A recent top 10 list from Gartner (dated October 23rd 2012) has come out identifying the top trends in 2013 within the IT industry. The list is:
- Mobile Device Battles
- Mobile Apps
- Personal Cloud
- Internet of Things
- Hybrid IT & Cloud Computing
- Big Data
- Analytics
- Mainstream In-Memory Computing
- Integrated Ecosystems
- Enterprise Apps
Think what you may of Gartner lists; however, in my years within this industry, I’ve noticed that for the most part they provide a decent snapshot of industry trends. There are some on this list that I agree with and others that I don’t. From personal experience, I’m noticing that the mobile device battle and hybrid IT are trends in the market that started in 2010/2011 and will continue to grow in 2013. The “mobile device battle” is one that started off as a battle but has turned into a scrum in more recent times. With the advancement of different toolsets, corporations are more easily equipped the hardware and software required of their employees when bringing in their own devices. That being said, while the process has become simplified, it still requires some design, planning and strategy behind it.
They “hybrid IT” model, is one that PEI has been advocating for years (since the mid 2000s). With the growth of the virtualization movement, many organizations have learned that this “hybrid” approach is the correct path to take. The majority of organizations are afraid of putting of all their proverbial eggs into the cloud basket; however, at the same time, would like to use the benefits of the cloud. We’ve seen that with the proper planning and virtualization tools, any organization can create their own private clouds, which negates the fears of control, access, etc… while at the same time delivering the benefits of having a cloud based system.
As we turn the calendar over, look for these trends to continue and new ones to emerge. After all, the only thing consistent in our business is change and advancement.
Andrea Leonhardt, PEI
