Cybersecurity risk is a top obstacle to growth

Leslah Garland 23 September 2026  

Rockwell Automation, one of the world’s largest companies dedicated to industrial automation and digital transformation, has announced it has released “Operational Resilience in the Age of Connectivity,” an industry insights report based on input from 1,500 manufacturing and industrial operations decision makers across 17 countries. The research reveals a disconnect between confidence in comprehensive cybersecurity protection and operational risk. Although industrial organisations are investing in cybersecurity, those investments do not automatically translate into operational resilience.

The company says as organisations continue to connect information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) systems, scale AI initiatives, and expand the use of operational data across the enterprise, they create new dependencies that can increase exposure to cyber-related risk. In fact, more than one-third of industrial organisations see cybersecurity risk as one of the biggest external obstacles to growth, underscoring the need to strengthen resilience as operations become more connected.

Key findings from the report include:

• Organisations remain confident despite rising incident exposure: While 46% of organisations experienced a cyber incident in the past year, 90% say they are confident in their ability to prevent, contain or recover from one.
• Cybersecurity delivers strong perceived ROI: 62% of organisations have already invested in cybersecurity platforms, and cybersecurity ranks as the second-highest ROI-generating technology investment reported by respondents.
• Organisations are looking to AI as part of their cybersecurity response: 45% plan to apply AI and machine learning to cybersecurity initiatives over the next 12 months.
• IT/OT convergence creates both risk and opportunity: IT and OT integration points rank as the second-most vulnerable to cyber incidents. At the same time, 37% say securing IT/OT architecture will drive positive business outcomes over the next five years.

“Industrial organisations understand that cybersecurity directly affects uptime, continuity, productivity and growth, but technology investments alone do not create operational resilience or confidence in an organisation’s security posture,” said Rick Kaun, Global Director, Cybersecurity Services at Rockwell Automation. “True resilience is built when cybersecurity becomes an integral part of business strategy. Organisations that proactively manage risk and prepare for disruption are better positioned to protect operations, sustain production and gain a competitive advantage.”

The full report, Operational Resilience in the Age of Connectivity, is available HERE and explores how industrial organisations are strengthening cybersecurity, managing IT/OT convergence and building more resilient operations in an increasingly connected environment.