New devices and application development styles are expected to have the greatest impact on technology next year, executives and analysts say.
Technological turning points for 2020 and beyond: Geopolitics, economy and digital giants
At the Gartner IT Symposium / Xpo 2019 in Orlando, FL, IT leaders learned about the latest trends in technology and how issues such as geopolitics, economics, and the rise of digital giants will shape the future of business and IT.
Artificial intelligence, blockchain and IoT devices are just a few of the tools that analysts and executives say will play a major role in the coming year.
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“Before 2020, many organizations will expand their digital transformation efforts or extend to digital innovation to drive business results. Digital transformation will not go away and will never do so, as long as there are opportunities for transformation,” said Mark Troester, vice president of the strategy at the technology development company Progress.
SEE: Artificial intelligence: a guide for managers (free PDF) (TechRepublic Premium)
“Making digital innovation a part of the fabric does not necessarily require individual teams or major investments,” Troester said. “It starts with developing an innovation culture by grounding teams in objectives and their responsibility for them, and then giving them wide discretion.”
“Try hackathons that are not limited to writing software – think about how you can improve business processes, experiment with different GTM approaches, new sales and marketing efforts, and the like,” he added. “Hold your hats, people – 2020 will be an interesting year.”
Here are a few predictions and insights about what analysts and executives believe may happen next year in DesignOps, AppDev, artificial intelligence, and 5G.
Application development and design activities
The technological changes of the world have had a drastic effect on how almost every company and organization treats customers or participants.
People expect top-of-the-line web design and an application development brand that meets all their needs. Without that, companies have a clear disadvantage, because studies have shown that people will increasingly throw away an app or website that is not working properly.
“In the age of the digital reflex, consumers will no longer forgive or forget bad experiences. A great digital performance is now the foundation for every business, but the real winners will be those who consistently exceed customer expectations by delivering a flawless experience Danny Winokur, AppDynamics general manager, owned by Cisco, said.
Troester explained that DesignOps is now more important than ever “in view of the increased user expectations of the digital giants of the world and a certain social media colossus.” He added that consumers are increasingly looking for a holistic experience when they buy rather than simply choosing the best product.
In the coming year, companies will have to retreat and put more effort into developing their process and working better with designers and developers to create a coherent vision for the user experience, he said.
“The DesignOps evolution should include the designer earlier in the development process and keep it there during production testing and feedback, implement technology that allows the designer to use his favorite tool and use a design-to-code approach that Automatically generates design with round trip collaboration for dev changes, “Troester said.
Companies are also better off coordinating the AppDev process and customer experience efforts “by using flexible platforms and technology components to meet your specific requirements. Although there is not one technology for all requirements, the technologies are becoming more interchangeable and flexible , open standard interfaces, “according to Troester.
This will become an integral part of digital transformation and modernization, which generally go hand in hand with application development and design activities. As companies shed older systems and run to newer, usually cloud-based solutions, it becomes necessary for companies to have company-wide knowledge of how to integrate all their needs or services.
This integration becomes vital when designing customer experiences that run through multiple digital contact points.
“For example, customer interactions that take place via an integrated web, mobile and chat experience are appropriately integrated into employee and partner systems, not only to analyze and report customer activity, but also to ensure the right level of human support , “Said Sister.
internet of things
IoT devices have suddenly become furious this year, with manufacturers deciding to place a chip in almost every available household appliance or tool, including coffee machines, refrigerators and security cameras.
The implementation has known industries, including production, with dozens of companies deploying devices in their supply chains to collect more data and streamline processes.
There has been an explosion of interest among consumers and companies interested in IoT devices, and statistics from Statistics show that by 2025 no fewer than 75 billion IoT devices will be in the hands of consumers.
According to the research firm Particle, the IoT industry may ultimately have an economic impact of more than $ 11 trillion in 2025.
“The most successful IoT products are products that deliver recurring, continuous value for you and your customers. Although there are many ways to create that value, we have identified remote monitoring, preventive maintenance, and asset tracking as the most important ways on which companies make money with IoT, “said Zach Supalla, CEO and co-founder of Particle, earlier this year.
But the devices are not perfect. Their increasing popularity corresponds to an increase in attacks by cyber criminals who use the lax security of devices made by manufacturers without expertise in the field of cyber security.
Jonathan Langer, CEO of IoT security company Medigate, predicted that in the coming years, awareness about the security flaws inherent in IoT devices will increase.
“I remember 10 years ago that IoT was a kind of anecdote and something futuristic that people were talking about in terms of security. The manufacturers who made these devices really had no safety in mind when producing them,” Langer said.
“The good news is that awareness of the problem is the most important thing that has changed over the past few years. Whether you are a hospital or a bank or another major retailer, you now know that IoT customers and users are now aware of the security aspects or dangers of IoT devices and looking for solutions. ”
Artificial intelligence
AI has been around for a while, but now that it is finally dripping to companies without any technology expertise, the average person is more or less having a positive influence on technology. We have all had the experience of dealing with a chatbot customer service representative or stamping 0 on the phone until we finally reach a human representative.
But AI is even hired in places we can’t see, optimizing supply chains or helping humanitarian organizations save lives in times of crisis.
“AI is the next wave of innovation and ignoring this opportunity will threaten the economic and national security of a region,” said Daniel Castro, director of the Center for Data Innovation.
“Gaining an early lead in AI will increase the economic competitiveness of a region, but there are many factors that they need to be right.”
The Center for Data Innovation issued a report in August emphasizing the future of AI based on how countries around the world invest in it. The world leaders are largely China and the United States, who have both pumped billions to spread the gospel of the many uses of AI.
It will even have an effect on cyber security because more malicious actors use it to widen attack surfaces and more security teams use it to tackle the flood of threats.
“The United States is a leader in AI today, but should not rest on their laurels,” Michael McLaughlin, a research analyst for Center for Data Innovation and the lead author of the AI report. “To maintain their lead, the United States must focus on policies that increase its domestic talent base, enable foreign AI talent to immigrate and increase incentives for research and development.”
Mobility and 5G
The proliferation of smartphones has brought mobility to the forefront and has encouraged companies to think about how they can provide better experiences for users who are constantly on the move. No other technology will have a greater impact on mobile communication in 2020 than 5G, which has already been rolled out in some areas, but will receive greater acceptance next year.
But for larger customer needs, technology is needed that is suitable for the task.
“You would think that at network speeds 10x faster than 4G, the need for edge processing is ignored. But when it comes to the possible consequences of life and death with regard to delays in medical data processing, or the ability to automate cars or smart factories, there will be a need for edge processing, “Troester said.
“We see this because mini or micro data centers are expected to be added near cell towers.”
A study by Rysavy Research, published in September, predicted that 5G would serve as the basis for a fully digitized environment with autonomous cars, smart cities, portable computers, and “unexplored innovations.”
“5G will transform wireless networking capabilities by facilitating extremely dense deployments, utilizing spectrum that has never before been available for cellular systems, being able to use extremely broad radio channels, using virtualization methods and supporting new ultra-reliable and low latency applications,” said the president of the company, Peter Rysavy. “The capacity of the wireless network doubles every three years and is fueled by gradual compaction, access to new spectrum and innovation that increases spectral efficiency.”
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