According to a report from HPE Aruba Networking, 64% of IT leaders believe that cybersecurity concerns are negatively impacting their organization’s willingness to invest in innovative technology.
This is perhaps not surprising, as 91% admit that they consider emerging technology to be dangerous or have already experienced a breach from it. But this is a time when IT leaders need to be empowered to leverage innovations like generative AI to accelerate business-critical transformation. 89% say their organization needs a high level of success over the next 12 months.
Against a backdrop of promising headlines about emerging technologies, this study investigated how organizations are currently approaching the interaction between innovation and risk. The report also highlights the role IT leaders and networks must play in fostering more secure innovation.
Rise of innovation
95% of IT leaders say digitization is fundamentally important to unlocking new revenue streams over the next 12 months. In fact, both IT and the broader business are driving the adoption of new technologies that can drive innovation in how a business functions and what it offers.
To scale innovation, organizations are turning to emerging technologies, currently using 5G (91%), AI and machine learning (ML) solutions (89%), or IoT and smart sensors (88%). We are planning to introduce Iruka. ).
Despite these efforts, only 45% of IT leaders say their organization is innovative and, worryingly, even fewer (44%) say it is secure. .
Managing growing risks
There’s also a growing disconnect between technology demands and the IT team’s ability to manage it all. 66% of IT leaders are concerned about whether their organizations can keep up with the latest technology and digital demands, and 55% say their IT teams are already doing so. We have grown to capacity.
This increased use of technology, combined with resource scarcity and broader trends around remote work, hybrid clouds, and distributed centers for data, means that organizations face greater risks than ever before.
“Business needs are evolving, and teams are increasingly adopting new technologies to meet these needs. However, security measures that can support the rise of emerging technologies must also evolve with them. ” states. Scott CalziaVice President of Marketing, HPE Aruba Networking.
“For IT teams, this means recognizing that AI networking can make teams more efficient, reduce tedious administrative tasks, and drive security strategies by providing built-in protections.” Calzia continued.
Network role
This research shows that there is a growing awareness of the role of networks in business transformation, particularly the link between networks and both security and innovation. In fact, 64% of IT leaders believe the network can support cybersecurity effectiveness, and 61% believe the network can support greater innovation.
IT leaders are investing accordingly, with organizations deploying network-based security solutions such as Security Services Edge (SSE) or similar edge-to-cloud security (89%) and policy-based network access control (88%). We are starting to promote it. , Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) security (87%).
However, evidence shows that support is still needed to link these investments to realize their benefits. Only 47% of IT leaders believe their current network can provide or support flexible enterprise security, and even fewer (37%) recognize its role in supporting emerging technologies.
Calzia concludes: “While the pressure to innovate continues unabated, IT leaders must find safe and streamlined ways to overcome risk challenges. This includes integrating all disparate network technologies and An integrated SASE (SSE + SD-WAN) approach is required to truly deliver a network that can support secure innovation. Given the prevalence of hybrid working, a strong network security foundation, including the use of Zero Trust principles, is essential. It is a good starting point to guide your investments in SASE, SSE and NAC.”