Report cover image

The Enterprise Reality Check for AI Adoption: Moving Beyond Experimentation to Sustainable Scale

Publisher IDC
Published May 06, 2026
Length 11 Pages
SKU # IDC21175380

Description

This IDC Perspective draws on insights from in-depth conversations with CIOs, CTOs, and senior technology and business leaders across Europe. These discussions took place during IDC executive dinners and industry events in 2Q26, spanning a diverse range of sectors from financial services, manufacturing, and utilities to automotive, retail, and technology services. These conversations uncovered what is genuinely holding organizations back: data readiness, legacy systems, governance friction, and the human dimension of change. It also offers a practical framework for evaluating professional services partners as organizations look to move from pilot to production.“Technology is no longer the barrier. Enterprise leaders across Europe highlight that AI ambition is high, but data foundations, governance structures, and organizational alignment have not kept pace. That gap is holding most organizations back, and closing it requires a very different kind of focus than most AI programs currently have,” said Jennifer Thomson, AVP, IDC Global Services Insights

Table of Contents

11 Pages

Executive snapshot

Key takeaways

Recommended actions

Situation overview

Where organizations actually are

The pilot proliferation challenge

A European dimension: Sovereignty and regulation are now design inputs

The barriers: What is really getting in the way

Data: The foundation that is not there yet

Legacy systems: The modernization gap

People and governance: The human dimension

Budget inertia: The run-versus-change trap

The opportunities: What good looks like

Start with the business problem, not the technology

Platform thinking as a force multiplier

Augmented intelligence: Keeping humans in the loop

Protected space for exploration

Strategic and industry depth

Technical and platform capability

Operating model and agentic maturity

Responsible AI, security, and governance

A note on commercial models

Advice for the technology buyer

Learn more

Related research

Synopsis

Search Inside Report

Pricing

Currency Rates
How Do Licenses Work?

How Do Licenses Work?

The primary function of a report license is to define how many people within a company are authorized to use the purchased report. This is separate to how a report might be delivered. Unless specifically identified otherwise, the purchase option is Single User. Below is a helpful description of that license, along with a sampling of others most commonly offered.

  • This license allows only one user to have access to and to use/read the report. It is not one user at a time or one user group; it is an individual who will be reading and utilizing the report.

  • This license allows for the entire purchasing company to read and use the report. This is the license level that would allow for a report to be placed on an internal company shared drive for access by all employees of that direct company. This license does not extend to parent or sister company use.

  • This license is designed to allow an entire department within a company full access to a report. The departmental license is a great option for companies that have more than one location and the department is spread out all over the country/world

  • This license is for companies that have one location where they want the report to be accessible by all employees within that physical location.

  • This is the most flexible of the licensing options. Some publishers will allow you to get a license for a preset number of people (typically 5). These licenses are ideal for small work groups.

License options are at the discretion of each publisher. As such, not all licenses indicated above are available for every product. If you are uncertain of the best license for your needs or would like a license that is not proactively available, please contact us and we will be happy to assist.

Request A Sample
Head shot

Questions or Comments?

Our team has the ability to search within reports to verify it suits your needs. We can also help maximize your budget by finding sections of reports you can purchase.
Chat Now
Contact Us