How Machine-Driven Decisions Will Affect IT

How Machine-Driven Decisions Will Affect IT

CIOs expect that, within the next several years, machines will make critical decisions about security, finance and other key business and operational areas.

89% of the CIOs surveyed said their organization is using machine learning in some way—in business areas, as a pilot or in a research or planning phase.

Automating repetitive tasks: 68%,
Making complex business decisions: 54%,
Recognizing data patterns: 40%,
Establishing links between events: 32%,
Supervising learning: 32%

57% of the CIOs surveyed said even routine decision-making takes up a meaningful amount of employee and executive time, and 52% said they are moving beyond the automation of routine tasks and moving toward the automation of more complex decisions.

87% said machine learning provides “substantial” or “transformative” value in coming up with accurate decisions.

69% of the CIOs surveyed expect decision automation to contribute to their enterprise’s top-line growth, and 64% said it will make their company more competitive.

70% said decisions about security operations will be largely or completely automated by 2020, up from 24% currently.

77% said decisions about customer management will be largely or completely automated—or at least automated in a way that will require some human intervention—by 2020, compared to 69% today.

77% said decisions about finance will be largely or completely automated—or at least automated in a way that will require some human intervention—by 2020, up from 52% currently.

Insufficient data quality: 51%,
Outdated processes: 48%,
Lack of human skills: 47%,
Budget limitations for tech and skills: 41%,
Inability of machines to make complex decisions: 32%

Just 16% of CIOs have established workforce size and role plans to accommodate machine learning, and only 36% have developed a roadmap for future process changes.