Study: German Mid-Sized Firms Struggle to Scale AI Securely
A recent study by CANCOM and ServiceNow indicates that artificial intelligence (AI) has moved beyond the experimentation phase into productive use for many German mid-sized companies. However, only a quarter have fully integrated it into core processes.
A new study by CANCOM and ServiceNow reveals that while most German mid-sized companies have adopted artificial intelligence (AI), they struggle with its broader integration into core processes due to security and governance challenges.
The research, surveying IT and business decision-makers at companies with 500 to fewer than 2,000 employees, found that 76% of firms are already using AI productively. However, only 26% have fully integrated it into their core business processes, indicating a significant portion of organizations remain between isolated use cases and enterprise-wide deployment.
Obstacles to widespread AI integration include fragmented implementation, security concerns, and weak governance. Nearly half of respondents (49%) continue to pursue departmental AI strategies, while 16% report uncontrolled "shadow AI" use, creating potential data, security, and compliance risks.
Security and risk management were cited as the biggest hurdles to wider AI integration (38%), followed by cost and budget limitations (28%) and a lack of relevant expertise (25%). Data sovereignty (23%) and regulatory uncertainty (22%) also impact companies' ability to scale AI.
The study highlights the growing significance of Agentic AI, which many firms view as the next step for process optimization and automation. CANCOM and ServiceNow emphasize that sustainable AI adoption requires a platform-based approach and a centralized governance model to scale AI securely and consistently.