Cisco recently unveiled its inaugural State of Industrial Networking report to spotlight the priorities of an evolving industrial networking landscape. The report offers a look at the challenges and opportunities facing organizations as they look to improve their industrial networking foundation.
“Operational technology, and specifically the network supporting industrial operations, has become a key differentiator for organizations globally,” said Vikas Butaney, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Cisco Networking – SD-WAN, Multicloud and Industrial IoT. “This research spotlights how IT and OT leaders recognize that strengthening their OT security posture is critical to drive business resiliency, improve efficiencies and prepare for the next wave of innovation with AI.”
Industrial networks are increasingly connected and OT networks are converging with their enterprise IT counterparts, creating a complex environment vulnerable to cyberattacks. Some notable stats from the report include:
- 89 percent of respondents cited cybersecurity compliance as very or extremely important.
- 92 percent of executive leaders see value in a unified cybersecurity solution.
- 41 percent of firms report OT and IT teams work independently, emphasizing the need for improved collaboration.
- 48 percent of respondents view AI as the most significant technological advancement that will impact industrial networking in the next five years.
- 49 percent of respondents expect AI to improve network management across IT and OT.
- 63 percent of respondents have increased spending on industrial infrastructure in the past year.
Cisco offered the following as the most significant takeaways from the report:
- Prioritize cybersecurity in OT plans. Organizations that fail to prioritize cybersecurity considerations in their industrial networking strategy will find energy, time and money absorbed in mitigating against attacks—resources which could be otherwise invested in designing OT as a platform for innovation and growth.
- Introduce measures to encourage IT/OT collaboration. OT and IT can no longer work in isolation as their skills and domains increasingly overlap. A combination of human and organizational factors, alongside unified technological solutions, will be required to optimize and protect data and assets.
- Harness AI for competitive advantage. Innovative OT leaders are using AI to differentiate their firms and deliver higher quality products faster. Organizations that don’t update their industrial networking infrastructure for AI to optimize efficiency, harness data, support employees and defend against cyberattacks will struggle to compete.