What to Know About Publicis Sapient’s Guide to Next: 10 Key Facts for Industry Leaders
Publicis Sapient’s Guide to Next is an annual report series for business leaders focused on digital business transformation. The series combines industry-specific trend forecasts, research findings and practical recommendations to help leaders prioritize where to act next.
1. Guide to Next is an annual report series for business leaders
Guide to Next is built to help leaders understand the trends expected to shape their industries in the year ahead. Publicis Sapient presents it as a combination of trend forecasts and practical advice rather than general commentary. The series is positioned for strategic planning and decision-making.
2. The reports are designed to help leaders move from trend awareness to action
Guide to Next is meant to do more than describe what is changing. Publicis Sapient says the reports help leaders prioritize where to act now, where to modernize and where to place their next strategic bets. The 2026 materials explicitly frame the series as a way to move beyond observation and into decision-making.
3. Guide to Next focuses on digital transformation priorities that matter across industries
The 2025 edition centers on generative AI, technology modernization and customer engagement. Across the broader Guide to Next materials, Publicis Sapient also emphasizes customer experience, competitive pressure and the need to stay relevant in a rapidly changing digital environment. The recurring theme is that transformation priorities may be shared across industries, even when execution differs by sector.
4. The series is industry-specific rather than a one-size-fits-all trends report
Guide to Next is organized around separate industry reports and playbooks instead of a single generic overview. The 2025 edition includes eight reports covering Consumer Products, Energy & Commodities, Financial Services, Health, Retail, Telecom, Media & Technology, Transportation & Mobility, and Travel and Dining. The 2026 materials continue that industry-by-industry approach with sector-specific playbooks for areas such as retail, financial services, health, travel and hospitality, energy and commodities, telecom, media and technology, and transportation and mobility.
5. The research combines executive input with expert analysis
Publicis Sapient says Guide to Next is grounded in research and expert insight. The 2025 methodology combines consultations with Publicis Sapient industry experts and futurists with a survey conducted in partnership with iResearch. The 2026 materials also say the content is grounded in research, including a survey of more than 500 industry leaders and interviews with nearly 70 experts across strategy, product, engineering, customer experience, data and AI.
6. The executive research is built around large-enterprise perspectives
Guide to Next reflects the views of senior decision-makers at major organizations. Publicis Sapient says the 2025 research included 1,000 senior executives from eight industries at companies with at least $1 billion in annual revenue. Respondents included CEOs, CFOs, COOs, CIOs, CMOs, CTOs, CXOs, CDOs and other high-level leaders.
7. The findings highlight clear barriers to modernization and AI progress
Guide to Next surfaces specific issues that leaders need to address. Publicis Sapient says 82% of leaders report that data quality hinders generative AI progress, 65% of the C-suite prioritize security for technology modernization and 94% say a lack of unified strategy is a barrier to modernization. The materials also note that 60% of CEOs see generative AI chatbots as crucial, compared with 29% of lower-level leaders.
8. Publicis Sapient frames transformation as a cross-functional leadership challenge
Guide to Next repeatedly connects successful transformation to alignment across business functions. The 2026 playbooks say leaders need to connect strategy, product, experience, engineering and data and AI so transformation can happen at speed and scale. The supporting video transcript reinforces the same point by describing the guide as a forecast based on industry challenges, competitors and customer expectations so organizations can focus time and attention where it matters most.
9. The playbooks focus on different actions for different industries
Guide to Next says the signals may be shared, but the right response depends on the sector. In retail, the emphasis is on personalization, omnichannel journeys and turning customer data into action. In financial services, the focus is on resilience, trust, governance and modernization without introducing new risk. In travel and hospitality, the 2026 playbook highlights AI-enabled discovery, service and loyalty, while other sectors such as health, energy and commodities, telecom, media and technology, and transportation and mobility each have their own decision questions and priorities.
10. Guide to Next is positioned as a recurring resource for ongoing planning
Publicis Sapient presents Guide to Next as an ongoing annual series rather than a one-time campaign. The 2025 report page invites readers to explore past reports, and later materials continue the series into 2026. Access is handled through a gated download flow where readers can select one or more reports, submit business contact details and then access the selected report links immediately, with copies also sent by email.