Technology and risk

The digital step change transforming real estate

Technology investment is now a strategic priority for the real estate and construction industry and is accelerating rapidly. Businesses are implementing digital tools to improve performance, enhance risk management, drive asset value and lengthen life cycle. AI adoption has accelerated, with 24% of businesses already using AI and a further 33% planning to do so as the industry is moving beyond pilots to more scaled adoption.

Organisations in varying degrees of readiness to adopt AI in the year ahead

Where is digital investment focused?

Core systems

Over a third of firms (33%) are prioritising operational and finance system upgrades. Cleaner, integrated data and better reporting are now essential foundations for informed decision‑making.

Making AI mainstream

32% are prioritising AI and automation with a growing focus on tools that deliver measurable impact. From AI agents analysing investment viability to compiling tenders and procuring supply chain.

Cyber and digital resilience

As digital adoption accelerates, the risk environment heightens and data privacy controls become vital. Cyber security remains both a top investment focus amongst our respondents (30%) and one of the most cited constraints on wider technology uptake.

Smart buildings to become the new baseline standard

The innovations considered to be a improver for occupier / tenant experience in the next 2 years

Smart building technology is seen as a key priority that will influence the building experience for users. Systems that adjust, predict and optimise environments in real time create an opportunity for developers to increase occupancy and enhance value. Smart buildings generate data resulting in enhanced asset management and improve building performance. Flexible leasing models and sustainability-led features, support tenant retention and enhance long-term asset value. The cumulative effect of AI-enabled insights offers potential to act dynamically through real time oversight.

Kelly Boorman

Head of Construction, RSM

Businesses have evidently moved the dial on exploring, implementing and using new technologies. With so much opportunity, moving at rapid pace embedding new technology can appear overwhelming. Many businesses face the challenge of setting a clear vision of that roadmap. Successful implementation has a digital strategy supporting it, with an acceptance that there will be multiple building blocks to achieve the end goal.

What’s slowing progress?

Against the momentum, respondents reported a common set of barriers to technology adoption. Integrating new solutions with legacy systems remains a structural brake on progress, reflecting the extent to which ambition is constrained by existing infrastructure. Data quality and internal capability also feature prominently – AI can only deliver value when supported by accurate, complete datasets, analysed and interpreted correctly. Positively, lack of board support has fallen sharply down the list of constraints with it becoming commonplace to hear of boards asking management ‘what are we doing with AI?’.

The largest barriers to adopting technology investment

Technology’s expanding role in risk and governance

Regulation remains one of the biggest occupiers of board time, cited by 26% of respondents. In response, 41% of firms are increasing investment in technology to improve monitoring, reporting and compliance capabilities. The shift is away from retrospective, static processes toward real‑time, data‑enabled oversight.

As AI adoption grows, firms will need more clear usage frameworks, stronger data governance and more robust cyber security structures to manage associated risks responsibly. Ultimately, authority and responsibility will still sit with a human. Decision makers at all levels may need to exercise greater judgement than before as they become responsible for decisions, many of which they did not complete the preparatory work for.

The top 5 risk areas that occupies most Board time in your business

Future outlook – entering the new real estate normal

The industry is adapting to a new normal, shaped by shifting economic conditions and the rapid expansion of technological capabilities. This phase of re‑adjustment is about putting fresh fundamentals in place to strengthen resilience, shape strategy and embrace transformative tools. With inflation easing, rates stabilising and confidence rebuilding, firms now have a clearer platform from which to move forward. As technology and expectations move faster, the real question is: how boldly will the industry choose to propel itself into its next chapter?

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