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Top technology trends that will help CIOs and CTOs shape their business and IT strategies

Author Rogers Business

Learn more about the technology trends that will shape your IT and business strategy. 

Girl looking at tablet surrounded by servers

With digital transformation accelerating during and after lockdowns, this year marks a pivotal time for many organizations. Businesses now expect to rely more on digital infrastructure as automation and software become critical to operations.

CIOs and CTOs face tying an unprecedented digital transformation to business strategy. Pressure for a proactive digital strategy demands that you address the following trends now critical to business success.

Bigger investment in cloud

The mass disruption of the early 2020s accelerated enterprise cloud adoption faster than predicted. Executives are keen to leverage IoT, cloud and AI to improve the way their organizations operate. As a result, IT budgets are expected to jump 3.6% in 2022.1 With the increased investment in the cloud, organizations are planning to migrate more than 75% of workloads to the cloud over the next two years.2

Leveraging cloud-native platforms helps increase the value, efficiency and effectiveness of moving workloads to the cloud versus the traditional lift-and-shift approach. In addition, many software-as-a-service providers are working to develop industry-specific, customizable cloud applications for specific use cases. The constant advancements and developments in cloud technology make it an effective platform to help you with digital change.

Shift to hybrid cloud

Over the next five years, hybrid cloud is expected to experience tremendous growth. Over 83% of businesses view hybrid cloud as the ideal IT operating model because of its security, flexibility and scalability.3 In conversation with Rogers for Business,4 PCL Construction CIO Mark Bryant agreed with the importance of moving to the cloud, mandating his team to “move everything to the cloud”several years ago.

The ease of seamlessly sharing workloads, data and applications allow hybrid cloud platforms to deliver higher productivity and resiliency to companies. The agility of the cloud allows for continuous improvement and reduces the costs and risks associated with investing in physical infrastructure. Ultimately, organizations look to hybrid cloud because it links the benefits of private and cloud computing. It allows you to maintain the reliability and scalability of the cloud with the compliance-based security of on-premises and private cloud solutions.

Ransomware mitigation

With the explosion of smart devices and a shift to hybrid work, data security is a big concern for many companies. Ransomware is the latest in a line of cyberattacks that have increased by 25% since last year. It is affecting a variety of industries and the number of attacks keeps increasing year over year.5 Having data held hostage is not ideal and affects both the bottom line and reputation.

Employee error is one of the key factors contributing to the number of attacks. 82% of breaches involved the human element – either using stolen credentials, phishing, misuse or simply an error.5 So, it is important to keep these attacks from reaching a person. Modern ransomware mitigation strategies include data protection, data backup and improved firewalls, which can help you prevent or mitigate the fall-out of ransomeware attacks.

Holding IT accountable

Nine out of ten IT executives say that they are now being held more accountable for the financial impact of IT investments than in previous years.6 This marks a shift in enterprise strategy from survival to growth, with technology now being used to optimize work versus facilitate it. This shift prompts CIOs and CTOs to focus on:

•          Cutting technology costs by consolidating IT investments

•          Easing digital friction and mitigating employee app fatigue

•          Increasing organizational agility and resilience

•          Tightening cybersecurity

•          Shifting from legacy processes to innovation-based models

A holistic digital solution can help you undo the damage done by reactive investments. By consolidating workflows, systems and processes into a holistic system, you can aim to simplify and optimize your technology infrastructure for the future. This is already a top priority for many, with more than 80% of C-suite leaders planning to optimize digital experiences and unify digital tools and channels.2

Upskilling the hybrid workforce

85% of respondents to a C-suite survey believe the ability to attract, develop and retain talent will be critical in the coming decade, especially considering the all-digital workplace. 2 However, only 46% of them have plans in place to develop and attract talent in 2022.2

CIOs and CTOs must now take responsibility for training hybrid workforces in a new set of core competencies. Many companies today are investing heavily in developing skills around cybersecurity, automation, digital literacy and dexterity. So, it is important for technology leaders like yourself, to work with HR to develop such training programs. This will help ensure that your organization maintains a competitive advantage in the digital future of work.

