New, disruptive technological innovations are emerging at a rapid pace and the 2017 KPMG and Harvey Nash global survey of chief information officers has revealed that 65% of IT leaders found the political, business and economic environment is becoming more unpredictable.
This is of particular significance for the UK oil and gas sector, which continues to experience change and uncertainty.
Lawrence Hunt, KPMG director and oil and gas consultancy lead in Aberdeen, explained: “The UK oil and gas industry has had an incredibly tough few years resetting how it does business.
“This year has seen a real shift, as operators and supply chain alike focus on digital technologies to drive the next level of efficiency and productivity. This is aligned with other sectors, with the CIO survey showing that nearly 80% of technology budgets have been upheld or even increased this year.
“Investing in new technologies is essential for the North Sea to compete on the global stage, for both investment into new capital developments as well as our supply chain exports.
“We are seeing a greater investment in digital labour across many sectors, with over 60% of larger organisations in the survey showing a commitment in this area, and the upstream sector is no exception with automation being applied across both the back office and operations.
“In addition, Blockchain, cloud, AI and Internet of Things are all underpinning fundamental shifts in business performance as these technologies become accessible across the sector, rather than just those with the deepest pockets.
“Businesses will need to consider how the shift towards digitisation will impact their culture, and will need to be highly considerate about engaging people from across the demographics as they immerse their employees into digital. Whilst the oil and gas sector has always been technology driven, the exponential growth in new technology options also brings challenges in navigating the best solutions – digital is becoming increasingly central to boardroom discussions.”
14 Aug 2017
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