The majority of IT executives believe investment in IT Service Management (ITSM) is important to gain the agility needed to compete in an era of global, cross-industry disruption and digital transformation, according to Delivering Value to Today’s Digital Enterprise: The State of IT Service Management 2017, a report by BMC, conducted in association with Forbes Insights, the strategic research and thought leadership practice of Forbes Media.

The results also reveal that while 86 percent surveyed understand that the pace of IT change and transformation is increasing, over half (55 percent) state that the share of IT budget spend on ongoing management and maintenance is growing.

To meet the demand for increased efficiency and productivity, IT executives indicated they are increasingly turning to cloud-based services and implementing greater automation, creating a clear case for digital transformation to make their organizations and workforces more agile, mobile and responsive to customer demands.

Specifically, 88 percent of respondents stated that ITSM is important to their digital transformation efforts. Likewise, the majority of IT executives also see ITSM as important to related initiatives around cloud computing (86 percent), mobility (83 percent) and big data (83 percent).

Despite the clear call to invest more in innovation and new digital solutions, more money and effort is being put towards “keeping the lights on.” As a result, 75 percent believe the time, money, and resources spent on ongoing maintenance and management is affecting the overall competitiveness of their organization.

“Businesses of all sizes are scrambling to keep pace with the fierce rate of change, transformation and risk of extinction in the wake of more agile newcomers and incumbents,” said Nayaki Nayyar, President, Digital Service Management at BMC. “These survey results shine a clear spotlight on the need to invest in multi-cloud service management solutions that accelerate digital transformation. The key to success is balancing agility with cost, control, and security.”

Methodology: The survey includes responses from 261 senior-level executives, representing a range of job functions and industries. 61 percent are from North America, 30 percent are from Western Europe, and 5 percent are from Asia-Pacific. Close to one-third are C-level executives, while 61 percent are vice presidents or directors. Primary industries surveyed include: technology, manufacturing and business services. 22 percent are at organizations with annual revenues exceeding $5 billion, and 25 percent represent companies with between $1 billion and $5 billion in revenues. Another 28 percent report revenues between $500 million and $1 billion.