and across the enterprise.

At the enterprise level, 46% of respondents said they are scaling up their digital plans, while 32% said that no changes are planned.

The firm said the survey data indicates that the CFOs plan to accelerate the momentum in digital transformation investments that were launched in earnest at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, in line with Gartner’s information technology (IT) spending forecast of an overall increase in worldwide IT spending in 2022.

Bant said inflation is a new catalyst driving CFOs to ramp up digital investment with the aim of lowering the cost of doing business and identifying new sources of profitability.

“CFOs know to never waste a crisis or downturn. It’s a time to reinvent, make better investments and reduce inefficiencies.

“Winners on the other side of this cycle will have continued to accelerate the right digital initiatives across their organisations even as there are mounting pressures on profitability,” he said.