“A major tech push for businesses remains central to the UK’s priorities. Just this month, the UK government launched its AI Adoption Summit, committing over £200 million to accelerate AI adoption across British organisations. Yet despite this significant investment, UK businesses face a productivity crisis, which shows that spending on technology alone is not delivering the performance gains organisations expect.
“UK workers still spend 31% of their working week on non-core administrative tasks – the highest rate across Europe. Only over half spend most of their time on work that genuinely moves the needle. It’s no surprise, as fewer than 46% of organisations provide good digital communication for remote employees, while half still rely on partially manual or paper-based processes. Many of these same organisations have invested heavily in advanced digital infrastructure yet remain grappling with fragmented systems and disconnected workflows. This is the digital maturity paradox: investment without operational capability creates complexity rather than value.
“To unlock greater productivity, organisations must audit digital infrastructure through a workforce lens – understanding how systems are actually experienced, not just measuring deployment. They need to consolidate communication tools around integrated, device-agnostic platforms rather than layer new systems onto existing ones. But technology is only part of the answer. Closing the gap requires better orchestration across critical junctures – and just as importantly, investing in the people and skills needed to make that technology work.
“Business leaders need to shift their focus from digital adoption to digital maturity – from asking what has been deployed to understanding how it is actually working and what value it delivers. It is a question more organisations should be asking – and one that World Productivity Day offers a timely opportunity to reflect on.”
