About 87% of manufacturing leaders and technical specialists reported that ROI from their AIOps initiatives met or exceeded expectations. However, only 37% feel fully prepared to operationalize AI at scale, according to The Future of IT Operations in the AI Era survey from software developer Riverbed.
The survey added that, while 57% of manufacturing organizations expressed confidence in their AI projects, persistent data quality challenges remained a central obstacle.
Almost half (47%) lacked confidence in the accuracy and completeness of their organization’s data to deliver the right outcomes. Additionally, only 34% rated their data as excellent for relevance and suitability.
Tool consolidation a top IT priority for manufacturers
Amid changing processes and varying priorities, manufacturers pursued an array of IT tools to support shifting goals. The research found that, on average, organizations in this industry currently use 13 observability tools from nine different vendors.
In response, 95% of manufacturers consolidated tools to cut down on sprawl in an effort to reduce costs, streamline operations and optimize efficiencies across IT operations. Also, 91% of manufacturers considered new tools as they sought consolidation.
The top capabilities and drivers manufacturing leaders considered when consolidating tools included enhancing tool integration and interoperability (48%), reducing vendor management overhead (47%) and improving IT productivity (46%).
Unified communication in need of reform
The survey found enthusiasm for unified communication tools and their integration into operations.
- 42% of employees used UC tools throughout their work week and 66% of manufacturing respondents said these tools are essential to operating effectively on a weekly basis
- Less than half (45%) are satisfied with UC tools’ performance, and 42% of manufacturers reported experiencing issues with video calls, messaging platforms and more
- The top three challenges organizations face with UC tools included limited visibility (51%), dropped calls (42%) and integration challenges with other enterprise systems (38%)
Adoption of OpenTelemetry across manufacturing
Manufacturing leaders also reported their views on OpenTelemetry (OTel) and its place within their organization. The research found that 44% fully implemented OTel, with a further 42% adopting it. Overall, 97% agreed that cross-domain OpenTelemetry correlation is critical to their observability strategy.
The vast majority (93%) said that OTel is a foundation for future initiatives such as AI-driven automation, and 37% cited that OTel is already a mandate in their organization.
AI data movement and network performance
To further support AI initiatives, 75% of manufacturing respondents plan to establish an AI data repository strategy by 2028. Respondents also confirmed their top three considerations when enabling their organization to move and scale data effectively were:
- Network performance and ability (96%)
- Cost of data movement and storage (94%)
- AI model proximity to data and interoperability between environments (both 93%)
The Riverbed Global Survey on the Future of IT Operations in the AI Era polled 1,200 business decision-makers, IT leaders and technical specialists across seven countries and multiple industries, including the manufacturing sector. Coleman Parkes Research conducted the survey in July 2025.
