Network failures are inflicting significant financial damage on UK businesses, with 33% reporting annual losses of up to £4 million and another 18% losing even more due to outages or poor performance. These findings, drawn from the IDC InfoBrief ‘Enterprise Horizons 2025: Technology Leaders Priorities: Achieving Digital Agility’ and commissioned by Expereo, underscore a growing urgency around connectivity. The report comes amid a period of high-profile IT disruptions, increasing the scrutiny on technology resilience at the executive level.
In response to recent disruptions, 50% of UK businesses have re-examined their technology infrastructures, and 35% of technology leaders confirm that networking and connectivity have climbed higher on the corporate agenda. This shift is reflected in investment plans: 40% of UK companies will prioritise networking and connectivity investment in the next year, above cybersecurity (39%) and Artificial Intelligence (35%), marking a reversal from last year, when Artificial Intelligence topped the list. The research highlights how business priorities now favour foundational technology resilience over new technology adoption.
The threat is not abstract. About 27% of organisations say inadequate network performance jeopardises growth ambitions for the year ahead, while nearly half (49%) indicate that network constraints hinder their capacity to deploy large-scale data and Artificial Intelligence initiatives. Despite these ambitions, a mere 5% of businesses feel their networks are fully ready to support Artificial Intelligence. Ben Elms, CEO of Expereo, argues that connectivity is now a strategic imperative rather than simply an IT issue. Lacking robust networks, Elms warns, will prevent businesses from capitalising on opportunities in Artificial Intelligence and data-driven transformation.
Addressing connectivity challenges also involves the talent pipeline. Cybersecurity is the area where organisations most often struggle to recruit or retain skilled professionals (44%), followed closely by networking (40%). As shortages persist, 40% of UK firms plan to rely more on external partners, such as vendors and managed service providers, to strengthen their network capabilities. The study presents a clear message: resilient network infrastructure, alongside skilled support, is now central to competing and thriving in the digital era.
