Designing for disruption: Manufacturing insights from the 2025 CGI Voice of Our Clients research

In today’s era of persistent uncertainty, manufacturing is entering a new chapter—one where disruption isn’t a one-off event, but the operating norm. Amid global economic shifts, geopolitical realignments, and rapidly advancing technology, manufacturers aren’t just responding—they are transforming.

The 2025 CGI Voice of Our Clients (VOC) research reveals how manufacturers are navigating this new future. The findings are clear: true transformation is no longer about experimentation; it’s about execution at scale. Manufacturers are moving from pilots to platforms and from fragmented initiatives to unified strategies. Those who are achieving expected results from their digital strategies—whom we call digital leaders—are achieving tangible outcomes by rethinking their business models, empowering their people, and integrating data-driven technologies like AI across their value chains.

What manufacturing executives are telling us in 2025

Each year, we engage with hundreds of executives in face-to-face conversations to hear firsthand how they’re navigating today’s macro trends and preparing for what’s next. This year’s VOC insights, based on conversations with 177 manufacturing executives, show a sector in accelerated evolution.

Manufacturing leaders are reporting the highest increase of any industry in the impact of digitization—up 27 percentage points over last year. At the same time, they are more affected than other industries by the shift in the global economic order. This dual pressure is driving a push toward resilience, with manufacturers adapting their operations to become more agile, secure and intelligent.

Executives are focusing on three critical areas: responding to macroeconomic volatility, closing the gap between digital strategy and execution, and addressing pressing talent and culture challenges.

Resilience in the face of global volatility

Multiple headwinds are converging, from inflation and trade restrictions to geopolitical events and regulatory shifts—all of which are reshaping where and how manufacturing happens. Insights from our research reveal that:

• 66% of executives cite global economic shifts as having a high impact—a dramatic 21-percentage point rise year-over-year.
• Manufacturers are restructuring supply chains and accelerating re-shoring/nearshoring to secure supply chains, mitigate tariff risks, and respond faster to regional demand.
• Climate change remains a pressing topic, with 66% citing it as a top macro trend. Electrification, alternative fuels, and ESG compliance are influencing long-term investment decisions.

To navigate this disruption and emerge stronger, manufacturing leaders are embracing digitally orchestrated models. They are connecting systems, processes and partners through unified digital hubs—such as MES platforms and digital twins—to support real-time visibility and coordination across their entire value chain. Their decisions are grounded in high-quality, enterprise-wide data, supported by cloud platforms that enable scale, flexibility and consistent performance across global operations. Crucially, they embed security into every layer, ensuring compliance and business continuity in an increasingly volatile world.

By embedding digital tools at every level, manufacturers can empower their teams to respond faster, operate more efficiently, and continually adapt to evolving customer, regulatory and market demands.

From skills gaps to strategic advantage

As manufacturers modernize their operations, they face a critical parallel challenge: rethinking how they attract, empower and retain talent. The industry is at a crossroads, shaped by an aging workforce, rapidly evolving digital demands, and shifting expectations from a new generation of workers. Our analysis shows that:

• 67% of manufacturing executives report difficulty hiring IT talent
• 40% say talent acquisition has a high impact on their ability to deliver business programs
• Only 39% say there is strong alignment between business and IT teams—one of the lowest levels across industries
• Only 28% report high process convergence between IT and OT

These findings lead to key insights for manufacturing executives to act upon, including:

• Market image. Today, being an attractive employer is essential. Leading manufacturers are reassessing their market image and striving to be perceived as not just technology adopters, but as purpose-driven, people-focused employers. This requires creating career pathways that align with sustainability and innovation, building stronger employer brands, and offering flexible work models. However, flexibility poses hurdles in manufacturing environments, particularly on the shop floor. To bridge the growing divide between operational and corporate teams, manufacturers are deploying connected workforce tools and virtual collaboration platforms to ensure hybrid models don’t unintentionally reinforce silos.
• Upskilling. The need to become data-driven is also driving a renewed focus on upskilling. Manufacturers are investing in digital fluency—from frontline workers learning to use human-machine interfaces to broader programs on data, AI and cybersecurity literacy. At the same time, organizations are preparing for a wave of retirements by capturing institutional knowledge. AI-powered knowledge hubs, mentorship programs, and simulation tools are helping transfer expertise efficiently and safely across teams.
• Organizational alignment. Any successful transformation must be people-driven and will hinge on alignment across the organization. To address this, some manufacturers are developing integrated governance models and unified roadmaps that bring together IT, OT and business stakeholders from the outset. Individuals who bridge technical and operational domains are proving vital in securing buy-in and keeping transformation efforts grounded in measurable outcomes. Without this alignment, even the best technology and talent investments will struggle to take root.

A growing digital divide emerges

Perhaps the most striking 2025 finding is the widening gap between digital leaders—the 42% who are achieving expected results from their digital strategies—and others, those who are either building or launching these strategies.

Digital leaders are not just ahead in ambition; they are executing at scale, with measurable gains in efficiency, resilience and customer impact. Here are some of the areas in which digital leaders excel.

Focus on AI intensifies

Digital leaders are more likely to apply AI across key operational domains—including predictive maintenance, demand forecasting, energy optimization, and sustainability reporting. Some are already reporting millions in cost savings from AI implementations. Accelerating digital is no longer just about technology—it’s about the bottom line. Digital maturity now directly correlates to resilience, agility and margin performance.

Manufacturers must invest in foundational data strategies, unify IT and OT systems, and build cross-functional teams capable of turning AI into ROI. Scaling AI isn’t about deploying more tools—it’s about aligning people, platforms and processes around high-impact use cases. Those who get this right are building resiliency for a successful future.

What comes next?

Manufacturers that move decisively today will lead tomorrow. The tools are here: AI, cloud, automation, and digital twins. This is a moment to reimagine operations, reskill workforces, and redesign business models to thrive in our interconnected, data-driven world.

I invite you to learn more about our 2025 VOC manufacturing insights and to contact me to plan a discussion on how these insights can help with your strategic planning.