Dutch companies see growth opportunities more often than their European counterparts, but are more cautious about expanding AI. One in five (21 per cent) plan to implement the technology further in the coming year, while 39 per cent name system integration as their main technology priority. In addition, a majority prefer a European supplier.
The figures come from the European Growth & Technology Outlook 2027, compiled by CRM vendor SuperOffice together with research agency Datalily. The survey ran from 16 June to 8 July 2026 via the Centiment panel. It was completed by 371 decision-makers involved in CRM, customer data or AI tools. They work at B2B or mixed B2B/B2C companies with 30 to 300 employees in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands. The Dutch sample comprised 80 respondents, something to bear in mind when interpreting the percentages.
Higher growth expectations, lower AI ambitions
Among Dutch companies, 51 per cent expect significant growth opportunities over the next twelve months, compared with 46 per cent across Europe. When it comes to concrete AI plans, the picture is reversed: 21 per cent of Dutch companies intend to further implement or expand AI in the coming year, against 28 per cent of European respondents.
The same difference shows up in current usage. Of the Dutch companies, 51 per cent are experimenting with AI tools and 35 per cent report advanced AI use. In Europe, the figures are 46 and 39 per cent respectively. Dutch organisations therefore experiment more often, but are less likely to report that AI has become an established part of their processes.
System integration as a priority
For 39 per cent of Dutch companies, system integration is the most important technology change for the next twelve months. SuperOffice concludes from this that organisations first want to align their systems and customer data before expanding AI further. According to the company, using AI in customer processes requires customer data to be reliable and up to date, and systems to be able to exchange information with one another.
Customer retention ranks high among business goals. Almost a quarter of Dutch respondents (24 per cent) cite retaining customers and developing the relationship further as a priority, compared with 21 per cent in Europe. In addition, 18 per cent of Dutch companies are primarily focused on improving customer service and support; across Europe, the figure is 14 per cent.
Starting small
Wouter Schram, Country Director Netherlands at SuperOffice, advises companies not to roll out AI broadly straight away. He recommends starting with one concrete process and a clear goal, such as handling customer queries more quickly. According to Schram, the data used must be reliable and up to date, and the application must fit in with existing systems.
He suggests testing on a small scale with the employees who will be using it, establishing who checks the outcomes and measuring what the application delivers. Scaling up should only be considered, Schram says, once AI demonstrably adds value and complies with agreements on privacy and security.
Preference for European suppliers
Another finding concerns the origin of technology. Of the Dutch companies, 56 per cent have a strong preference for a European technology supplier. SuperOffice interprets this as a sign that where data is stored, and who has control over it, are factors in technology choices. It is worth noting that SuperOffice is itself a European CRM vendor, founded in Oslo in 1990, and therefore has an interest in this outcome.
The full report is available via European Growth & Technology Outlook 2027.
This article was originally published in Dutch on MSP Business. Read the original →
