This week in process excellence

Another busy week draws to a close in the world of process excellence and, unsurprisingly, artificial intelligence (AI) featured heavily in many of the big headlines.

On Monday, our Research and Reports roundup examined predictions of significant growth in the intelligent process automation market. SkyQuest Technology Consulting Pvt. Ltd. assessed pricing strategies, profit margins, production dynamics and value chains to forecast the market’s future trajectory. It estimated a market value of $45 billion by 2032, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 0.146 over the next seven years. “The intelligent process automation market has demonstrated strong growth, driven by increased demand across industries like renewable energy, telecommunications and automotive,” SkyQuest wrote.

Elsewhere, the Camunda 2025 State of Process Orchestration and Automation Report cited process orchestration – the tying together of automated and manual tasks and different business processes to help achieve end-to-end automation – is a key success factor for automation. The research found that, while 79 percent of organizations have implemented significant automation, many lack effective ways to control, manage and sustain it. What’s more, 82 percent recognize the need for better tools to manage how their processes intersect. For organizations that are delivering or unlocking additional value through automation, a key success factor is process orchestration.

Meanwhile, the 2025 State of Digital Transformation report by TEKsystems found that most organizations lack the necessary talent to drive successful digital transformation projects, with 56 percent of companies needing at least some new talent in multiple areas of their digital transformation efforts. The research found that the biggest skills gaps are AI/machine learning, cyber security, data analytics/data science automation and big data.

Finally, Gartner published data suggesting that worldwide IT spending will total $5.61 trillion in 2025, an increase of 9.8 percent from 2024. Segments including data center systems, devices and software will see double-digit growth in 2025, largely due to generative AI hardware upgrades, Gartner stated.

On Wednesday, our Vendor news bulletin covered the latest announcements and updates from a raft of industry technology and service providers. Top of the bill was the stunning release of a new, open-source AL model by Chinese startup DeepSeek AI. The news sent shockwaves across the technology landscape. DeepSeek presented a ChatGPT-like AI model called R1, which has all the familiar abilities but operates at a fraction of the cost of OpenAI’s, Google’s or Meta’s popular AI models. The company claimed to have spent just US$5.6 million on computing power for its base model, compared with the hundreds of millions or billions of dollars US companies spend on their AI technologies. US stocks took a major hit as a result. For example, NVIDIA, the leading supplier of AI chips, fell nearly 17 percent and lost $588.8 billion in market value, while Meta and Alphabet (GOOGL), Google’s parent company, were also down sharply. The news also sparked a huge change in investments in non-technology companies on Wall Street, with President Trump calling the DeepSeek release a “wake-up call” for US firms.

In other news, technology giant Microsoft launched the AI for Good Open Call, a program that will award US$5 million in grants and the opportunity to collaborate with its leading AI scientists. Organizations are invited to leverage the power of AI to address pressing social and scientific challenges in Washington state in celebration of Microsoft’s 50th anniversary and to mark its ongoing dedication to building and deploying responsible AI innovations.

Process mining vendor Celonis launched Trust the Process, a new podcast series aimed at educating and inspiring the process intelligence workforce of the future, as well as a new job platform for process mining and process intelligence. Meanwhile, dozens of vendors gathered in Miami, Florida to showcase their offerings at OPEX Week: Business Transformation World Summit 2025. Attending vendors included McKinsey Transformation, ABBYY, GBTEC Group, Chazey Partners - A QX Global Group Company, PRIME BPM, SS&C Blue Prism, mindzie, inc. - AI-Driven Process Mining and Intelligence and Skan AI.

Elsewhere, industrial automation and digital transformation vendor Rockwell Automation expanded its Advanced Technology team with the opening of a new research lab in Prague, Czech Republic, SAP announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 3, 2024 and Pegasystems appointed Rohit Ghai to its board of directors.

Lastly, business and technology transformation company Capgemini is looking to hire a new process mining consultant to join its intelligent process and performance team. Also, enterprise AI software application company C3 AI announced a strategic alliance with global consulting firm McKinsey & Company to help organizations accelerate AI transformations at scale.

To end the week, our Community news featured more updates from OPEX Week 2025 as hundreds of operational excellence (OPEX), AI, transformation and automation convened at the event. This included the winners of the 2025 OPEX and Business Transformation Awards. These included Siemens Gamesa (Best Process Improvement Project Under 90 Days), Vueling Airlines (Best Digital Transformation Initiative), Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (Best Continuous Improvement System) and Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) (Business Transformation Leader/Team of the Year).

Amelia Brand, SEO editor of PEX Network, said: “I’ve had a fantastic time at OPEX Week 2025, attending insightful sessions and speaking with industry leaders about the future of OPEX. The event has been a great opportunity to hear how organizations are tackling challenges with AI-driven automation, change management and process optimization.”

Meanwhile, budget airline Ryanair - Europe's Favourite Airline cut its forecast for passenger numbers for a second time as delivery delays from Boeing continue to impact its growth ambitions. Europe’s largest low-cost airline said it expected to carry 206 million passengers in its next fiscal year (beginning in April), down from a previous estimate of 210 million.

Elsewhere, San José State University formed a new academic partnership with Celonis that will introduce cutting-edge process mining technology to the classroom. It is designed to equip students with tools to analyze, optimize and enhance manufacturing and supply chain processes.

BCC Iccrea Group, Italy’s largest cooperative banking group, accelerated its IT transformation including the improvement and modernization of banking applications, expansion of products/services available through digital channels and development of its AI strategy program, while Miraka Limited, the world’s first dairy processor to get its power from renewable geothermal energy, announced plans to streamline its operations to enhance efficiency and sustainability.

Finally, leading global aerospace and defense company Northrop Grumman unveiled plans to drive innovation and OPEX across the organization and commercial and municipal truck hire firm PTR Premier Truck Rental announced three new operations leadership changes to support its OPEX strategy.

Wishing you all a great end to the week and we’ll be back with more of the latest headlines in process excellence next week!