Are you investing in AI tools while your organisation’s digital basics are still leaking?

This is one of the most strategic risks that Dutch SMEs face today, and it is certainly one of the most common but least discussed issues. Qonto & Appinio’s 2025 cross-European research disclosed a truth that isn’t very pleasant: European SMEs are quite far from being digitally mature as they think they are and hence, the majority end up doing nothing about it. In the EU, 68% of SMEs are using AI tools (mostly generative AI), but at the same time, more than half of them have no essential digital systems in place such as automated accounting, proper IT integration, or centralized document management [1].

The outcome is a brittle, “stacked” environment where the advanced applications of AI are running on top of the outdated, fragmented, or analogue processes. Eurofound’s 2025 report on SME digitalisation has pointed out the same structural disbalance, namely that the companies that do not have strong digital foundations are subject to slower productivity growth, weaker crisis resilience, and higher operational risk [2].

Dutch SMEs, although slightly ahead of the EU average in this regard, are still showing an uneven digital readiness, especially in the areas outside ICT and professional services.

 

Why This Matters for Dutch Leaders

As per CBS [3], the Netherlands is fast-tracking AI adoption in Europe (22.7% usage among companies with 10+ employees). However, the adoption is very unevenly distributed; major corporations and technologically advanced industries are moving forward, while a great deal of small and medium-sized enterprises are just applying AI to their unstructured workflows, siloed data, and informal processes. Studies from academia indicate that this situation gives rise to negative ROI loops in which AI projects do not succeed due to the fact that the technology is not the problem but rather the following reasons:

• Data is either inconsistent or not available.
• There are no documented processes or the processes are done manually.
• Digital literacy is not possessed by the employees.
• Different systems do not unite and this compels in-between manual work.
• There is no governance and hence, the use of shadow AI is rampant [4][5].

This leads to the worst possible outcome: AI that increases complexity instead of reducing it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Business Impact: Measurable, Material, and Often Invisible at First.

When AI is implemented upon weak digital foundations, the following are experienced by organizations:

• The manual corrections lead to increasing operational costs
• The fragmentation of the systems resulted in productivity drops
• The customer experience was inconsistent
• The rate of cybersecurity attacks was more than before
• The non-compliance with the EU AI Act was a failure
• The employees were demotivated and avoided using the unreliable tools

According to a study conducted in 2024 and published in Technological Forecasting & Social Change, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that did not have digital readiness frameworks in place were 43% more likely to quit their AI projects in the first year [6]. Additionally, another study pointed out that the quality of data integration could be responsible for as much as 70% of the variation in AI project success [7].

 

What Forward-Looking Dutch SMEs Are Doing Differently

In the Netherlands, all efficient AI converts are deliberate and precise in their AI deployments and never in a hurry.

Digitise first -> To modernize core systems, to get rid of the excel spreadsheets, and to centralize data.

Standardise next -> Devise workflows; remove anomalies; and automate otherwise manual mistakes.

Then scale AI -> Utilize AI in maintaining a stable and well-qualified process with characteristics that can be measured.

 

This structured approach increases AI ROI, reduces regulatory risk, and strengthens competitiveness in a market where Dutch SMEs face growing pressure from digitally mature competitors.

 

How Centralink Can Help Dutch SMEs Avoid These Risks

At Centralink, we assist small and medium-sized enterprises in developing a practical 24-36 month roadmap that connects digital basics with AI expansion. No exaggeration. No complicated solutions. Only practical steps to transition from analogue to digital, then to data-driven, and finally to AI-enabled. 👉 Should you be interested in finding out if your firm is actually prepared for AI or potentially facing an expensive failure, then request a strategic intake through Centralink.nl

 

References (APA7)

[1] Qonto & Appinio. (2025). European SME Digitalisation and AI Usage Study.
[2] Eurofound. (2025). SME Digitalisation in the EU: Trends, Policies and Impacts.
[3] Statistics Netherlands (CBS). (2025). AI Monitor 2024: Increasing Use of AI by Businesses.
[4] Li, J., et al. (2023). Data readiness for AI adoption in SMEs. Information & Management, 60(4).
[5] Dwivedi, Y. K., et al. (2024). AI adoption challenges in SMEs: A multi-perspective review. Journal of Business Research, 172.
[6] Muhammad, S. S. (2025). Digital transformation or digital divide? AI readiness in SMEs. Technological Forecasting & Social Change.
[7] Wamba, S. F., & Queiroz, M. (2022). The role of data integration quality in AI-driven performance. International Journal of Information Management, 66