IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Services 2025 Predictions

This IDC study provides IDC's top 10 predictions for services for 2025 and beyond."AI and GenAI feature prominently across many of our services predictions, but buyers and strategic planners will also find it useful to review our predictions on corporate sustainability, Global Capability Centers, experience-level agreements, and outcome-based pricing," says Gard Little, research VP, Global Services Markets and Trends at IDC.

IDC FutureScape Figure

Executive Summary

IDC FutureScape Predictions

• Summary of External Drivers
• Predictions: Impact on Technology Buyers
  • Prediction 1: By 2027, Without Strategic and Organizational Pivots, Frustration with Low ROI Due to Poor Planning and Misallocated Spending Will Cause 30% of Organizations to Reduce GenAI Investments
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance
  • Prediction 2: With an Increase in Regulation Worldwide, by 2028, More than 70% of Organizations with Carbon Neutrality Goals Will Seek Help of Professional Services to Meet Them Due to a Lack of Internal Capabilities
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance
  • Prediction 3: Amid Widening Global IT Skills Gaps, by 2028, More than 60% of G2K Enterprises Will Rely on GenAI-Enabled Training Platforms to Automate, Accelerate, and Optimize IT Training and Skilling Outcomes
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance
  • Prediction 4: By 2026, More than 75% of Organizations Will Require Professional Services Assistance in Implementing Data Literacy and Maturity Programs to Facilitate Scaling Their GenAI-Driven Workplace Transformations
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance
  • Prediction 5: By 2028, 40% of G2K Enterprises Will Outsource up to 30% of Their Engineering, AI, Cloud, and Other Complex Technology Functions to Global Capability Centers as They Deliver an Improved CX
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance
  • Prediction 6: By 2026, to Move Beyond Proof of Concept for AI-Driven Business Models, 80% of Enterprises Will Require Professional Services for Readiness and Health Checks on Applications and Infrastructure
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance
  • Prediction 7: By 2028, Organizations' Drive to Automate Will Push 23% of Application SPs to Evolve Their Application Modernization Services to Embed GenAI and Conversational AI as Part of Services Delivery
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance
  • Prediction 8: By 2027, 75% of All Digital Workplace Services Engagements Will Involve XLA-Based Commitments (e.g., NPS, User Sentiment, Log-On Speed) to Measure and Improve End-User Experience
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance
  • Prediction 9: By 2027, AI-Driven Workforce Transformation Will Push 25% of Enterprises to Use AI/GenAI Business Benchmarking Methods That Match and Track AI Business Initiatives to Specific Needs, KPIs, and Contexts
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance
  • Prediction 10: By 2027, AI-Driven Business Models Will Motivate 30% of Buyers of Digital Engineering and OT Services to Adopt Outcome-Based Pricing for About 30% of Their Contracts
    • Associated Drivers
    • IT Impact
    • Guidance

Advice for Technology Buyers

External Drivers: Detail

• AI-Driven Business Models - Moving from AI Experimentation to Monetization
• The Drive to Automate - Toward a Data-Driven Future
• Future Proofing Against Environmental Risks - ESG Operationalization and Risk Management
• AI-Driven Workplace Transformation - Building Tomorrow's Workforce Today
• Regulatory Flux - Navigating Compliance Challenges in a Shifting Policy Landscape
• Geoeconomic Reordering - Rethinking Globalization, Supply Chains, and Macroeconomic Challenges
• Customer Experience Squared - Consumer and Citizen Expectations for Digital Services

Learn More

• Related Research