State of Digital Transformation Research

The 2022 State of Digital Transformation

Insights from Global Enterprises on the Evolution of DX

Introduction: The Peak of Digital Transformation

The world has entered the era of accelerated digital transformation (DX). According to IDC, the global DX market is set to surpass $7 trillion by 2023, signaling the widespread shift toward digital-first business models.

Newgen commissioned Eleven Market Research to survey 300 senior IT and business leaders across North America, EMEA, and APAC — from banking, insurance, and other large enterprises — to understand the current state of DX. The findings reveal that 2022 marked the peak of enterprise-wide interest in digital transformation, with 100 percent of respondents engaged in DX initiatives in some capacity.

However, the research also uncovered a critical distinction between enterprises that succeed in transformation and those that struggle — a gap largely defined by strategy, technology adoption, and leadership commitment.

Peak Digital Transformation: Momentum Meets Maturity

While nearly all enterprises are engaged in DX, most (77 percent) have only begun their transformation journey within the last two years. Around half (49 percent) are actively transforming, while only 27 percent report completing their DX efforts.

The research shows that:

• Larger enterprises are 60 percent more likely to have finished DX programs.
• Banking and financial services organizations are 13 percent more likely to move beyond the discussion stage.
• North American enterprises lead globally, being 30 percent more likely to have completed digital transformation initiatives compared to other regions.

This indicates that while adoption is universal, maturity levels vary widely by geography and sector.

What’s Driving Digital Transformation?

Three primary forces are propelling organizations to accelerate their DX initiatives:

1. Heightened Customer Expectations

Customers have grown accustomed to frictionless, Amazon-like digital experiences — personalized, contextual, and available across channels. They now expect similar engagement from every business they interact with, whether opening a bank account or filing an insurance claim.

2. The Accelerated Pace of Business

Manual, paper-heavy processes can no longer sustain the speed modern business demands. Automation and digitization have become essential to stay competitive in a real-time economy.

3. Competitive Pressures

Digital leaders like Amazon, Uber, and Home Depot have set new standards across industries. Organizations that fail to transform risk being left behind.

The Top Goals of Digital Transformation

Enterprises are pursuing DX not only for operational efficiency but also for strategic advantage. The top goals identified in the study include:

• Growth: Achieving scale and market expansion through digital ecosystems.
• Competitive Differentiation: Using digital capabilities to outpace rivals.
• Enhanced Customer Experience: Delivering contextual, proactive, and seamless engagement that builds loyalty.

An example from the research highlights Amazon’s approach — using predictive analytics to detect service interruptions and automatically refund affected users, demonstrating the power of digital empathy and customer-centric automation.

The Barriers to Transformation

Despite enthusiasm and investment, challenges persist. The top three hurdles cited were:

1. Lack of Management Support: DX requires leadership-driven cultural change that spans departments and functions.
2. Cybersecurity Concerns: A fully digital operation expands the threat surface, requiring stronger governance and data protection.
3. Limited In-House Expertise: Few organizations possess deep skills across automation, low code, AI/ML, and omnichannel systems — making vendor partnerships and platform-based approaches critical.

Simple vs. Complex Transformations

The survey uncovered a striking insight: enterprises are prioritizing complex business transformations over simple ones.

• 93 percent rated transforming complex business processes as important, compared to only 50 percent for simple processes.
• 91 percent focused on complex business information.
• 92 percent prioritized complex customer engagement models.

This demonstrates a clear industry shift toward tackling the core, enterprise-grade challenges of transformation — integrating complex data, processes, and engagement channels for end-to-end digital agility.

Separating the Best from the Rest

The study categorized participants into “top-tier” and “bottom-tier” performers based on their DX maturity and outcomes. The differences were profound.

Key Findings:

• Top-tier enterprises were 8 times more likely to have completed DX implementation.
• They were 7 times more likely to focus on end-to-end transformation.
• They started their DX journey two years earlier on average.
• 63 percent of top-tier enterprises adopted low-code platforms, compared to only 13 percent in the bottom tier.
• Top-tier organizations performed nearly twice as well in transforming both simple and complex business processes, customer engagement, and information systems.

In essence, top-tier enterprises are distinguished by their commitment, speed, and technology choices, particularly their use of unified low-code platforms to manage complexity.

The Tools of the Top Tier

Successful organizations use a diverse and integrated toolkit for transformation, tailored to process complexity and customer engagement needs.

Common enablers include:

• Process automation tools (BPM/iBPMS)
• Low-code and no-code development environments
• Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)
• Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS)
• Event-driven and microservices-based architectures

The most effective DX platforms combine these technologies to create agile, composable business ecosystems capable of rapid innovation.

Lessons from the Top Tier

The report distills five essential lessons for organizations seeking to master complex digital transformation:

1. Keep Customer Experience at the Core

True transformation isn’t just operational — it’s experiential. Enterprises must enable omnichannel, contextual, and mobile-first interactions to meet customers where they are.

2. Automate End-to-End

Transforming isolated processes leads to inefficiencies. Automate the entire business application — from front-end engagement to back-end workflows — for unified agility.

3. Integrate with Core Systems

DX must coexist with mission-critical legacy systems. Seamless integration ensures that modernization doesn’t disrupt stability.

4. Choose a Platform Built for Complexity

Select a digital transformation platform that unifies low-code development, AI, automation, and content management. This empowers teams to manage sophisticated enterprise applications with speed and consistency.

5. Leverage Pre-Built Business Applications

Adopt platforms offering modular, configurable solutions that accelerate time-to-value — similar to tailoring a ready-made suit rather than designing one from scratch.

The Newgen Perspective

Newgen’s low-code digital transformation platform, NewgenONE, reflects the exact traits identified among top-tier enterprises: end-to-end automation, intelligence, and composability.

Platform Highlights:

• Unified process automation, content services, and communication management.
• AI/ML-powered decision-making and data extraction.
• Seamless integration with ERP and core systems.
• Cloud-native scalability and hybrid deployment flexibility.

Outcomes for Enterprises:

• Reduced operational latency and risk.
• Enhanced cross-functional collaboration.
• Improved customer experience and compliance visibility.
• Accelerated innovation and time-to-market.

Conclusion: The Future Is Complex, Intelligent, and Connected

Digital transformation has reached an inflection point. Every organization is on the journey — but only those that embrace complexity, adopt low-code intelligence, and transform end-to-end will lead the next wave of innovation.

As the report concludes, the top-tier of enterprises are not just digitizing processes — they are redesigning the way business operates.

With Newgen’s unified platform and strategic expertise, enterprises can simplify complexity and accelerate their journey toward becoming truly intelligent digital organizations