ESN & ICT: pivots of digital transformation and responsible innovation
By Charles Mauclair, President of ESN & ICT College – Numeum
and Xavier Niffle, Partner, Head of Digital Audit & Innovation – KPMG France
At a time of technological, economic and environmental upheaval, Digital Services Companies (DSCs) and Engineering and Technology Consulting (ICT) companies are emerging as catalysts for resilience, innovation and impact.
2025 is much more than just a year of transition. For the ESN/ICT ecosystem, it marks a turning point. The economic climate remains uncertain, pressure on resources is increasing, technology cycles are accelerating – and yet, the sector is remarkably serene. This is not naïve optimism: it’s the fruit of strategic agility and continuous reinvention of their business models.
1. An agile ecosystem, ready for transformation
In an environment where 85% of players identify the economic situation as a major risk, 95% of ESNs and ICTs nevertheless declare their confidence in their ability to achieve their growth targets.
This solidity is first and foremost the result of their positioning on high value-added offerings – cloud, cybersecurity, AI – that address the major digital challenges facing businesses. 29% of respondents place technology investment at the heart of their growth strategy, a figure that is rising steadily.
But beyond technology, we are deploying a truly global activation strategy: sector and geographic diversification, development of strategic partnerships (60%), hybridization of delivery models (onshore, nearshore, offshore) to meet customer needs.
“ESNs and ICTs have integrated a simple truth: in an uncertain world, agility is the only stability.” – Xavier Niffle
2. Human capital, a major strategic lever
Digital transformation won’t happen without talent. Faced with a persistent shortage, companies in the sector are reinventing their HR model.
Today, 50% of them have employees identified as having AI or generative AI skills, and 41% have mapped this expertise in their teams. This data is not anecdotal: it reveals a growing maturity in skills management policies.
Remuneration is still the key to loyalty, but expectations are changing. Flexibility in working hours, work-life balance, personal development and the meaning given to assignments are becoming central elements. At the same time, the hybridization of statuses – recourse to freelancers, subcontractors, self-employed workers – is changing corporate culture and managerial practices.
AI itself is invading HR: 52% of ESNs and ICTs are using it to create or improve their training plans, and 35% to optimize their recruitment. The HR function is being transformed into a strategic innovation function.
“People are no longer an adjustment variable. They are at the heart of competitiveness. .”Charles Mauclair
3. Responsible innovation: a new standard
Innovation is no longer limited to technological acceleration. It now includes dimensions of responsibility, ethics and impact.
87% of ESN and ICT companies are monitoring their carbon footprint, and 60% have set 3-year reduction targets. Nearly a third are even aiming for carbon neutrality by 2030.
These commitments are not just virtuous: they are becoming differentiating factors. In many calls for tenders, ESG criteria (carbon footprint, inclusion, cybersecurity, AI governance) are weighing more and more heavily in the final decision. The Tech for Good offer, long peripheral, is becoming more structured.
Commitments to diversity and inclusion are also progressing: 83% of ESN/ICTs have a formal program in place, with concrete actions in mentoring, training, or highlighting role models.
“Digital responsibility is no longer an extra. It has become a competitive lever .” – Xavier Niffle
4. A strategic sector for digital sovereignty
With sales of over 70 billion euros and 670,000 jobs in France, the ESN/ICT sector is one of the pillars of the country’s economic fabric.
But its role goes far beyond numbers. It contributes to the country’s technological autonomy, to the modernization of critical infrastructures (health, education, public services), and to the security of digital uses.
It is also a major player in the local economy: 50% of Numeum’s members are locally-based startups or VSEs. At a time when digital sovereignty is becoming a strategic issue, ESN/ICTs offer a unique capacity for deployment, innovation and alignment between national challenges and realities on the ground.
5. Conclusion: building digital trust for everyone
2025 may be a year of transition, but it also paves the way for a new cycle of maturity for ESNs and ICTs.
They are the ones who will help companies master technological breakthroughs (generative AI, cybersecurity, sovereign cloud), combine performance and sustainability, and strengthen trust between public, private and civic players.
Far from being mere executors, these companies are becoming architects of transformation.
And it is in their ability to combine technological excellence, human ambition and collective responsibility that the future of the digital industry in France and Europe is at stake today.
