2018 NOVIPRO/Léger survey - Portrait of IT in Canadian businesses - Artificial Intelligence: Revolutionary or Fictional?

Less than one quarter of Canadian companies will invest in AI between now and 2020

TORONTO, Feb. 6, 2018 /CNW Telbec/ - 2017 has been coined "The Year of the AI Revolution" with Canada at the forefront as a leading technology hub. However, a recent study conducted by Canadian IT solutions firm, NOVIPRO, paints a different portrait, showcasing that only 23% of medium-sized and large businesses in Canada are planning to invest in AI over the next two years. The survey also reveals that while nine out of ten companies (88%) are planning to spend significant amounts of money on technology in the next two years, AI ranks fourth in terms of priority, lagging far behind infrastructure (52%), business solutions (43%), and professional services (39%).

"It's concerning that so many businesses are letting AI pass them by when we know that skilled companies specializing in this area are popping up every day with revolutionary business models," says Yves Paquette, Co-founder, President, and CEO of NOVIPRO. "Companies that actively invest in AI strengthen their customer experience which often leads to additional revenue opportunities - giving them an edge amongst their competitors. In a market like Ontario that is incredibly strong and competitive, this can be a critical success factor for a business." says Yves Paquette.

The decision-makers surveyed about AI agreed on one thing - hiring and retaining skilled workers is a constant challenge. The survey found that 33% of Ontario companies said they have difficulty recruiting data scientists, while 37% have a hard time attracting experts in artificial intelligence. Similarly, retaining skilled workers is a challenge with 27% of Ontario companies saying they struggle to retain data scientists and 32% citing difficulty retaining AI experts.

Inconsistencies in IT Security
In addition to AI, the survey sheds light on the current state of cybersecurity among Canadian companies. While 86% of respondents felt their organization was adequately protected, about a third of them (32%) reported that they had been the victim of a cyber attack. The situation is more alarming in Ontario than Quebec, with 34% of respondents from Ontario saying they had experienced a breach of security, compared to 28% in Quebec. Coincidentally, nearly one in every two companies will make a major effort to improve their security between now and 2020. The survey shows that 19% of organizations don't have a backup plan in case of a cyber attack and 62% have not conducted a security audit in over a year.

"The data tells us that many companies have a false sense of security – thinking they're more protected than they actually are," said Yves Paquette. "In fact, the gap between perception and reality is probably even wider since organizations often cover up cyber attacks because they're afraid to notify their customers. We can't stress enough how crucial it is to have the proper IT solutions in place to prevent any cyber attacks or breaches."

Scores Improve for IT Dropouts
There is some good news though - the new survey shows that organizations are taking IT more seriously than they did the previous year. In fact, 87% of respondents this year said IT plays a major role in their business strategy, compared to 79% in 2016. In 2017, 31% of respondents also considered their infrastructure to be ahead of the curve, a percentage that is much higher than it was in 2016 (20%).

About the 2018 NOVIPRO/Léger Survey
The online survey was conducted from October 31 to November 21, 2017, and polled 467 decision-makers in IT sectors (302) and various other industries (165). All the respondents worked for big (500 employees or more) or medium-sized (100 to 499 employees) companies. The main findings from the survey can be found at http://novipro.com/en/remarketing-pages/it-study-2018/.

About NOVIPRO
NOVIPRO, a firm specialized in business transformation through IT, helps companies by providing a wide range of solutions, professional services, ERP, software, infrastructure solutions, big data, analytics, and cloud computing business platforms. NOVIPRO has offices in Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto, and Paris.

Source:
2018 NOVIPRO/Léger survey was taken by 467 Canadian decision-makers working in organizations with at least 100 employees.

SOURCE NOVIPRO

Media Contact: Andrea Mancini, Senior Consultant | CASACOM, [email protected], 416-944-2145