Report: Automation leads to business growth

Salesforce recently released a report exploring the pivotal role of technology in Canadian business by looking at how Canadian businesses are digitizing and the major barriers and concerns Canadian businesses have about keeping up. The report looks at legacy sector businesses, which are set to feel the greatest effects of automation.

The latest announcement from the Business Development Bank of Canada has touted a new, $250 million fund to help modernize legacy sectors.

On average, 81 per cent of Canadian businesses believe Canada is an innovative country, and for Canada to be seen as a global leader in innovation, 79 per cent believe it is essential for all sectors to digitize.

The report stated that 50 per cent of manufacturers that increased their business’s reliance on digitization and automation say they have experienced a greater competitive advantage as a result.

In addition, 15 per cent of manufacturers are currently using AI and another 18 per cent plan on doing so in the next three years. Nineteen per cent of manufacturers also are planning to use big data and analytics in the next three years.

However, some see a difficulty in keeping up with technological innovation.

In the report, 36 per cent of manufacturers agreed that technology is a disrupting force in their sector, and 38 per cent said it’s difficult to keep up with competitors that are using more innovative technologies like automation, big data, and AI to do business.