Two-Thirds of Enterprises Lack Sufficient IT Resources to Achieve Business Goals, According to Research from Windstream
22 May 2024 - 2:30PM
Business Wire
Amid dire IT staffing shortages, having a
trusted managed services provider enables organizations to move
strategic digital projects forward and shed risk
Windstream Enterprise (WE), a leading IT managed services
provider, today revealed the results of a new research study
conducted by Forrester Consulting which concludes that enterprise
leaders and their organizations are more capable of achieving
digital transformation initiatives when leveraging partnerships
with an IT managed services partner.
As heavily as enterprises have invested in digital
transformation, many are simultaneously coping with one of the most
significant IT staffing shortages in history. Because of this,
their internal teams often lack the bandwidth or the skillset to
successfully fuel mission-critical strategic and digital objectives
like IT agility, security and customer experience (CX). According
to the survey of 614 U.S.-based IT, finance, operations and
security leaders, more than half of organizations are missing the
IT staff and experience needed to support their digital
evolution.
The study found that the biggest barriers to digital
transformation for their organizations are lack of data strategy,
governance and quality (63%), lack of IT capacity (59%), and/or
lack of technical expertise (56%). Almost two-thirds of leaders say
their organizations’ digital transformation projects have stalled
due to these obstacles.
Managed services not only remove these common obstacles; they
relieve overtaxed staff from the burden of maintaining IT
environments themselves. By forging deeper and more meaningful
partnerships with IT managed service providers, the study
concludes, companies put themselves in a stronger position to
realize these goals and benefits.
“The consequences of a slowed digital transformation can be
serious, resulting in increased security breaches, a decline in
growth and revenue, loss of operational efficiency, the inability
to meet customer expectations and more,” said Mike Flannery,
president, Windstream Enterprise. “Fortunately, by partnering with
a managed services provider, enterprises with lean IT staff gain
access to a full bench of skilled resources with specialized
expertise in areas like cybersecurity and network
reliability—freeing up internal resources to focus on big-picture
strategic projects that allow them to achieve better business
outcomes and dutifully serve customers with the best experiences
possible.”
According to the study, enterprises that have previously used an
IT managed services partner have delivered more significant results
in these areas than those that have attempted it on their own. The
majority of respondents find managed infrastructure (78%), cloud
infrastructure (66%), managed support (64%), and managed security
(58%) services to be effective at accomplishing their business
goals.
In addition to the study, Windstream offered one example of a
customer using an IT managed services approach for successful
digital outcomes. The customer, a large construction company with
over 1,000 locations in North America, had 25 people dedicated to
network operations yet lacked the necessary visibility and tools to
transform data into information for well-informed decision making.
After partnering with Windstream as their managed services
provider, the construction company saw a 30% savings in their
network configuration, increased network bandwidth, and improved
visibility and reporting.
With managed services, organizations have more options for
allocating their IT resources. Organizations can work with a
managed services provider in a number of ways: to upgrade their
existing infrastructure and technology platforms, handle all IT
tasks or even function as their IT department, serving as an
extension of their lean or non-existing in-house team.
Alternatively, organizations can benefit from consulting and
managed security solutions to protect their most important data
assets and properly address the increasingly sophisticated
cybersecurity environment.
To read the full study, please visit
windstreamenterprise.com/forrester-itms-survey. To learn more about
Windstream’s comprehensive IT Managed Services portfolio, please
visit windstreamenterprise.com/it-managed-services/.
ABOUT WINDSTREAM
Windstream Enterprise drives business and government agency
transformation across the U.S. through managed cloud
communications, networking and security services. Windstream
Enterprise is one of three brands managed by Windstream. The
company’s quality-first approach connects customers to new
opportunities and possibilities by delivering a full suite of
advanced communications services. Windstream also offers
fiber-based broadband to residential and small business customers
in 18 states as well as customized wavelength and dark fiber
solutions to carriers, content providers and hyperscalers in the
U.S. and Canada. Windstream is a privately held company
headquartered in Little Rock, Ark. Additional information about
Windstream Enterprise is available at windstreamenterprise.com or
windstream.com. Follow us on LinkedIn at @Windstream.
Category: Enterprise
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240521261285/en/
Windstream Enterprise Media Contact: Alyssa Miron
alyssa.miron@windstream.com