During the past two years (even during the past month or so), it’s become incredibly clear that life often doesn’t go according to plan. As a result, it’s impossible to say for sure what we can expect to happen in 2022.
However, it seems safe to say that technology will continue to play a major part in our daily lives. Business leaders have learned that digital transformation is vital to survival, and those who continue to invest in new and emerging technologies and focus on meeting modern consumers’ expectations will likely keep leading the pack during the upcoming year.
2022 Industry Predictions
If you’re adjusting your IT strategy and pondering what 2022 has in store for the tech world, here are a few notable predictions from industry experts to guide your efforts.
1. Many businesses will increase their tech spending. Global IT spending is projected to rise to $4.5 trillion in 2022, a 5.5 percent increase compared to 2021, according to Gartner. Enterprises are expected to focus on securing infrastructure and supporting hybrid work models. The 2022 State of IT report from Spiceworks Ziff Davis aligns with Gartner’s projections, stating that 53 percent of North American and European businesses plan to spend more on tech in 2022 than they did in 2021. Major factors driving up IT budgets include tech projects, infrastructure upgrades, increasingly urgent cybersecurity concerns, and supporting remote employees, among others.
Customer Experience Evolves
2. Customer experience (CX) solutions will be in high demand as companies strive to keep up with evolving expectations. In 2022, Forrester portends that 80 percent of consumers will see the world as 100 percent digital. Subsequently, they’ll expect the companies they interact with to expertly leverage new technologies to deliver exceptional service. Products that enhance CX in the digital era will become essential for organizations looking to maintain a competitive edge.
3. Businesses navigating complex tech marketplaces will turn to IT consulting services for guidance. It’s easy for clients today to feel overwhelmed when trying to identify the best products. For instance, Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) options have proliferated in recent years, and it can be difficult to compare your options if you lack an in-depth understanding of the marketplace and the underlying tech. As a result, many companies will seek IT consulting services in 2022. “Consultants play the role of expert, helping guide customers through the things they do not know and have not considered, such as choosing the right fit for their business needs, understanding how to integrate that in with their current environment or how to secure it and ensure compliance,” states the CompTIA IT Industry Outlook 2022. “A business and/or technology consultant can be a vital lifeline in all these areas.”
Cybersecurity Remains a Threat
4. Cybersecurity will remain a top priority as threats continue to evolve. Remote work infrastructure and greater cloud adoption has led to the extinction of the traditional perimeter, and organizations across all industries will need to make new investments to safeguard their data and networks against modern threats, according to CompTIA. Proactive measures such as penetration testing, vulnerability scans and extended detection and response (XDR) have become imperative for companies that want to avoid catastrophic data breaches.
5. Businesses will increase their reliance on managed services to support distributed workforces. Managed services are expected to account for 17 percent of IT budgets next year, up from 16 percent in 2021 and 15 percent in 2020, according to Spiceworks Ziff Davis. Outsourcing IT support is an increasingly attractive option as companies require access to a broader range of tech expertise and in-house IT teams no longer have the advantage of physical proximity for organizations with distributed workforces.
Contributed blog courtesy of Stratosphere Networks and authored by Kevin Rubin, president and CIO at Stratosphere Networks. Read more contributed blogs from Stratosphere Networks here.
