Enterprises Accelerate IT Advancements to Harness Generative AI’s Power, F5 Study Finds

2024 Digital Enterprise Maturity Index identifies critical steps for organizations to achieve digital maturity amid rapid technological changes

SEATTLE – F5 (NASDAQ: FFIV) today released its 2024 Digital Enterprise Maturity Index report, a comprehensive analysis of enterprise digital transformation efforts across the globe, underscoring the immense power of generative AI and its pivotal role in driving digital maturity across industries. The report reveals critical insights into how organizations can modernize their enterprise architectures, enhance automation, and improve data management practices to leverage AI and deliver superior digital experiences to customers.

Key highlights from the 2024 Digital Enterprise Maturity Index include:

• Enterprises are pushing ahead on digital transformation efforts: 29% of organizations participating in the study are considered “doers,” scoring among leaders in areas such as infrastructure, app delivery, security, data, and automation. This is a significant improvement from last year’s report, when only 4% were considered “doers.”
• Generative AI’s revolutionary impact: Generative AI is fundamentally changing digital operations, significantly enhancing automation and data management. Organizations that integrate AI technologies show higher levels of digital maturity across multiple categories.
• Hybrid application adoption: 82% of “doers” operate hybrid applications, indicating advanced digital readiness and effective AI integration.
• SRE and automation practices: 97% of digitally mature organizations have adopted or plan to adopt Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) practices, essential for scaling AI-driven operations and maintaining performance.
• Security and zero trust implementation: With the increasing reliance on AI, 92% of mature organizations have adopted zero trust principles, reflecting a higher confidence level in their security frameworks.
• API management proficiency: Advanced organizations manage an average of 468 APIs, showcasing a sophisticated digital infrastructure prepared for AI integration.
• Automation and operational efficiency: Organizations whose automation maturity is “automated” saw the biggest benefits: 53% enjoy greater consistency, 71% saw cost savings, and 80% report greater operational efficiencies.

“The rapid evolution of generative AI is not just a technological advancement; it’s a transformative force that is reshaping the entire landscape of digital business,” said Lori MacVittie, Chief Evangelist and Distinguished Engineer at F5. “Organizations that embrace this change and modernize their enterprise architectures to integrate AI-driven automation and data management will not only stay competitive but will also lead their industries into a new era of efficiency and innovation. Our 2024 Digital Enterprise Maturity Index offers a roadmap for these organizations to understand their current standing and the steps they need to take to achieve digital maturity.”

The report categorizes organizations into three distinct groups based on their progress in digital transformation: “doers,” who are making significant strides and leading the way in modernization; “dabblers,” who are in the early stages of their digital journey; and “dawdlers,” who show little to no progress in advancing their digital capabilities. This classification helps highlight the varying levels of digital maturity and readiness for AI integration.

Broader insights on digital transformation

Beyond the impact of generative AI, the 2024 Digital Enterprise Maturity Index provides an in-depth look at several key areas crucial for digital transformation:

• Infrastructure modernization: The report emphasizes the importance of a flexible and adaptable enterprise architecture to keep pace with rapid technological advancements. Organizations need an infrastructure that can seamlessly integrate new technologies as they emerge.
• Application delivery and security: The ability to distribute and secure applications across various environments—core, cloud, and edge—is critical. The report highlights that 40% of organizations have automated app and API security functions, but only 23% have automated app delivery, indicating a significant area for improvement.
• Data management: Data governance and full-stack observability are essential for digital maturity. The report notes that 58% of “doers” face challenges with data silos, emphasizing the need for robust data strategies to enable comprehensive observability and drive automation.
• Operational challenges and solutions: The report delves into the operational hurdles organizations face, such as budget constraints, complexity of tools, and skillset gaps. For instance, 49% of “doers” cite a lack of interoperability and the presence of too many tools and APIs as significant blockers to automation.

Additional findings on the state of digital maturity can be found in the full report, 2024 Digital Enterprise Maturity Index, and in F5’s companion blog.

About the report

F5 analyzed 713 responses selected from its annual State of Application Strategy research based on completeness of answers to the key questions that make up its digital maturity model. Just about one-third of respondents hail from the technology industry. There is good representation from retail, manufacturing, and financial services. Respondents represent a global sample, with just about a third from each major region: NA, EMEA, and APCJ. Similarly, grouping by annual revenue nets a fairly even distribution across large (27%), medium (32%), and smaller enterprises (32%).