Trends Identified
Design as a Discipline
Design should be much more than a project phase. Design is already part of the IT vocabulary. Functional design. Technical design. Detail design. Testing design. User interface (UI) design. Technical architecture design. And, more recently, user experience (UX) design – a hot area of focus as consumer technology experiences are resetting expectations for corporate IT. Throughout its history, however, design has generally remained a discrete set of deliverables or project phases, completed by specialized teams at distinct points during a project’s lifecycle. Individual facets of design have reflected little understanding of other related project activities, much less the broader context of the business vision and expected outcomes. Meanwhile, usability, intuitiveness, and simplicity have moved from aspiration to mandate, with the business having access to new ways to get what it wants: directly procuring cloud services, digital solutions, and mobile apps that are “good enough” to meet their needs. In this open marketplace for IT, business relevance and user engagement are competitive currency. Many CIOs find their organizations lack the skills and craft to mint the new coin. What’s missing may be a commitment to design as a business discipline, a commitment that takes shape by asking: What benefits would we gain if design were a pervasive and persistent aspect of each part of the enterprise? This kind of thinking moves design from just another software development lifecycle (SDLC) phase to an integral part of the IT environment. It shifts the focus from “How do I meet the requirements?” to “Why is this important in the first place?” and “How could we innovate to improve it?” Enterprises can reach this vision, but it often takes a deliberate approach, intentionally applied, by a new mix of talent. The CIO is positioned to make it happen.
2013
Tech Trends 2013 Elements of postdigital
Deloitte
IPv6 (and this time we mean it)
The backbone of the Internet is straining. And we’re running out of time. Internet Protocol (IP) is how we connect to anyone and anything on the Internet. Every participating device, application, or service has a distinct address – a way to identify itself and communicate with other devices, applications, and services. Today’s IP standard, IPv4, dates back to the 1970s. It allowed for 4.3 billion unique IP addresses, which was more than sufficient to meet the computing demands of the time. Fast forward to 2013, with more than a billion personal computers in use1, a billion smartphones2, many times as many corporate desktops, laptops, network equipment, and servers, and a growing number of non-traditional sensor and actuator devices, including cars, thermostats, aircraft engines, elevators, and vending machines. IP addresses have become a scarce resource, already exhausted in some regions: Asia Pacific (APNIC) ran out in April 2011; Europe (RIPE) in September 2012; and IPv4 in North America (ARIN) will likely be fully assigned by spring 20145.
2013
Tech Trends 2013 Elements of postdigital
Deloitte
Finding the Face of Your Data
Hidden patterns in big data can trigger breakthrough insights – if you have the data scientists to guide discovery In December 2012, an Internet search for “big data” returned more than 100 million results. A 2012 report from the Wikibon community pegged the big-data marketplace at $10 billion in 2012, growing to $48 billion in 20151. In the past year, over $1 billion has been invested into private companies that focus on big data solutions2. The majority of big-data market growth can be attributed to business’s increasing interest in related analytics capabilities to drive improved decisions through improved insight. Not surprisingly, some business executives feel big data is over-hyped. Others claim its value is under-realized.
2013
Tech Trends 2013 Elements of postdigital
Deloitte
Gamification Goes to Work
Moving beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Leveling, point-tracking, and bonuses can recognize and reward desired activity. Leaderboards and progression indicators can steer individuals to the next tier of personal and business performance. Quests and countdowns can shape behavior. It’s all part of gamification – and it’s having a real impact on businesses worldwide. Gartner predicts that by 2015, 40% of Global 1000 organizations will use gamification as the primary mechanism to transform business operations1. Unfortunately, many early efforts never moved beyond tactically layering on points, badges, and leaderboards to pockets of the business. In fact, Gartner predicts that by 2014, 80% of current gamified applications will fail to meet business objectives primarily due to poor design2. Gamification’s potential is much bolder – systematic adoption within and across the business, tightly integrated with the core systems that drive front- and back-office functions.
2013
Tech Trends 2013 Elements of postdigital
Deloitte
Reinventing the ERP Engine
With a super-charged engine, businesses can drive new performance. ERP is no stranger to reinvention, overhauling itself time and again to remain relevant through disruptive waves of client/server and the Web. Its formula for success? Expanding the very definition of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) from financials to manufacturing to supply chain management to CRM to HR and more. Beyond new functional capabilities, it has also expanded into information – business intelligence, reporting, and analytics allow organizations to build predictive models. For a while, the focus was extensibility through integration platforms, application servers, and orchestration suites. Today’s momentum is around ubiquity. Organizations are striving to make ERP accessible in many ways – on your mobile device, in your collaboration suite, or in your social streams.
2013
Tech Trends 2013 Elements of postdigital
Deloitte
No Such Thing as Hacker-proof
You’ve been breached, or you soon will be. Now what? Who can forget that great line from the movie Field of Dreams? “If you build it, they will come.” It’s an inspiring incentive of future rewards to be reaped for challenging work today. But in the realm of cyber-threat defense, it is also an unfortunate likelihood. If you build something of value, others will likely come to steal it. No matter how you secure your environment. No matter how many redundant walls or how many futile moats you have.
2013
Tech Trends 2013 Elements of postdigital
Deloitte
The Business of IT
After reengineering the rest of the business, IT’s children deserve some shoes. With shrinking budgets and increased scrutiny over ROI, many IT organizations are under pressure for bottom-line company earnings. This manifests in two ways: enabling the business to be more effective in the market (IT for the business), and driving efficiency of IT operations (The Business of IT). To do both, IT organizations should automate and integrate their core processes and services, just as they’ve done previously for manufacturing, finance, and sales. When it comes to supporting business performance, IT has a thirty-plus year record of delivering what’s needed. First it was the transition from manual processes to technology-driven solutions. Then, from standalone systems to integrated offerings. And now, IT is striving for similar returns from information, digital, and innovation. In the years ahead, however, IT’s value proposition will likely increasingly be shaped by how well it addresses its second mandate: to improve operational efficiency in the business of IT itself.
2013
Tech Trends 2013 Elements of postdigital
Deloitte
Social Business
Reimagining business with a social mindset Even today, business leaders may dismiss the potential of social business, either relegating it to the realm of Internet marketing or ignoring the buzz as a passing fad. But that’s changing as boomers evolve into digital natives, millennials permeate the workforce and social media becomes a part of daily life. The doors are now open for social business.
2012
Tech Trends 2012-Elevate IT for digital business
Deloitte
Gamification
Gaming gets serious Gamification is about taking the essence of games – fun, play and passion – and applying it to real-world, non-game situations. In a business setting, that means designing solutions using gaming principles in everything from back-office tasks and training to sales management and career counseling. Game mechanics lie at the heart of gamification. For example, achievement levels, pointtracking and bonuses are ways for desired activities to be recognised and rewarded. Leaderboards and progression indicators can steer individuals to reach the next tier of performance. Quests and countdowns can help shape behavior – the former as a way to structure long combinations of tasks for a larger goal; the latter to motivate a flurry of activity within a finite, specified timeframe.
2012
Tech Trends 2012-Elevate IT for digital business
Deloitte
Enterprise Mobility Unleashed
Businesses are embracing mobility. Now comes the hard part Rapid technology developments in wireless connectivity and mobile devices marked the beginning of the mobility revolution. Next came the apps renaissance, when intuitive, engaging pieces of software, tailored for smartphones and tablets, began to change our dayto- day lives. The revolution has now reached business. Many organisations today find mobile initiatives popping up in every business unit, in every region and in every department. The floodgates have opened. Now what?
2012
Tech Trends 2012-Elevate IT for digital business
Deloitte