Global – October 15, 2026 -- Sixty-eight percent of manufacturing executives say shifts in global trade and economic order are having a high impact on their organizations, according to 2026 Voice of Our Clients research. The finding is driving a move from linear supply chains toward adaptive value networks, where resilience depends on the wider network and not on a single enterprise.
Manufacturers are responding with end-to-end visibility, diversified sourcing and regionalized supply networks. They are also using AI to improve forecasting and speed up decisions. Looking toward 2030, supply networks are likely to become more predictive and increasingly autonomous, using AI, digital twins and real-time collaboration to anticipate disruption.
Data readiness lags behind ecosystem ambitions
Fifty-four percent of manufacturers report a holistic data strategy, but only 48% say they can effectively locate their data assets. Eighty-four percent prioritize cyber risk assessment when selecting IT providers, while only 36% consider their IT/OT data convergence mature.
The research frames two capabilities as decisive. Flow is the ability to move information, materials and decisions across the network with fewer barriers. Modularity is the ability to evolve technologies, capabilities or relationships without redesigning the entire network.
Data spaces are one proposed route. They are governed environments in which organizations exchange agreed data while keeping control over its use. They can support traceability, planning, sustainability reporting and faster responses to disruption.
AI is in core processes at 66% of manufacturers
Seventy-three percent of manufacturers are exploring agentic AI. The next wave of value is expected to come from orchestrated response across the network, connecting planning with procurement and production with logistics, rather than from analysis inside functional silos.
Quantum computing could eventually expand what is possible in optimization, simulation, materials science and supply network design. Its maturity timeline remains unclear. Waiting too long can slow progress, while committing early to a rigid architecture can limit future choices. Modular foundations let manufacturers add capabilities progressively as business cases mature.
Talent gaps push 71% toward provider reliance
Forty-four percent of manufacturers report significant difficulty recruiting IT talent, and 41% say shortages are having a high business impact. Seventy-one percent expect to rely substantially or fully on providers for IT services over the next three years.
That shift raises demand for partners that can modernize foundations, shape AI strategies, strengthen security, support organizational change and scale execution without pushing risk back onto the manufacturer. Governance, architecture, security, adoption and value creation will need reengineering as manufacturers become more interdependent with partners.