Autodesk presents a study on the digital transformation of building, industry and media

Industrial business leaders are reporting greater business resilience in an increasingly uncertain global landscape, according to Autodesk's 2023 State of Design & Make report, released today.

The three main challenges facing design and manufacturing companies are attracting and retaining talent, managing costs, and responding to instability in the global economy and international events.

The report reveals striking differences in resilience and performance for companies that are digitally mature or more advanced in using digital tools to transform their businesses:

• More than half of respondents said their company hired talent who lacked key skills, but planned to train them.
• Digitally mature companies are performing better than less mature ones, and the performance gap is widening.
• Nearly 95% of respondents said they expect their industry or organization to make sustainability-focused changes in the coming years.

For Andrew Anagnost, President and CEO of Autodesk: “Autodesk has highlighted universal challenges and opportunities among the industries that design and manufacture the world around us. Around the world, businesses large and small have made major operational changes over the past three years to stay resilient and relevant. Notably, companies that have embraced digitalization and data to drive decision-making find themselves better positioned to thrive – even amid continued global economic uncertainty and turmoil. »

Navigating in times of uncertainty

79% of respondents said the world seemed more uncertain than three years ago, especially for 86% of European business leaders.

In question ? War, inflation, European energy problems, pandemic and refugee crisis.

On the other hand, 6 out of 10 people consider that their company is well prepared to face unforeseen future crises.

In terms of digital maturity, it appears that companies that have reached digital maturity are more inclined to face future challenges than those that are less mature.

"Digital processes are the driving force, allowing us to be personalized and agile," said Matteo Barale, co-CEO of PIX Moving, a self-driving vehicle startup.

Focus France

Business resilience emerges in uncertainty.

Main challenges:

Only 14% of French respondents cited business resilience and improving the supply chain as the main challenges, less than those in the APAC region (26%) and the Americas (30%).

Uncertainty

89% of French respondents say the global landscape is uncertain, more than respondents from the Americas or APAC regions (75% each).

Benefits of digital transformation

The data showed differences in the benefits of digital transformation perceived by businesses across regions. More significantly, respondents from the Americas were more likely to report the benefits of digital transformation, followed by those from Europe.

French respondents are the first to declare that the digital transformation has helped to engage and motivate staff (32% against 26% globally) and to improve the quality of information (against 26% globally) and to improve their company's reputation (30% vs. 23% globally).

Data analysis

The data showed differences in how companies leverage data. French respondents are the first to use data to collaborate with AI and automation (45% against 36% globally).

Talent Shortage Is Root of All Challenges and Hinders Growth

For 3 out of 4 business leaders, the workforce has changed more in the past three years than in the previous 25. This statement is surprising considering that the previous quarter century has been marked by the rise of the Internet, email, smartphones, mobile applications and mobile computing, but it shows how Workforce changes brought about by the pandemic have been discouraging for businesses.

• For 48% of business leaders, attracting and retaining talent is a major challenge.
• For 64%, access to qualified employees is a barrier to business growth. The most digitally advanced companies said they have taken more active steps to solve the problem.
• For 93%, the improvement of skills is important for their company. The skills of tomorrow will combine technology and regulatory knowledge.

For Jeremy Smith, CTO of visual effects company Jellyfish Pictures: “In terms of recruitment, we have been able to attract a lot of people thanks to our technological infrastructure, which allows us to hire people from all over the world. »

Focus France

The competition for talent is intensifying.

Talent issues:

Respondents in France report similar talent challenges to other countries. 68% struggle to find people with the right skills, compared to 67% globally. Equally many say the workforce is aging rapidly (42%) and companies are slow to adapt to the needs of younger generations (43%), while the global figures are 45% respectively. and 42%.

Talent Solutions:

95% of French respondents recognize the importance of training, which corresponds to the world average (93%). Additionally, respondents in French companies are slightly less likely than others to say their organization lacks the skills or resources to design such training programs (40% vs. 43% globally).

Increasingly important sustainable development goals

The report shows that a consensus is emerging on the importance of sustainable development. For some, taking measures in favor of sustainable development will eventually represent a substantial part of their turnover.

Here are some of the findings of the study:

• 80% of respondents say improving sustainability practices is a good long-term business decision.
• 82% say customers influence their sustainability activities
• Nearly 90% of respondents said their industry or organization had made changes to improve sustainability.

Reducing waste, using more recycled materials, and designing sustainably are some of the key changes implemented in their business.

For example, France comes first among the countries represented on the reduction of production waste or the increase in recycled materials with 47% and 23% on the financing of CO2 reduction projects.

For Amy Hochadel, Executive Director of Global Business for Connected Places Catapult, the innovation agency for UK cities: “Digitalization gives us more advantages. I think that's going to become more and more important as we tackle climate issues and changing environments."

Focus France

Sustainable development, a source of added value for the company.

Sustainable development in action

In general, European respondents reported the highest levels of activities focusing on sustainable development.

France leads in the proportion of respondents whose industry or organization has reduced production waste or increased the use of recycled materials (47% vs. 35% globally), and France proportion of respondents who declared that their industry/organization had participated in the financing of carbon projects (23% against 15%).

Sustainable Development Perspectives

Respondents in Germany (47%) and Japan (41%) are less likely to think sustainability is good for business in the short term, while respondents in France are more likely to agree (66% ), compared to 55% globally.

Respondents in France are in the middle range when it comes to saying that sustainability is good for long-term business (85% vs. 80% globally).

Digitally mature businesses ready for growth

Digital transformation drives businesses by reducing costs, increasing innovation, improving performance, and enabling faster launch of products and services.

In fact, 79% of business leaders surveyed said that the future growth of their business will depend on digital tools.

When Autodesk looked at business metrics including customer satisfaction, profit margin, and revenue for 2019-2021, it found that more digitally mature companies performed better than others:

• they have outperformed less digitally mature companies.
• The performance gap between more and less digitally mature companies seems to be widening.
• They plan to increase their investments over the next three years in the following areas:
  • Technology to improve project results
  • Product or service innovation
  • The development of new products or services

Focus France

Digital maturity

44% of respondents in French companies said their companies were "more digitally mature", compared to 38% globally.

14% of respondents said their company was at the "beginning" of its digital transformation journey, and 42% said their company was "in the middle of the effort". In addition, 27% of respondents said their company is "close to the goal" and 17% said their company has "reached the goal".