Continuing improvements, smaller projects with shorter deadlines for delivering value, and technology being a key element in executing and delivering your business strategy. That is the reality facing manufacturers in competitive and uncertain times.
Faced with challenges such as ongoing economic uncertainty, supply chain risks, labour shortages, and the growing pressure to innovate while meeting net-zero emission goals, manufacturers are in a constant state of transformation. As soon as manufacturers reach their target state, changing trends and customer demands push them to adapt once again.
To keep up, businesses need to redefine their approach to business transformations and focus on agile, incremental projects that deliver quick wins. By prioritizing small, measurable improvements, companies can build momentum while staying aligned with their broader strategic vision. This approach not only helps deliver value faster but also keeps businesses flexible and ready to respond to ongoing market changes.
In this blog, we look into how manufacturers should rethink their approach to IT to meet their evolving needs.
The current state of manufacturing
To stay competitive, manufacturers must consider several key market shifts and learn from their previous projects. Anne Grønsund, Vice President of Global Services, and Frederik Jørgensen, Service Area Director at Columbus, share their experiences.
Technology-led business transformation
Whether it's generating new revenue streams, improving equipment efficiency, or optimizing inventory, transformation almost always requires new technology. Manufacturers need to move away from legacy systems and embrace cloud solutions, automation, and AI.
However, according to Anne, adopting new technologies is only part of the challenge – the real difficulty lies in creating value from the investments. Many organizations lack the necessary expertise to execute and integrate these advancements effectively. A BCG study of 1,000 companies worldwide found that only 4% have developed cutting-edge capabilities across functions, highlighting a major gap in digital transformation readiness.
Adapting faster to stay competitive
Anne add that with this shift in mindset to digital transformation, IT departments are expected to deliver results faster, within existing budgets, and with more flexibility from management. Technologies like AI and automation are advancing constantly, putting pressure on organizations to adapt just as quickly. Companies can no longer afford to focus on one major project at a time, such as implementing an ERP system, before moving on to the next initiative. Instead, they need an agile approach that allows for frequent changes, continuous improvements, and a quicker return on investment.
Aligning technology with business value
When it comes to strategy and technology implementation, businesses often approach technological partners with ready solutions and requrements. Anne Grønsund, Vice President of Global Services, explains that while these plans may seem comprehensive, they can overlook better solutions simply because they don’t fully account for the technical landscape. This gap can slow down the realization of business value and prevent companies from maximizing their technology investments. That’s why, according to Anne, finding the right partner who can challenge and refine these requirements is so important.
“It’s a two way street and partnership - we see the best results when there is an ongoing dialog and open conversation because that’s when we can provide the best advice,” explains Anne. “A good partner will help you make informed decisions, offering clarity on costs, identifying where real value lies, and ensuring that your choices align with business goals.”
Another common pitfall Anne highlights is the assumption that implementing new technology will automatically achieve business goals. “The reality is you can always find a piece of technology to support your business processes,” she explains. “The real question is whether that technology is actually helping you move the business forward.”
Frederik Jørgensen, Service Area Director at Columbus, agrees and adds: “You need to consistently revisit your business goals and soft KPIs. Ask yourself: What did we want to achieve? How has the business changed? Are we still delivering value? This could mean optimizing resources, improving workflows, or adjusting priorities. The key is to focus on the business value – not just the application itself.”
Cloud reality: Keep the lights on and constantly evolve
Many organizations have moved their business applications to the cloud and adopted software-as-a-service-models, helping improve processes and enable new business strategies. This is a great prerequisite to stay adaptive and implement changes quickly. However, Frederik Jørgensen points out that many still treat their cloud applications as if they need updating only every five or six years. This mindset prevents them from taking advantage of the continuous benefits that cloud technology offers, such as new features, best practices, and more efficient ways of continuous development and innovation.
“This approach essentially makes the cloud no different from on-premise,” says Frederik. “Cloud updates aren’t just about saving money; they’re an opportunity to find new possibilities. It’s like buying a smartphone and only using it for calls while ignoring all the other features that could improve your experience and productivity.
“When we work with customers, our aim is to help them create an evolutionary mindset to cloud applications, so they can reap the continuous benefits of new features, best practices, and innovations we see across the industry. Moving to the cloud is just the beginning. The real challenge is staying in change mode – continuously managing updates, adopting improvements, and evolving.”
