TechMarketView Predictions for 2012

Once again the TechMarketView team has gazed into its crystal ball to bring you our predictions for 2012.

We start today with our chairman, Richard Holway, and will follow with predictions from the rest of the team over the next few days.

Eligible TechMarketView subscription service clients can download the full series here. 

Richard Holway Predictions 2012

1 “It’s the economy, stupid”

Although what happens in the general economy – UK, Europe, US and globally – has always had some impact on the UK SITS scene, it has often been minimal. Indeed, UK SITS has often thrived in downturns – indeed, growth has been spurred by the need to cut costs/change business models etc.

But the UK faces the possibility of an unprecedented downturn which is just bound to affect the UK SITS sector and, indeed, consumer tech too. The Governor of the Bank of England was recently asked “What will happen to the economy in 2012?” and replied “I don’t know what will happen tomorrow, let alone next year”.

So, the greatest driver for our markets in 2012 will be the economy. The greatest problem facing the executives in the UK SITS sector will be uncertainty. Nobody – not the Governor of the BoE or any TMV analyst – can accurately predict what will happen.

2 – Consumerisation of Enterprise IT

Consumerisation of Enterprise IT is already an established trend but will become mainstream from 2012 providing huge threats and similarly huge opportunities. This will particularly apply to mobile, social and tablets.

3 – Bring Your Own Tech

Similarly, BYOT will also go mainstream. Enterprises supplying tech items such as mobiles, laptops etc to employees will become as uncommon as the supply of company cars.

BYOT will spur major growth in security systems and in desktop virtualisation. However, supply and support channels will be adversely affected by the BYOT trend in much the same way as manufacturers and suppliers of company cars were affected in the last decade or so.

4 – Social media bubble bursts

Consumer social networks have already peaked. The winners are in place. Valuations were always in bubble territory and that bubble has also burst. However, just like the internet bubble of 1999/2000, the world has changed. Social networks will have a huge effect on the next 10 years just as the internet has had on the last decade.

The real opportunities are now the adoption of social networks in the Enterprise.

5 – IT as a utility. “It’s business not IT, stupid”

For as long as I can remember, pundits have suggested that IT will become a utility – like the supply of electricity. They have made the point that nowadays nobody has an “Electricity Supply Director”. So, why do we have IT directors? Or even why do we have CIOs?

The acceptance of BPS means that in many companies that day has already arrived. Much of the previous IT budget is now controlled by user departments. Decisions are taken for business not IT reasons. CIOs are probably a dying race.

The same might well apply to some SITS companies. The need to supply a business solution already supersedes the need to supply an IT solution. I remember Paul Pindar has long objected to me ever referring to Capita as an IT company. –I suggest most other companies will object in similar fashion in the future.

Posted by HotViews Editor at '09:00' - Tagged: predictions