6 Top Tech Trends and How They Impact Your Business
Info-Tech Research Group asserts that CIOs must act like a chess grandmaster, strategizing to unleash the power of emerging technologies while protecting against volatility. With their eyes perpetually on their core business objectives, business and technology leaders have at hand a wide spectrum of technology trends that can present an opportunity to level up. Here are just a few top tech trends to keep on the radar.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI has been on lists of top tech trends for years now. But finally it appears to be entering mainstream business tools, projected to receive the most net-new investment by organizations this coming year, according to Info-Tech.
Deloitte points out that with AI functionality now commonly built into cloud-based services, the focus is on how to use AI most effectively, in a way that builds trust with both customers and employees. Importantly, experts at Deloitte call for transparency and responsibility when applying AI in business processes and systems. This is especially true given past instances where AI-powered recruiting tools have revealed in-built biases, bringing forth many questions about the ethical use of AI. An article from the European think tank DataEthics explores the ethics of ChatGPT, concluding that bias is inevitable in its current iteration.
Ultimately, AI can harness incredible results if aligned with your business objectives and when the impact of these tools and systems on your employees and customers is carefully considered. It must be implemented with a transparent, user-friendly approach that incorporates human oversight and accountability. Specific use cases of AI in the business world range from delivering more sophisticated customer service to automating initial stages of the sales cycle and serving as a content creator for social media marketing.
Decentralized Architecture
Deloitte lists decentralized architectures and ecosystems as a top technology trend in 2023, gaining ground as businesses adapt to the post-pandemic world. Combatting cybercrime, in particular, is one of the biggest drivers of adoption, as traditional and legacy networks have been made vulnerable by remote work and by the exponential increase in raw data collection.
As a result, privacy, security, and data-ownership are top of mind, leading to growing popularity in “trustless” systems that help address the digital trust gap. These technologies can help businesses avoid single points of failure and increase their digital resiliency. Organizations seeking to leverage decentralization within their own infrastructure are looking to web3 technologies that can improve trust and transparency in their systems and processes.
Blockchain is one growing example of these technologies. Although it built its reputation on digital payments and cryptocurrencies, the application of Blockchain to the business world is ever-growing. Specific use cases include encrypted record storage and transfer, smart contracts, a more secure and transparent supply chain, and, of course, secure payments.
Metacloud
Remember when cloud computing was number one on every “top technology trends” list? Most organizations have officially embraced the cloud, taking advantage of its scalability, efficiency, and ease of use. But Deloitte asserts that now we are faced with a tangle of multiple cloud services that often create redundancies and confusion—which is why the concept of the metacloud is currently trending. The metacloud is an approach that governs multicloud management and establishes a compatible, unified interface through which a company’s various cloud or SaaS platforms must run. Metacloud solutions ensure all the benefits of cloud computing—scalability, flexibility, and cost savings—are not lost in the midst of overlapping cloud services.
In a related article, Gartner has suggested that as a result of the proliferation of data and resources within each single industry, there is an emerging trend of industry cloud platforms. These platforms combine SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS solutions for specific industry verticals to essentially create a custom metacloud ecosystem.
Advanced Connectivity
Several experts, including those at McKinsey and Gartner, recognize we are on the edge of a new wave of connectivity, which will impact a wide range of industries from telecommunications, IT, and media to aviation, retail, and utilities.
Sub-trends within this category, like 5G, wireless, internet of things, and Bluetooth, don’t appear that groundbreaking in 2023, but their growth is still significant—and in fact an HBR article suggests they are hitting the “tipping point of mass adoption.” Although this tipping point refers to total number of users, it can also apply to the way enterprises are changing their approach to adoption—historically, they often let individual departments shape their IT priorities but are now investing in a top-down approach that ensures consistency and scalability across the entire organization.
Advanced connectivity will continue to drive and accelerate digital transformation, pushing organizations to reevaluate their infrastructure, processes, supply chains, eCommerce, and customer service. As enterprise infrastructure becomes faster, more secure, more sustainable, and more cost-efficient, companies will begin to leverage their systems to harness even greater opportunities. As Gartner states, “wireless is moving from a communications technology to become a broader digital innovation platform.”
Metaverse
The metaverse—or immersive technology—is largely still in early adopter phase, likely years away from becoming mainstream. In its current state, it appears applicable only for a narrow range of businesses. However, PwC acknowledges that though many business leaders question if the metaverse matters to them, the answer is a resounding yes.
The metaverse in its current iteration is reminiscent, PwC says, of the internet’s early days, with lots of speculation and overvaluation. But taking the steps now to understand it better will give leaders a head start for envisioning how this technology will impact business. Although the more obvious use cases are in gaming, entertainment, and tourism, there are other applications, including eCommerce, engineering, data storing and analysis, remote collaboration, employee training, and customer experience.
McKinsey expert Richard Ward points to the potential of “practicing” the development of many innovations within the metaverse first, where it is low cost and offers infinite opportunities to explore—all before building or training on a new product in the real world. Ward hypothesizes the global economic impact of the metaverse will be in the trillions of dollars at its peak, impacting every individual person and business.
Clean and Green Technology
According to Bloomberg, clean energy is on a clear trajectory to mass adoption. Meanwhile, HBR reports that environmental social governance (ESG) are top of mind for consumers and employees alike, particularly in the realm of sustainability and net-zero carbon initiatives. As a result, clean technologies are moving into the spotlight, with the goal of increasing energy efficiency and reducing negative environmental impact.
At first glance, clean technology appears niche, taking the form of products such as renewable energy, EV batteries, and LED lighting. But experts point to the larger implications that will impact businesses across a broad spectrum of industries. In fact, Deloitte recently launched GreenSpace Tech, an offering to accelerate sustainability in business through climate technology. Furthermore, Gartner suggests cloud sustainability, carbon footprint measurement, and advanced grid management software are three specific clean technologies that are growing rapidly and promise to revolutionize business models, strategies, and processes.
McKinsey says that climate technology will transform the global economy, impacting every industry. From complex supply chains and energy usage in the technical infrastructure to everyday water and paper waste, companies can leverage clean technology to achieve net-zero initiatives, attracting eco-conscious customers and employees.
Top Technology Trends and How They Impact Your Business
As businesses seek to better understand these top tech trends, it will become increasingly clear that the trends are all interconnected. As HBR reports, the challenge lies not in figuring out where to prioritize and invest, but in understanding how these technologies work together for greater opportunity and innovation. HBR calls these “combinatorial” trends.
Ultimately, positioning an organization for the future will require building a team of IT talent that can strategize, implement, and maintain an agile digital infrastructure. At Resource 1, we have spent years building relationships within the IT community to both better understand these tech trends and how they impact businesses. We are uniquely positioned to find the right opportunities for IT professionals who are seeking something new as well as helping companies recruit the best-fit talent for their needs.