Process digitization is now well underway in European businesses. From document digitization and task automation to digital transaction management and data flow, many processes that were once manual now rely on digital environments.
But as this transformation progresses, the challenges are changing. Digitizing a new process is no longer necessarily enough to improve its efficiency in the long term. Its security, integration with existing systems, data governance, and scalability are becoming just as important.
The responses from the 700 decision-makers surveyed in France, Germany, Italy, and Spain as part of the 2026 European Digital Trust Barometer illustrate this shift. While digitization is advancing, its level of adoption and the accompanying priorities vary across markets.
The question, therefore, is no longer simply how many processes a company has digitized, but what this digitization actually enables it to build. How can we move from a proliferation of digital processes to a more integrated, secure, and controlled transformation?
A Digital Europe, but Different Paths to Maturity
Process transformation is well underway in Europe, but it is not progressing at the same pace everywhere. The disparities observed between countries show that companies are still at different stages of their digitalization journey.
More specifically, when looking at the average number of digitized processes per surveyed company, Italy averages 4.1 digitized processes, followed by Spain with 4 and France with 3.9. Germany lags behind, with an average of 3.1 digitized processes.
These differences may reflect varying paces of transformation, technological environments, or specific priorities depending on the market. Above all, however, they call for a more nuanced approach to measuring a company’s digital transformation.
The number of digitized processes is indeed an initial indicator, but it does not reveal how these processes interact with one another, how data is managed, or whether digital transactions are secure.
As digital transformation progresses, the focus of maturity therefore gradually shifts: it is no longer just a matter of digitizing more, but of ensuring that processes that have already been digitized are sufficiently integrated, secure, and well-managed.
Greater Digitization Does Not Necessarily Mean Greater Maturity
As mentioned earlier, the level of digitization provides an initial indication of the progress of digital transformation, but it is not sufficient on its own to measure a company’s maturity. Two organizations that have digitized a similar number of processes may, in practice, have very different levels of control.
A digital process does not operate in isolation. It relies on data, tools, and systems that must be able to interact reliably. Its maturity therefore also depends on how well it integrates into the existing environment, the quality of the data it uses, and the mechanisms put in place to secure it.
This evolution is gradually shifting companies from a focus on digitization to a more comprehensive approach to transformation. The goal is no longer simply to replace manual operations with digital processes, but to build an environment in which these processes can work together seamlessly and in a controlled manner.
Digital maturity thus depends less on the number of digitized processes than on the ability to make them truly effective, interconnected, reliable, and compliant with regulations. At this stage, the issue is therefore no longer just one of deployment, but also one of the quality of the digital processes put in place.
Securing Transactions Is Becoming a Priority in Digital Transformation
The more central these processes are to digital customer journeys, the more critical their security becomes. A digital transaction must guarantee the integrity of exchanges, protect the data collected and/or processed, and verify the identities of the parties involved.
This requirement takes on particular importance when digitization involves sensitive processes: contract formation, document validation, data exchanges, or transactions that directly involve the company and its customers. In these situations, a seamless customer journey cannot be achieved at the expense of security.
The challenge, therefore, lies in integrating trust mechanisms directly into the processes, rather than treating them as an additional layer added after digitization is complete. Identification, authentication, traceability, and data protection thus play a full role in ensuring the quality of the digital experience.
Process transformation is thus entering a new phase: after seeking to gain speed and efficiency through digitalization, companies must now balance these benefits with a level of security tailored to their specific use cases and European regulations. This evolution also depends on their ability to better organize data and ensure interoperability among their various systems.
Data Governance and Interoperability: The New Challenges
The proliferation of digital processes also raises another challenge: it is imperative for companies to ensure that these processes do not operate in silos. Digitizing different stages of a customer journey adds little value—and may even pose risks—if the tools have difficulty communicating with one another or if data remains scattered across multiple systems.
Interoperability therefore becomes essential to ensure continuity between processes. It enables different tools and services to communicate, facilitates the flow of information, and minimizes disruptions that could complicate digital customer journeys.
But connecting systems more closely also requires better control over the data flowing through them. The quality, accessibility, and protection of data, as well as the rules governing its use, are becoming integral components of digital transformation.
These challenges are not perceived in the same way across Europe. Data governance is a higher priority in Germany, while Italy places greater emphasis on interoperability and connectivity.
Transformation, therefore, is no longer simply a matter of digitizing processes one after another. It requires building a coherent environment in which systems, data, and services can work together. This ambition, however, continues to face several obstacles.
Budget, Legacy Systems, European Regulations: Why Does Transformation Remain Complex?
Digitizing processes does not depend solely on available technologies or on companies’ willingness to accelerate their transformation. Between ambitions and their implementation, several obstacles can slow down projects.
Budget constraints are a common challenge across all four countries, but they are not the only obstacle. Companies must also contend with legacy systems that can be difficult to upgrade, as well as regulatory complexity and proliferation, which can hinder certain transformation projects. However, these constraints vary in significance from one country to another.
The challenge stems in particular from the fact that digitization or transformation does not always involve deploying a new solution in a blank slate environment. It often requires adapting existing infrastructure, connecting new services to tools already in place, and ensuring process continuity during this transition.
Digital transformation therefore also hinges on the ability to gradually evolve an existing environment without multiplying tools or further complicating processes.
This approach, therefore, encourages us to view digitalization beyond its purely technological dimension.
From Process Digitization to Digital Trust
The more digital processes take on a strategic role in business operations, the more central the issue of trust becomes. Employees, customers, and partners must be able to rely on interactions that are seamless, secure, and reliable.
Trust is built on several levels: in the protection of exchanged data, in the identity of the individuals or organizations involved, in the security of transactions, and in the ability of different systems to work together seamlessly.
Trust thus becomes a prerequisite for transformation: it enables companies to expand their use of digital technologies without compromising security, control, or reliability.
What’s the Next Step for Businesses?
The digitization of processes remains a key driver of transformation, but digital maturity today extends beyond the number of digitized processes. Security, data governance, interoperability, and integration are becoming critical to the sustainable evolution of digital environments. For companies, the question may therefore shift from “How many processes have we digitized?” to “Are our digital processes secure, connected, and well-managed enough to sustainably support our transformation?”
This shift marks the transition from a focus on digitization to a focus on digital maturity, in which efficiency and trust must be central components.
To learn about the levels of digitization, the main barriers, and the transformation priorities of businesses in France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, consult our 2026 Digital Trust Barometer.
