Gartner's top tech trend for 2025: Agentic AI: are businesses ready for AI that acts on its own?

If you're still thinking of AI as that clever chatbot that writes your emails, you're about to be blindsided. Gartner has just declared Agentic AI as their top strategic technology trend for 2025: and it's not just another incremental upgrade. We're talking about AI that doesn't wait for your permission. AI that makes decisions, takes action, and manages entire business processes while you're focused on strategy.

The question isn't whether this technology is coming. It's whether your business is ready for AI that acts independently.

What Makes Agentic AI Different From Everything You Know

Here's where most business leaders get confused. They think AI evolution is just about better chatbots or smarter analytics. But agentic AI represents a fundamental shift from responsive to proactive intelligence.

Current AI systems are like highly capable assistants: they wait for your prompt, then deliver results. Agentic AI is more like having a digital team member who understands your business objectives and takes initiative to achieve them. These autonomous agents don't just process information; they plan, execute, adapt, and solve problems without human intervention at every step.

Think about it this way: instead of asking AI to analyse your customer data, agentic AI continuously monitors customer behaviour, identifies opportunities, adjusts engagement strategies in real-time, and implements changes across your value chain: all while keeping you informed of its decisions and outcomes.

The Numbers Don't Lie: This Is Happening Fast

Gartner's predictions are staggering, and frankly, they should make every business leader pay attention:

By 2025 (that's next year, not some distant future), 70% of organisations will operationalise AI designed for autonomy. That's not pilot programs or testing: that's full deployment.

By 2028, the transformation accelerates dramatically:

• 33% of enterprise software will include agentic AI capabilities (up from less than 1% today)

• 15% of daily work decisions will be made autonomously by AI agents

• Logistics adoption alone has already surged by 40%

These aren't aspirational targets: they're market predictions based on current development trajectories. The early movers are already capturing competitive advantages while others are still figuring out basic AI implementation.

Real Applications That Transform Business Operations

Let's move beyond theory. Agentic AI is already reshaping how businesses operate across multiple sectors, and the applications directly impact value chain efficiency and customer engagement strategies.

Healthcare Operations: Imagine AI agents that coordinate patient care, manage treatment planning, and handle insurance authorisations without human bottlenecks. These systems don't just process claims: they anticipate complications, coordinate between departments, and ensure seamless patient experiences while reducing administrative overhead.

Customer Engagement Revolution: In travel and hospitality, agentic AI crafts personalised offers that adapt to customer behaviour in real-time. Rather than sending generic promotions, these systems analyse preferences, predict needs, and deliver tailored experiences before customers even realise they want them.

IT Operations Transformation: These AI agents monitor system performance, predict potential failures, automatically implement fixes, and escalate only when human expertise is genuinely needed. They're reducing incident resolution times while improving system reliability across the board.

The Critical Readiness Gap

Here's where it gets interesting: and concerning. While the technology is advancing rapidly, most businesses are nowhere near ready for autonomous AI decision-making.

We're seeing organisations that struggle with basic data governance suddenly trying to implement systems that make independent business decisions. That's like trying to run a marathon when you haven't learned to walk properly.

The fundamental challenge isn't technical: it's organisational. Agentic AI requires robust governance frameworks, transparent decision-making processes, and comprehensive risk management strategies. Most importantly, it demands a level of data literacy and cultural readiness that many organisations simply haven't developed.

What "AI Ready" Actually Means

Being "AI ready" for agentic systems isn't just about having clean data (though that's essential). It's about building organisational capabilities that can safely leverage autonomous decision-making.

Governance Infrastructure: You need clear policies about what decisions AI can make independently, escalation protocols for complex situations, and audit trails for accountability. Without these, you're essentially giving a powerful tool to an organisation that can't control it.

Cultural Adaptation: Your teams need to understand how to work alongside AI agents, when to intervene, and how to interpret AI decision-making. This isn't just training: it's fundamental organisational change management.

Process Integration: Agentic AI works best when integrated into existing business processes, not bolted on as an afterthought. This requires strategic thinking about where autonomous decision-making adds value and where human judgement remains essential.

The Competitive Reality Check

While you're evaluating whether to embrace agentic AI, your competitors are already implementing it. The organisations that move decisively: while building proper governance structures: will emerge as industry leaders.

Think about the implications for your value chain. If your competitors can automate complex decision-making processes, respond to market changes in real-time, and optimise operations continuously, how long can traditional approaches remain competitive?

The window for strategic positioning is narrowing. Early adopters are already capturing productivity gains, improving customer satisfaction, and reducing operational costs through autonomous AI systems.

How We Help Organisations Become AI Ready

At Value Chain Management, we've seen the transformation challenges firsthand. We don't just implement AI solutions: we help organisations build the foundational capabilities needed to leverage agentic AI safely and effectively.

Our approach focuses on three critical areas:

Strategic AI Readiness Assessment: We evaluate your current capabilities, identify gaps in governance and data literacy, and create roadmaps for safe agentic AI adoption that align with your business transformation goals.

Governance Framework Development: We help establish the policies, procedures, and oversight mechanisms needed to manage autonomous AI decision-making while maintaining control and accountability.

Cultural Transformation Support: Through our subscription-based consultancy model, we provide ongoing support to help your teams adapt to working alongside AI agents, ensuring smooth adoption and maximum value capture.

The Strategic Imperative

Agentic AI represents more than technological advancement: it's a competitive differentiator that will reshape entire industries. The organisations that successfully integrate autonomous AI capabilities while maintaining proper governance will define the next era of business competition.

But success requires more than technology implementation. It demands strategic thinking, cultural adaptation, and robust governance frameworks that many organisations are still developing.

The question isn't whether agentic AI will transform your industry: it's whether you'll be leading that transformation or scrambling to catch up. The choice you make today will determine your competitive position tomorrow.

Ready to explore how agentic AI can transform your value chain operations? Let's discuss your specific challenges and opportunities. Because in the age of autonomous AI, being prepared isn't just an advantage: it's essential for survival.

Discover how VCM's AI readiness consulting can position your organisation for success with agentic AI. Contact us to schedule a strategic assessment.