Q&A with Mark Banfield, Chief Revenue Officer at TeamViewer

Mark Banfield, Chief Revenue Officer at TeamViewer, explains how UK businesses are losing revenue as a result of digital friction and how companies can address this hurdle and avoid the high costs associated with it. 

As Chief Revenue Officer, Mark is responsible for sales and customer management across TeamViewer’s global segments. He first joined TeamViewer through its acquisition of 1E, having previously served as its CEO.

With more than two decades in the software industry, Mark has extensive experience in building high-performing global teams and delivering best-in-class customer experiences.

Mark showcases this experience across finance, technology and global markets throughout this exclusive interview with Finance Chief.

Why should the C-suite be concerned about digital friction?

Businesses pay for technology to make work more efficient, then pay again for employees to work around its shortcomings. That second bill rarely appears in the investment case, but it shows up in slower customer responses, delayed projects and pressure on margins.

TeamViewer's global research found that 42% of respondents reported revenue loss from digital friction. That should put it firmly on the boardroom agenda.

From a commercial perspective, a sales team unable to access customer information or a service team repeatedly entering the same data has less time to generate revenue and retain customers.

The businesses that ignore this will keep compensating with headcount, workarounds and longer hours. That cost compounds every quarter, and at some point it becomes a competitive problem, not just an operational one.

How can UK businesses deal with digital friction and avoid the high costs associated with it?

Most attempts to fix digital friction start with new software, vendor consolidation or a transformation programme. Those can help eventually, but they often add complexity before they remove it.

I would start somewhere simpler: follow a piece of work through the business. How many systems, handovers and repeated steps does it take to serve a customer, approve an invoice or onboard an employee?

Ask people where they lose time, including the problems they have stopped reporting because nothing changes. Then prioritise the recurring issues with the greatest commercial impact.

Simplify processes, improve integration and automate predictable fixes where appropriate. Finance and IT should agree measures such as cost per transaction, completion time and repeat incidents.

Crucially, distinguish time saved from money saved. Releasing an hour only creates value if the business puts that capacity to useful work.

What makes the UK unique when it comes to technology safety standards?

One thing that distinguishes the UK is its willingness to make basic security a condition of bringing certain products to market.

Since April 2024, the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act (PSTI Act) has required measures covering default passwords, vulnerability reporting and transparency about security support periods for consumer connected products.

I think the principle matters commercially: customers should be able to expect a baseline of protection when they buy technology.

The UK also contributes to international standards, which is essential for businesses operating across borders. I would be cautious about claiming that UK technology is inherently safer, though.

The real test is whether suppliers can demonstrate how they protect customers throughout a product's life.

How will AI be implemented into UK technology standards?

It is already happening. UK government and National Cyber Security Centre work helped inform the international AI security standard, ETSI EN 304 223, which covers protection throughout an AI system's life.

My view is that businesses will increasingly need evidence of how AI is tested, monitored and controlled, rather than accepting a supplier's assurance that it is trustworthy.

That means understanding what data it can access, who is accountable and what happens when it makes a mistake.

Standards should give businesses the confidence to adopt AI, with safeguards proportionate to the consequences of failure. Automating an internal summary and authorising a payment require very different controls.

What could wide-scale AI investment mean for UK business?

It could allow UK businesses to grow without costs increasing at the same rate.

Faster analysis, less administration and more responsive customer service could give employees greater capacity and help smaller firms compete in markets that previously required much larger teams.

But I would challenge any investment case that counts software adoption as a business outcome. The return depends on reliable data, employee skills and changes to how work gets done.

Finance leaders should ask what improves after all the integration, training and oversight costs are included.

The biggest opportunity is to build businesses that can serve more customers and respond faster, while maintaining quality. For a finance leader, the most useful test is the simplest: what can this business do after the investment that it could not do before?

If the answer is just "the same things, slightly faster," the case probably needs more work.

TeamViewer's key partners:

SAP: SAP integrates TeamViewer's enterprise solution into its cloud applications to streamline digital workflows and industrial operations.
CEO: Christian Klein | Headquarters: Walldorf, Germany

Siemens: Siemens collaborates with TeamViewer to merge augmented reality technology with industrial software, enhancing digital factory efficiency.
CEO: Roland Busch | Headquarters: Munich, Germany

Google Cloud: Google Cloud partners with TeamViewer to power augmented reality experiences and remote support through integrated cloud solutions.
CEO: Thomas Kurian | Headquarters: Mountain View, California, US