Each year we hear predictions for the upcoming year. The information technology (IT) field has a plethora of prognosticators during this time. In this story, I will explore many of those predictions, and hopefully next year, we can look back and see if they were fulfilled or completely missed.
First, let’s start with Accenture and what the company is calling the six biggest IT trends in 2014. The authors explore the digital-physical blur, workforce trends, the data supply chain, harnessing hyperscale solutions (low-cost data centers), the business of applications, and architectural resilience. The one I find the most interesting is the workforce-to-crowdsource trend they mention.
I like this trend, not because it is groundbreaking but because it breaks the mold on traditional outsourcing by creating collaborative work groups.
Next, let’s look at Gartner, which is one of the most respected research firms in the world. The company has a whole site dedicated to predictions for 2014. Gartner believes that IT faces a disruptive and constructive year ahead, from the digital revolution to the skills needed for applications teams to deliver the right products to business customers.
Unfortunately, Gartner is selling this information. Gartner did, however, release something from its newsroom about 2014 and beyond.
IEEE Computer Society gives us its ten technology trends on its website. From mobile cloud to scientific cloud, the authors’ predictions fall in-line with what other professionals are saying with the exception of e-government, smart and connected healthcare systems, and new learning styles. The authors also introduce a new term called extreme data.
Yes, another term has been thrust upon us, but their prediction is not what you think. It’s not about bigger data; it’s about giving people the tools to glean knowledge from the big data dilemma many companies face, which involves having lots of data but not knowing what to do with it.
Finally, let’s look at IT tech trends for small businesses. This BusinessNewsDaily article covers how small business will become more cloud savvy and how Windows 8 will disappear.
The biggest prediction I see from the BusinessNewsDaily article is how mobile and social media will become critical to the future of small business and that Facebook will switch from “content creation to content consumption.” This would be the biggest change and one I would think Facebook would welcome as a way to spur growth for its services.
So, what do you think? Are these predictions pipe dreams or are they so broad that by default they will come true? What do you predict for 2014?
