Written by: Reid Paquin, Research Director, IDC Manufacturing Insights, and Kevin Prouty, Group Vice President, IDC Energy and Manufacturing Insights

The digital mission of the high-tech industry is to accelerate its delivery of innovative technology and to enable additional revenue opportunities throughout the product life cycle without negatively impacting the ability to scale to profitable volumes. According to IDC's 2018 Vertical IT and Communications Survey, the top 2 initiatives driving IT and R&D investments within the high-tech industry are focused on growth and innovation: expand into new markets (37% of respondents) and create new products and services (33% of respondents).