Committing to sustainability 

Sustainability is no longer just a buzzword, but an environmental, economic, and business driver that’s changing our day-to-day lives. In business, committing to sustainable practices is no longer a “nice to have.” Typical business sustainability practices revolve around manufacturing, supply chains and resource allocation, and utilization.

Recently, IT has been seen as a tool to promote sustainability by using technology, the cloud and smart devices (IoT) to control power consumption and increase energy efficiencies. In addition, many CIOs and CTOs opt to use energy-efficient hardware for servers to reduce energy consumption and promote sustainability initiatives. There are even programs that can help you recycle or even resell your old IT equipment. However, these initiatives only affect the symptoms but not the problem.7,8

A resource-based view of IT and sustainability make a business case for the use of shared servers and IT resources.9,10 The idea is that by leveraging shared IT resources like cloud computing, you can reduce IT hardware waste and energy consumption at the same time. 7,8

Establishing IT as a strategic partner

IT teams have garnered an unfair characterization in many organizations as either being an obstacle to achieving business outcomes or being a backend support function—a cost centre as opposed to place where non IT savings can be generated. This must change as businesses increasingly rely on technology to facilitate work. As Bryant puts it, “our big shift was ‘How do I free up [IT] to focus on the business?’... We moved over 1300 servers to the cloud, which allowed us to spend less time babysitting technology infrastructure and retrain ourselves to focus on enabling the business.”

IT teams should be viewed as business partners. A resource where departments can convey their strategic objectives and solicit technology-based recommendations. IT teams can then leverage their insights to find solutions to best suit those goals and advise on the risks, costs and timelines. If you can advise and implement digital strategies to support your organization you will ensure that future IT investments align well with your company’s overall goals.

Technology is the future of business

How a business operates in the future is shaped by the tech trends that CIOs and CTOs are grappling with today. Technology priorities need to be aligned with the overall business vision and strategy. You must be well informed of current tech trends and be able to align business goals and strategy with technology, helping you help your organization succeed.

How Rogers Business can help

To successfully implement these trends, a strategic partner can help you navigate the ever-changing technological landscape. Working with a managed services provider like Rogers Business can help you consolidate systems and leverage technology without having to worry about how to manage them.

Being your trusted partner, Rogers Business can not only provide you with the right solution and support implementation,  but also offer you expertise and guidance to help your business grow and flourish. Our help frees you to focus on what you do best.

Rogers Business has a variety of cloud and data centre as well as voice and collaboration solutions that can help you take advantage of these tech trends.

Referenced from:

  1. Eide, Naomi. “3 Cloud Trends to Watch in 2022.” CIO Dive, 7 Jan. 2022, https://www.ciodive.com/news/cloud-iaas-trends-2022/616860/
  2. Unily. “Top 5 Trends Every CIO Should Know for 2022.” Unily, Unily, 17 Dec. 2021, https://www.unily.com/insights/blogs/top-5-cio-trends-to-know-for-2022
  3. Nutanix. “2022 Cloud Computing Trends - Enterprise Cloud Index.” Nutanix, 2022, https://www.nutanix.com/enterprise-cloud-index.

  4. Article forthcoming at https://www.rogers.com/business/blog

  5. Verizon business. “2021 Data Breach Investigations Report - Verizon Business.” Verizon Business , Verizon Business , 2022, https://www.verizon.com/business/resources/reports/dbir/
  6. Torres, Roberto. “Improving Day-to-Day Operations a Central It Focus in 2022.” CIO Dive, 7 Dec. 2021, https://www.ciodive.com/news/IT-priorities-2022-AI-IoT-cloud/611104/
  7. Bradley, Adrian, et al. “What Does Sustainability in It Really Mean?” KPMG, KPMG, 10 Mar. 2022, https://home.kpmg/uk/en/blogs/home/posts/2022/03/what-does-sustainability-in-it-really-mean.html.
  8. Groombridge, David. “Top Strategic Technology Trends for 2022.” Gartner, 2021
  9. Howard, Chris. “Leadership Vision for 2022: Top 3 Strategic Priorities for CIOs.” Gartner, 2021
  10. Torres, Roberto. “5 Tech Workforce Trends for 2022.” CIO Dive, 18 Jan. 2022, https://www.ciodive.com/news/tech-workforce-trends-2022-labor/617171/