ePlus Study: Companies Now See AI as a Driver of Revenue Growth

The ePlus AI Industry Pulse Survey found that organizations are increasingly viewing AI as a driver of revenue, not just a tool for productivity and cost savings. The study also highlighted other emerging trends, including uneven AI integration, gaps in AI expertise, and uncertainty surrounding agentic AI.

ePlus surveyed 150 IT and industry leaders at the 2025 Fast Company Innovation Festival and CISO NY. In particular, respondents were asked a set of questions on the challenges and opportunities surrounding AI within their organization.

AI as a strategic driver for revenue

According to the survey, nearly three-quarters of organizational leaders now identify revenue growth as the primary objective of their AI initiatives. This surpassed traditional goals, such as customer satisfaction at 55.5 percent and cost reduction at 53.9 percent.

In addition, the ePlus study found that AI adoption remains uneven across many organizations. About 60.6 percent are still in the early to mid stages of integration, while only 8 percent report having fully implemented, mature AI deployments.

There’s also the matter of system readiness, with approximately 80.7 percent of respondents expressing concerns that their current infrastructure may be insufficient to support more advanced AI applications.

Concerns about security and AI sprawl also surfaced in the survey, with 89.9 percent of leaders citing data privacy leakage as a critical issue, and 68 percent identifying regulatory compliance as a major barrier to deployment. 

Following security and infrastructure concerns, respondents also flagged talent shortages as a major challenge. More than half (52.3 percent) of IT leaders identified the lack of skilled talent as a key obstacle to AI adoption.

“This reinforces the growing need for professionals who can bridge technical expertise with strategic business insight, enabling organizations to fully capitalize on AI’s transformative potential,” the ePlus survey said.

IT leaders show mixed sentiments on agentic AI

Finally, the research uncovered notable trends surrounding agentic AI, revealing mixed perceptions of its usefulness and readiness for adoption within organizational workflows.

According to the study, several leaders are still gaining familiarity with the emerging technology, with 41.3 percent of respondents saying they are “slightly” or “not at all” familiar with it. In contrast, only 23.3 percent said they consider themselves familiar with agentic AI.

In terms of readiness, only 26.7 percent of leaders said they were ready to adopt agentic AI and were already investing in it. Meanwhile, 32.7 percent acknowledged the need for a deeper understanding before committing resources to organization-wide adoption.

This hesitation is further reflected in the survey results, with 32.7 percent believing it’s too soon to gauge agentic AI’s impact, 26 percent viewing it as “useful but risky,” and only 26.7 percent considering it “highly promising.”

To explore how industry leaders are navigating AI adoption, agentic AI, and cybersecurity in 2025, check out our coverage of the recently concluded Proofpoint Protect 2025.