Growth in 91 per cent of companies is being held back by technology concerns, according to the latest Dell Technologies research.

Nine out of 10 businesses are held back by barriers such as data security, lack of budget and resources and insufficient tech skills in the workplace, says Dell’s second bi-annual Digital Transformation Index.

Nearly one third of UK executives don’t trust their own organisations to comply with regulations such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

And 26 per cent of British business leaders do not trust their own organisation to protect customer data.

Dell Technologies surveyed 4,600 business leaders of mid- to large-sized companies worldwide on digital transformation, their approach to tech and the pace of change they currently face.

In Britain, 71 per cent said that digital transformation should be more widespread throughout their organisation (78 per cent worldwide).

Twenty-two per cent of UK companies believe they’ll struggle to meet changing customer demands, with 19 per cent of British businesses worrying they’ll be left behind within five years.

The UK ranked 19^th in terms of being digitally mature, ahead of Germany (24^th) but behind Russia (17^th) and Spain (14^th).

Surprisingly, India, Brazil and Thailand topped the global ranking for technological sophistication.

And Japan, a country many associate with the cutting edge in tech, is considered the least digitally mature country in the world.

Denmark and France were ranked second and third to bottom.

Michael Dell, chairman and CEO of Dell Technologies, said: “In the near future, every organisation will need to be a digital organisation, but our research indicates that the majority still have a long way to go.

“Organisations need to modernise their technology to participate in the unprecedented opportunity of digital transformation. The time to act is now.”