Top Predictions for IT Organizations and Users in 2021 and Beyond

Gartner revealed its top strategic predictions for 2021 and beyond. Their top predictions explore the role of technology in resetting, restarting, and responding to a world of uncertainty.

“Technologies are being stressed to their limits, and conventional computing is hitting a wall,“ said Daryl Plummer, distinguished research vice president and Gartner Fellow. “The world is moving faster than ever before, and it’s essential that technology and processes are able to keep up to support digital innovation needs. Starting now, CIOs can expect a decade of radical innovation led by nontraditional approaches to technology. “

“The future technologies that will lead the ‘reset of everything’ have three key commonalities: they promote greater innovation and efficiency in the enterprise; they are more effective than the technologies that they are replacing; and they have a transformational impact on society,“ added Plummer.

After years of decline, the chief operating officer (COO) role is rising in prominence among born-digital companies. A COO is an essential component for digital success, as they understand both the business and the ecosystem in which it operates. The CIO, with an in-depth knowledge of the technology that facilitates business impact, can increase enterprise effectiveness by taking on components of the COO role to fuse technology and business goals.

By 2025, 75% of conversations at work will be recorded and analyzed, enabling the discovery of added organizational value or risk. In the same period, traditional computing technologies will hit a digital wall forcing the shift to new paradigms such as neuromorphic computing, Gartner predicts.

By 2024, 30% of digital businesses will mandate DNA storage trials, addressing the exponential growth of data poised to overwhelm existing storage technology. By 2025, 40% of physical experience-based businesses will improve financial results and outperform competitors by extending into paid virtual experiences.

By 2025, customers will be the first humans to touch more than 20% of the products and produce in the world. By 2025, customers will pay a freelance customer service expert to resolve 75% of their customer service needs. By 2024, 30% of major organizations will use a new “voice of society“ metric to act on societal issues and assess the impacts to their business performance.

By 2023, large organizations will increase employee retention by more than 20% through repurposing office space as onsite childcare and education facilities. By 2024 content moderation services for user generated content will be surveyed as a top CEO priority in 30% of large organizations.