While many enterprises are officially making “digital transformation” a top priority in 2018, the funding for these initiatives often remains an open question – and a question that often gets re-prioritized behind other projects with solid ROIs. What has been defined as a critical step in most large companies’ evolution, “moving to digital” easily can become a liability if your strategy is stalled, and your competitors move more quickly toward digital transformation than you do.

So, what can an enterprise do to find financial support for digital transformation? Your network may just be the pot of transformation “gold” you were looking for. Most companies are not aware that the leading pricing edge of network services has continued to decline over the past 18 months.

We have yet to find a situation in which an organization could not save more money by evaluating its network in detail and developing a strategic sourcing plan. And the size of those savings can be encouraging to executives looking for ways to fund digital transformation. In fact, over the past 18 months, savings on the network sourcing engagements we’ve been involved with range from 17 percent to 35 percent. That can be millions of dollars freed up to apply to digital transformation initiatives, much of which is available within 3-6 months.

But strategic sourcing of network services is only part of the story. IT executives agree that a company’s underlying data network is the critical foundation that enables the business. Without it – and without ample and secure bandwidth – the company and its business applications and processes can’t function. This is why updating and optimizing the network can and should be an integral part of a digital transformation.

When the network only receives attention when there is an issue – which is the case for most companies – the network team operates in an “add capacity” mode to ensure minimal disruption. But today, with the explosion of applications that require real-time implementation and connectivity, there is minimal time to plan for or strategically source these large increases in network capacity. The result? A quick build-up of network services at less-than-optimal prices. If this sounds like an opportunity, it most certainly is. A redesign of the data network with newer technologies can help ensure resiliency at optimized costs.

Today’s leading enterprises are packaging network transformation with strategic sourcing to drive better network performance and funding for overall digital transformation. It’s a win-win. If you haven’t started the process, no need to worry just yet. But 2018 is projected to be twice as active as 2017, so it’s time to start doing your homework.

Planning an enterprise transformation can be daunting – and the growing number of suppliers and new products and solutions in the market can make it difficult to determine the right network transformation path for your company. ISG can help you plan a network transformation that can spur (and fund) other digital transformations this year.