Whereas just a few years ago the cost management function in the enterprise was primarily operating under a mindset to pursue cost savings to fund growth strategies, that has shifted. Experts with Deloitte report that today the prevailing mentality is to use cost savings to fund digital transformation. This save-to-transform focus bubbled up out of the 2019 Global Cost Survey released by Deloitte this week. Interestingly, Deloitte reports that digital initiatives provide the cause of and solution to many cost management conundrums today:
Automation and other digital technologies take a lead role in cost reduction. RPA and cognitive technologies such as AI and ML have emerged over the past 24 months as the most common digital capabilities developed to reduce costs.