When a leading telecommunications company set out to become a global leader in AI-driven value creation by 2030, Everest Group delivered an independent assessment and an actionable roadmap to prioritize investment, close critical capability gaps, and scale adoption. 

Client challenge

Translating AI aspirations into execution priorities

A leading telecommunications company had set a strategic goal to be in the top 25% of global organizations for AI maturity by 2030. The organization had a clear AI vision but struggled to translate it into executable priorities. 

Three main barriers stood in the way: 

  • No objective baseline of current AI maturity, limiting the ability to quantify gaps and prioritize initiatives 
  • No structured framework to evaluate maturity consistently across business units, leading to fragmented progress tracking 
  • No external benchmark against global peers to validate direction and identify leading best practices 

Everest Group solution

An independent benchmark and a practical path forward

Everest Group deployed a comprehensive AI maturity assessment framework across seven dimensions: vision and strategy, culture and organizational structure, cost and investment, governance and ethics, data and AI technology, innovation, and talent. 

The customer was benchmarked against 150-200 large global organizations. This enabled direct comparison with leading AI adopters across industries. 

The assessment identified priority capability gaps and defined a pragmatic roadmap to achieve top-quartile maturity.  

Results

Strategic clarity and a stronger foundation for AI advancement

As a result of Everest Group’s assessment, leadership gained clear visibility into strengths, gaps, and priorities.

Three critical strategic gaps were identified: 

  • AI strategy and roadmap clarity erodes between the central Data & AI teams and business units, limiting consistent execution 
  • Stakeholder awareness of centralized AI governance model, delivery mechanisms, and roles remains limited beyond executive leadership, leading to inconsistent adoption 
  • Data foundations, data quality, and data observability require significant enhancement to support scaled AI deployment 

The assessment also confirmed strengths in strategic vision, investment commitment, AI literacy programs, and upfront AI risk review processes. This balanced view enabled leadership to align priorities without reactive shifts. 

The baseline now informs annual AI maturity tracking and roadmap planning toward the 2030 goal. It serves as a reference point for long-term investments, governance improvements, and capability building. 

Why Everest Group?

The client selected Everest Group for three specific strengths:  

  • Deep expertise in AI and generative AI maturity frameworks 
  • Proven experience benchmarking global enterprises across industries 
  • Extensive relationships across the technology ecosystem.  

Everest Group’s ability to combine proprietary frameworks with primary research data delivered objective, actionable insights the organization could act on with confidence.  

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