September 2026
Digital maturity in project controls is a competitive advantage.
Digital maturity is more than an operational consideration—it’s a competitive advantage. A new study shows that response time and budget and schedule outcomes benefit when project controls functions work together and can access real-time data.
Does being digitally mature really matter?
In a word, absolutely.
The bigger question is why. Owner organizations that have advanced their digital maturity in project controls consistently outperform those that haven’t—on budget, schedule and their ability to respond when something goes wrong. That’s quite a big why.
What separates high-maturity organizations from the rest isn’t simply a matter of which software they’re running. It runs deeper than that.
What Digital Maturity Actually Means
In a project controls context, digital maturity doesn’t mean having the latest software or implementing the highest number of digital tools. Think of it from an operational perspective: How well do those tools work together? How current is the data flowing through them? Does the organization have the expertise to act on what is surfacing?
Digital maturity is a measure of how deeply digital tools are embedded in the way an organization actually operates—across its processes, data flows and the many functions it relies on to manage project performance.
A new industry study puts some structure around that definition. The study measures maturity across 10 project controls functions on a 100-point scale, looking at factors that go beyond simple tool adoption, including how well processes are optimized across the organization and how consistently real-time data is accessible.
One thing this framework makes clear is that maturity isn’t a single organizational attribute. It varies function by function. Where an organization lands depends heavily on which functions you’re measuring.
The Maturity Gap as a Competitive Issue
Digital maturity is more than an operational consideration; it’s a competitive one. Owner organizations that have advanced further along the maturity spectrum aren’t just running smoother projects. They’re pulling ahead of peers in ways that show up directly in project outcomes.
That gap shows up in the study’s performance data. Nine out of 10 of the most digitally mature owners complete most projects on or under budget—a result only one in three of the remaining respondents achieve. On projects that do run over, the most digitally mature owners consistently keep final costs within 5% of the original forecast.
In project controls, issues are inevitable. What separates high-maturity organizations is how quickly they can respond. Those response times tell a compelling story: among the most digitally mature owners, 80% can produce within hours the essential data they need to keep issues from impacting timelines and budgets. Only 13% of those with lower digital maturity can say the same.
The further behind an organization is on the maturity spectrum, the higher the risk that the competitive gap will widen.
What High-Maturity Organizations Do Differently
The study’s function-by-function maturity scores highlight the disparity in measurable terms. Cost management and reporting and analytics rank among the highest. Estimating and procurement rank among the lowest. That represents a significant spread across functions that are expected to work together.
At the high end, you’ll find fairly consistent conditions. Data flows across systems. Processes are built around the tools themselves rather than alongside them. Project teams work from a shared, current view of performance. Decisions get made from a position of real-time visibility.
What makes that level of performance possible? The study’s findings consistently show:
Integrated tools. High-maturity organizations use software that talks to each other. Project data moves freely across functions. Decision makers get an organization-wide view of project performance rather than individual function reports.
Current data. Real-time data access is a consistent differentiator. High-maturity organizations are working from information that reflects what’s actually happening in the field. So problems get flagged earlier and responses happen while there’s still time to act.
Teams that act on what they’re seeing. Tools and data only create value when someone knows what to do with them. High-maturity organizations close the gap between what the software surfaces and how the team acts on it—turning data into faster, better-informed decisions that deliver improved project outcomes.
More than a Project Outcome
Digital maturity in project controls is about running better projects. But more than that, it’s about building organizational capability and effectiveness. The organizations pulling ahead have built systems, processes and teams that reinforce each other.
For owner organizations still working to close the gap, the study from Dodge Construction Network and Contruent provides a useful place to start.
Contruent Enterprise is here to help. Reach out to learn more or request a demo.