Technology innovation moves rapidly and does not adhere to the annual review and funding schedule that most orgaizations follow. This makes it difficult for companies to decide which transformational technologies to adopt, when to adopt them, and how to integrate them with, or even replace, existing systems. It makes sense, then, that for the second year in a row, the Chief Information Officer (CIO), who see their role becoming more strategic, was named the top driver of innovation in KPMG’s Technology Industry Innovation Survey.

Direct financial results were again prominent in this year’s findings as the top metrics to measure the success of innovation. Technology industry leaders ranked market value as the top metric, followed by return on investment (ROI) and revenue growth.

We also asked our survey respondents to select the one approach they felt is most effective for an organization to motivate its employees to be innovative. Millennials rated financial incentives as the most effective motivational method by a two-to-one margin, reflecting the evolving maturation of this generation. More experienced leaders (Generation X and Baby Boomers), who are further along in their career path and life phase than Millennials, rated financial incentives and career progression almost equally.

In terms of what is preventing tech companies from monetizing their innovations, either in the form of new revenue or cost savings, the top barriers named by survey respondents were:

• Measuring ROI
• Cybersecurity
• Privacy governance
• Legact IT infrastructure
• Regulatory compliance

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