The international survey of 650 executives found that 62% of German companies have achieved significant and even revolutionary improvements in end-user experience through digital transformation in the past year. It is therefore not surprising that German companies are planning to increase their investment in digital transformation by an average of 26% over the next twelve months.

Quite severe setbacks

However, they also need to be aware of the challenges of digital transformation. 91% of German companies were confronted with failed, delayed or scaled-back digitalization projects last year, costing them an average of 4.9 million dollars. 93% of projects were hindered by various factors during implementation, such as a lack of budget (34%), a lack of skills (30%) or the perception that the risk of failure is too high (30%).

The consequences of these failed or missed projects went far beyond wasted resources. 70% of German companies that experienced such problems had to postpone their strategic goals for three months or longer or even redefine them completely. Other potential consequences of failure cited by respondents included the loss of valuable employees to more innovative competitors - whether in IT (40%) or other business areas (41%). Other consequences include a decline in market relevance (39%) or even the discontinuation of business operations (39%).

"Nevertheless, the progress that companies have made in digital transformation over the last twelve months is clearly visible," says Paul Salazar, Senior Director Central Europe at Couchbase. "We are now seeing companies implementing the projects and ideas they never thought possible before. They have learned the lessons of the last two years. IT teams need the support of the whole organization, the necessary resources and the right skills and technology to be successful. From adopting the cloud to making the most of data, companies that embrace new technologies will be best placed to succeed."

Insights gained

In fact, the past two years have had a transformative impact on IT teams. At least 97% of German respondents have implemented or considered digital transformation opportunities that would not have been realistic at the end of 2019 - from creating new business offerings (42%) to hybrid working opportunities (41%) and moving to the cloud (39%).

Further results of the study

• 98% of German companies have learned lessons from the pandemic: 41% of respondents consider it necessary for management to get involved in technology, while 31% recognize the urgency of continuous investment in digitalization technologies. Another lesson is that companies need to reconcile speed with security, compliance and availability (38%).
• Investment priorities are shifting compared to 2019: while security remains a top priority for companies and hybrid working has experienced an understandable upswing, the modernization of existing technologies has become less important. Instead, the introduction of new technologies has increased. Companies have realized that they need completely new, modern tools to meet the challenges of the future.
• Ways of working have changed: 88% of German respondents stated that their goals for digital transformation have changed fundamentally in the last two years. 95% have accelerated their application modernization strategies, while 91% have changed the way they budget for digital transformation. 91% stated that transformation projects in the last two years have resulted in permanent changes to the way their organization operates or works.
• End users are the focus: 85% of German respondents stated that their transformation projects were driven by changes in user behavior rather than the creation of new business opportunities.