Digital sovereignty describes a company’s ability to use technology and data autonomously – without critical dependencies on individual vendors or regions. Current studies show that a strong dependence on U.S. cloud and software providers in particular carries significant risks, such as reduced agility, limited innovation capability, or even political and regulatory influence. The German digital association Bitkom warns of potential “blackmailability” when core business processes are based on only a few U.S. services. The Digital Sovereignty Index by adesso also confirms that in key areas such as cloud, artificial intelligence, and software, more than 60% of companies are highly dependent on individual providers – a clear single-vendor risk.
Digital sovereignty strengthens companies across several dimensions at once. It increases technological independence by enabling organizations to switch providers and respond flexibly to changing conditions. It also provides legal and operational security. Over 92% of the Western world’s data is stored on servers owned by U.S.-based companies. However, European data stored with U.S.-based cloud providers isn’t automatically protected by GDPR either, because the U.S. CLOUD Act allows American authorities to demand access to data held by U.S. companies – even when that data is located in EU data centers. This creates a direct legal conflict for European organizations that must safeguard personal data under GDPR and avoid unlawful transfers, fines, and liability. Therefore, physical data location alone is not sufficient – what matters is control over operations and infrastructure.
Digital sovereignty is also essential for innovation capability. Without it, long-term dependencies on proprietary systems emerge, making it harder to deploy new technologies. This is particularly evident in artificial intelligence: with a score of 63.3% in the Adesso Digital Sovereignty Index, AI has the lowest sovereignty rating. Many companies lack sufficient expertise and infrastructure to design AI independently and therefore rely on a small number of global providers.
For digital sovereignty to be effective, it must also be strategically embedded within the organization. Yet only 21% of companies have a clear dedicated strategy, and in nearly half of organizations (46%),responsibility lies incorrectly within IT rather than with the executive board or top management. Without this strategic anchoring, digital sovereignty remains fragmented and delivers little impact in times of crisis.
To help reduce dependencies, proven approaches such as multi-cloud strategies, vendor diversification, open-source solutions, and European cloud services are available. Nevertheless, only 68% of companies currently use multi-cloud, even though 92% consider digital sovereignty to be important and would be willing to pay an average of 17% more for sovereign solutions.
While digital sovereignty is recognized as a goal it has not yet been implemented consistently. Companies must modernize their technology architectures to achieve real independence, innovation capability, and resilience.
This is where a digital workplace provider such as Konica Minolta can help. Its cloud print solutions Workplace Pure and SAFEQ Cloud are hosted exclusively in the GDPR-compliant Open Telekom Cloud in Germany which is ISO 27001 and DIN EN 50600 certified and features cutting-edge perimeter protection technology to ensure data sovereignty, strong security standards, and protection from the access by U.S. legislation.
Increasing global pressure is forcing many companies to reorder their priorities and focus more strongly on their core business. In this context, outsourcing is gaining importance – particularly in the form of managed services. Instead of permanently tying up internal resources to operate complex IT environments, companies selectively outsource tasks to specialized service providers, gaining flexibility and efficiency.
Especially in volatile times, this approach offers greater financial and operational agility. Usage-based models shift investments from high upfront capital expenditures (CapEx) to predictable operating expenses (OpEx). According to IDC3, amid uncertain tariff and pricing developments, companies are increasingly moving away from traditional hardware purchases and toward service- and OpEx-based models. At the same time, outsourcing enables faster access to new technologies without the need to build or maintain them internally over the long term. Companies also benefit from the expertise of external specialists – often difficult or costly to develop in-house – and relieve internal teams, allowing to focus more on strategic tasks.
However, it is vital that outsourcing only strengthens a company's resilience in the long term if it is designed competently. If critical processes or infrastructures are outsourced without careful consideration, new dependencies can arise that become a risk in the event of a crisis. Therefore, successful outsourcing requires clear governance, transparency around responsibilities, and the ability to switch providers or bring services back in-house if necessary. Only then can outsourcing evolve from a short-term efficiency gain into a long-term pillar of corporate resilience.
Konica Minolta’s managed services in the print and document area also aim to free internal IT teams from day‑to‑day operational burdens so that they can focus more on strategically important tasks such as digital transformation and business growth. For example, Konica Minolta takes care of the management and maintenance of multifunction devices and software solutions. The services streamline printing and digitization, document capture, enhance information security, and reduce waste. So, companies can strengthen productivity and continuity even in volatile conditions, ensuring their physical and digital document environments remain reliable, efficient, and future‑ready.
A frequently underestimated resilience factor that is particularly noticeable in daily work is so-called digital overload. It refers to an overload caused by too many parallel tools, applications, processes, and interfaces that have accumulated over time. Many companies suffer from exactly this kind of uncontrolled digital growth. Instead of driving efficiency gains, the continuous introduction of new technologies often results in greater complexity, unclear responsibilities, and redundant structures.
The consequences are serious: IT overload leads to efficiency losses as employees constantly switch between systems or maintain information multiple times. At the same time, data silos, shadow IT outside official systems, and unnecessarily high licensing and operating costs emerge. What was originally intended as a digital transformation boost becomes a real drag on efficiency.
A clear example of this is the introduction of Microsoft Teams. As a central collaboration platform, it can significantly improve cooperation – but only if old messenger, communication and filing systems are consistently decommissioned. If these continue to exist in parallel, there will be no gain in efficiency, just another tool in an already overloaded technology stack.
However, digitalization often means less rather than more. To effectively reduce digital overload, a conscious counter-movement is needed: a digital “spring cleaning.” This includes a systematic inventory of tools and processes, clear prioritization, and the consistent consolidation and elimination of unnecessary solutions.
Along with this, stronger governance structures are also required to prevent new uncontrolled growth. Many companies additionally benefit from appointing a central digital transformation lead who coordinates change and consistently focuses on real business value rather than an abundance of features.
Digital overload is not only inefficient – it also increases vulnerability to external shocks such as current global crises, cyber incidents, or sudden market changes. Reducing complexity creates clarity – and with it, resilience.
As a digitalization partner for small and medium-sized businesses, Konica Minolta advises its customers on ensuring the right mix of technologies. One example here is its Workplace Pure cloud services solutions, which offers a variety of efficient business services such as scanning, converting, storing and sharing documents in one marketplace, thereby eliminating the need for multiple individual solutions.
