As the importance of technology around the world evolves and intensifies, KPMG International’s 2024 Global Tech report provides a timely barometer of where things stand and where they’re headed, both globally and here in Canada.
The report gathers technology attitudes, plans and outlooks from over 600 financial services sector companies with over $1 billion in revenue and contrasts those views with other sectors. The results are promising for financial services overall and show an increasingly strong technological foundation for Canadian organizations thanks to investments made and leadership drive.
Despite ongoing inflation, interest rate changes and regulatory challenges, Canadian financial services leaders are optimistic about the technology investments they are making. According to the report, financial services businesses are more satisfied than companies in other sectors with the value they’re receiving from their investments. This bodes well for technology spending planned for the next 6 to 12 months, both in Canada and worldwide.
This growing confidence in the value being created from technology investments represents a significant improvement for Canadian executives – 65% of whom were uncertain last year whether their current technologies could build trust with their customers and suppliers. Progress in cybersecurity, data analytics and other technology categories has moved the dial, helping Canadian companies be more efficient and agile. This positive trend is likely to continue, as the report shows that financial services firms are more confident than other industries surveyed in their ability to adapt to the rapid pace of technological advancements.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to dominate technology discussions and AI investments – whether to improve business processes, enhance services or develop products – are showing positive results. Last year, 47% of Canadian respondents reported taking advantage of AI and machine learning (ML) to meet short and medium-term goals. This year, organizations are again evaluating investment opportunities, with 73% planning to invest in AI and 82% planning to invest in XaaS (anything as a service) opportunities that promise a strong return on investment in the next year.
With customer expectations at an all-time high in Canada, customer experience continues to be the focus of technology innovation and deployments. Financial services executives report being more confident, on average, than other industry leaders in using customer-centric metrics to measure the value of technology. Their technology decision-making is also more likely to take customer, stakeholder and employee needs into consideration.
Globally, a majority of financial services executives are taking a firm position on technology strategy and innovation. 82% agree that their leadership role empowers their organizations to capitalize on market trends using AI. Last year, Canadian businesses lagged behind global counterparts in cybersecurity, AI, automation and data analytics. If Canadian executives need to seek inspiration from their global counterparts on technology, it’s the right time to do so. Strong leadership and a willingness to experiment are necessary for Canadian businesses to remain at the forefront of technology innovation.