If August was about asking what agentic AI can do, September is about asking a much more important question: is it actually improving your business?
After more than 30 years working with technology and business change, I’ve seen plenty of digital transformation trends come and go. The pattern is usually the same — exciting technology gets the headlines, but the businesses that win are the ones that turn it into something practical.
And that is exactly where digital transformation is heading in September 2026.
AI Is Moving From Experiment to Execution
AI adoption is no longer a future project. McKinsey’s latest 2026 research found that 44% of organisations now report scaling AI across the enterprise, up from 38% a year earlier. At larger organisations, 40% are already scaling AI agents.
That’s significant, but there’s a catch.
Businesses are still struggling to turn AI usage into measurable financial results. In Germany, McKinsey reports that 43% of respondents from organisations using AI cannot quantify its contribution to operating profit.
So, my advice is simple: stop measuring how much AI you have and start measuring what it achieves.
Does it reduce processing time? Improve customer service? Reduce errors? Help employees make better decisions?
If you can’t answer those questions, you may have an AI project rather than a digital transformation strategy.
Agentic AI Needs Guardrails
AI agents are becoming increasingly capable of carrying out tasks across business systems rather than simply answering questions. Gartner predicts that 40% of enterprise applications will feature task-specific AI agents by the end of 2026.
That sounds impressive — and it is.
But giving software the ability to take action also means giving it responsibility. Who approves its decisions? What systems can it access? What happens when it gets something wrong?
This is why AI governance, cybersecurity and human oversight need to be designed into digital transformation from day one.
Regulation Has Now Entered the Conversation
For European businesses, this isn’t theoretical anymore.
The EU AI Act became applicable on 2 August 2026, with enforcement and new transparency requirements beginning at the same time. Certain AI systems must now provide appropriate transparency about AI interactions and generated or manipulated content.
In other words, responsible AI isn’t simply good practice anymore — for some uses, it’s a business requirement.
The Real Digital Transformation Opportunity
Here’s what I believe businesses should focus on now:
Don’t transform everything. Transform what matters.
Start with the processes that frustrate your employees, slow down customers or cost your business unnecessary time and money.
Then look at where automation, AI, better data, cloud technology or modern applications can make a measurable difference.
Technology should support the business — not become the business strategy.
The organisations that get digital transformation right in 2026 won’t necessarily be the ones using the most technology.
They’ll be the ones using the right technology, for the right reasons, with the right controls.
And honestly, that’s a much more exciting future.
At Digitus Consulting, that’s exactly how we approach digital transformation — practical, measurable and built around your business rather than the latest technology buzzword.
If you’re wondering where your organisation should go next, let’s have a conversation.
