Technology is constantly changing. Unfortunately, not everyone is always lucky to be at the forefront of new innovations. According to a recent study by the Software Development Times, out of 450 heads of digital transformation, 360 said they felt they were a risk of being left behind.
To help you stay in the loop so you don’t suffer serious financial and market losses, or go out of business altogether, below we discuss the top seven digital transformation trends for 2018 to keep an eye on.
- Internet of Things (IoT)
Today, up to 8.4 billion tech devices are connected in one way or another, according to Gartner. That’s 30% up from last year. The internet (especially fiber optic and Wi-Fi) has ensured that whatever goes on in the workplace can now be controlled from a single screen. Expect this trend to continue and grow even stronger in 2018.
- Data Analytics
Another trend businesses need to keep a keen eye on is analytics. This primarily stems from the growth of IoT. With so much data at their disposal, businesses will be employing mathematics and statistics gurus to crunch the numbers and derive useful patterns for growth. Analytics is already being used by many industries to improve employee productivity, cut costs, and increase profit margins.
- 5-G connectivity
Internet speeds as we experience currently aren’t slow. 4-G, for instance, fetches data in the fraction of a second. That’s way better than what we used to get three or four years ago. Experts, however, expect that 5-G which is even faster could be officially rolled out over the next couple of months. The three companies leading the 5-G connectivity drive are Nokia, Intel, and Dell EMC.
- Edge computing
When cloud computing first entered the market, excitement went through the roof. Coming up is edge computing which is even better than cloud computing. Unlike cloud computing where data has to be transported from the cloud, edge computing provides the necessary data instantly!
- Artificial Intelligence to go Mainstream
AI has been around for a while now. The likes of Alexa and Siri can now be commanded via voice to “lock the garage door” or “schedule a meeting with the board.” This is just the tip of the iceberg. Expect even more devices to be developed as the technology gains wider acceptance.
- Fast Failure as a Service (FaaS)
You’ve probably seen Greamline advertise their “chaos engineering” solution. If you never understood what it all means, chaos engineering is where you purposefully break down your business so as to learn how to get back up should a similar disaster strike. Expect this type of fail prevention strategies to become popular in 2018.
- Digital transformation becomes a must
Finally, brace for digital transformation transitioning from an exciting buzzword to a must-have business strategy. With the digital environment shifting quickly and significantly, businesses will sooner than later realize that they cannot survive without input from a digital transformation agency.
Keep up to date with these trends or risk being left behind as the tech revolution reaches fever pitch.