Fredrik also highlights the challenge of change fatigue, a common issue he sees after businesses complete a large transformation project. “We find that many businesses don’t stop these programs because of financial reasons but because they’re exhausted from the constant changes,” he explains.
At the same time, Anne points out the importance of acknowledging complexity. Moving functionality, systems, and processes to the cloud brings several opportunities, but it also comes with challenges and costs. Having transparency and control is essential for navigating these complexities effectively.
“This is where working with a right partner makes a big difference. A partner provides the external push needed to maintain momentum and keep the focus on continuous innovation and updates. Internally, it’s easy to lose that drive. You need someone who understands the business landscape, sees other industries, and knows your specific industry deeply.”
Rethinking service delivery
Many businesses struggle with managing service delivery and addressing operational gaps, making it difficult to get the highest possible value of their technology investments. “Historically, service providers have presented customers with a broad portfolio of services, almost like an à la carte menu, expecting them to pick and choose what fits,” says Frederik Jørgensen, Service Area Director at Columbus.
“But that approach often leads to inefficiencies. When working with customers, the team and I focus on service architecture. We take a step back to assess the entire delivery process, identify gaps, and determine the best way to bridge them. Should the company work with multiple partners, or would relying on a single partner be more effective? How should operations be structured to deliver the most value? The goal is always to define the best way for them to run their business applications efficiently.”
By working with a partner who understands the nuances of the business, Frederik says that companies can build a service architecture that aligns with their goals, keeps operations agile, and delivers ongoing value.
“We’ve developed best practices and have a strong understanding of how processes should work, but we also respect that some businesses may want to keep certain functions in-house. What matters most is ensuring quality and alignment with business goals. Too often, we’ve seen companies compromise on quality, only to face major setbacks later. That’s why maintaining high standards is non-negotiable – it’s essential for long-term success.
At Columbus, we help organizations stay focused on business value and embrace a continuous change mindset, enabling them to keep pace with evolving needs and new opportunities."
Run your cloud operations the right way
With constant market changes and increasing demands, manufacturers need more than just conventional support and managed services. It’s critical to have a stable and secure technology platform that not only keeps operations running but also evolves with your business needs. It’s also why it includes focus on structured innovation that helps drive value faster and remain flexible to react to market changes.
Our approach to managing business-critical applications, called Evolve, is designed to keep your technology aligned with your goals. It focuses on three key areas:
- Run and support: laying the foundation for strategic innovation – proactive support and maintenance keep operations running smoothly, freeing up time and resources to focus on growth. A stable platform allows you to invest in innovation confidently, knowing your systems are reliable.
- Grow and adapt: staying current and compliant – by managing updates and guiding you through the change process, we help you navigate the complexities of evolving technology. With tailored recommendations and proactive testing, we make sure you’re not just adding new features but truly optimizing their value for your business.
- Innovate: unlocking hyper productivity with the cloud – innovation doesn’t always need disruptive changes. Sometimes, it’s about finding smarter, more efficient ways to work. By adopting scalable cloud strategies and integrating advanced tools like AI and automation, you can enhance productivity and also use the technology in strategic development.
Even small improvements can have a big impact, as highlighted by two of our manufacturing customers.
A global leader in pumping systems faced challenges managing complex RFPs for customized products. The process was slowed by vendor quotes arriving in unstructured formats like PDFs and emails, making it difficult to extract and compare data efficiently. To solve this, we helped implement an AI-driven solution that automates document processing. This reduced manual workload by thousands of hours each year and led to cost savings of approximately $150,000 in one branch alone, contributing to a 70% overall efficiency improvement.
Similarly, a rapidly growing pioneer in sustainable food production needed a better way to handle diverse, unstructured order formats, which their compact sales team had been processing manually. We introduced an automated order intake system with drag-and-drop functionality and trained AI models to interpret both documents and conversational text. This resulted in an 80% reduction in manual effort, saving $95,000 annually in one region and significantly improving operational efficiency and profitability.
These are just a few examples of how we’ve helped manufacturers with their business operations. You can read more about our approach by downloading our infographic below.
