To Be or Not to Be? - - A fly by on trends that can be rooted for...

TRANSFORMATION

IT infrastructure Modernisation & Digital Transformation is clearly cliché since the scope of such is vague!! Every transformation journey is unique and begins with a start from where one is, and the easiest path is by identifying a common problem and looking at the quickest path to fix same. Then iterating on learnings from implementing and moving up the transformational cycle!! Be it as simple as converting a desktop to a mobile device to drive efficiency of employees or deploying a common development platform or cloud based offering at an enterprise level it is no doubt a transformational exercise! There is no one recipe for the perfect Digital Strategy!! But the important thing is that you talk to your Transformation agent on how to Plan yours!! Manage for today innovate for tomorrow!!

INTENSIFICATION

Speaking to your colleagues or chatting with your friends on a messaging app, ordering Pizza or just paying thru a debit or credit card for your clothes order online leaves a data trail or as some may call a digital footprints. Today this datafication of our lives especially thru the social media platforms have led to a major explosion in Data. Facebook receives a whopping 900,000 logins, 450,000 tweets are posted on twitter while 156million emails and 15 Million texts are exchanged by us in an average minute. These numbers ensure that we double the amount of Data created in the world every 2 years.

JUMP IN THE CURVE

This incredible growth in data, would not be possible without the enormous leaps in computing power that we’ve made. Between 1975 and 2015, computing power doubled at a rate of every two years, before slowing to the current rate of approximately every two and a half years. While traditional computing has probably come full cycle we are yet pushing the boundaries of physics to get more out of less. Quantum computing probably the most significant transformation of computing power ever, quantum computing will see computers become millions of times faster than they are right now. While it’s still a race to see the launch of the first commercially viable quantum computer, its advent will make us capable of solving problems that today’s computers can’t handle. And more importantly solve some issues that we have not even thought of.

RE-EVALUATION

The rise of the “intelligent” machines while sounding right off an end of time apocalyptic Hollywood blockbuster means even more processes, decisions, functions and systems can be automated and carried out by algorithms or robots. Today we see the first set of these automated bots take over some of the mundane, repetitive, dirty & dangerous jobs. They are executed faster, safer & more precisely. However Beyond this, machines, robots and algorithms will replace or augment – many other jobs, even including professional jobs like in the fields of law or accounting. Very soon it is expected that jobs like that of truck drivers to bricklayers to doctors, can be affected by automation.

THE NEW AGE 

The growing automation has led to the invention of 3D printing which is becoming a disruptor in manufacturing, as well other industries, in many positive ways. Subtractive manufacturing, process leads to objects being cut or hollowed out of material, such as wood, metal, using cutting tools. But with 3D printing it’s all about additive manufacturing. Object being created by laying down, or adding, layers of material. 3D printers can use pretty much any type of material be it: plastic, metal, concrete, liquid, and powder, even chocolate or human tissue! 3D printing, has opened the way for far more complex shapes to be created than in traditional manufacturing it also allows for much greater customization of products, without worrying about economies of scale.

HUMAN ENOUGH

The way we interact with technology keep on changing and today we have a generation who only know to conduct business by touch. Mobile web usage has screamed past traditional computer web usage. Google re-confirms that more searches are on mobile than on desktop. comScore predicts that by 2020 50% of all searches will be voice searches. Today due to this changes in our engagement with technology all kinds of businesses are gradually integrating their products with the likes of Siri, Alexa and Google Assistant. Virtual reality and augmented reality represent the next huge leap in interface innovation and in transforming how businesses interact with consumers. 

COINING

Companies like IBM have invested millions of dollars and dedicated thousands of personnel for research on blockchain technology, 90% of all American banks our exploring this and over 69% of banks globally are experimenting with permissioned blockchains. So what’s the big hype? And what is the difference? Today blockchain promises an extremely secure decentralised database. To be slightly more technical, it’s a distributed, peer-to-peer ledger of records. We have seen so much that we know nothing is ever totally ‘hack-proof’, however blockchain represents a huge leap forward compared to current data security technologies. Unlike a centralized database, there’s no one single point of failure. The records in a blockchain are called ‘blocks’ and every block is connected to the previous block. The whole chain is self-managed, which means there’s no one person or organization in charge of the entire chain. If that sounds familiar, it might be because the virtual currency Bitcoin functions on blockchain technology. Financial Services, Healthcare & insurance are the promising early adapters but this technology is still evolving and so are the unlimited use cases.

BRACE YOURSELF

A platform is commonly explained as a “raised level surface on which people or things can stand.” Similarly in a technology front a platform remains to do the same service. it is essentially a network (Physical or Digital) that creates value for participants by facilitating connections and exchanges between people for services, products or information. Usually the platform is never the actual service provider; instead, it is a facilitator to the crowd, making interactions possible, easy, and safe. The Amazon’s, Airbnb & the Uber’s were founded on platforms as well as the very foundations of Twitter & Facebook. Today we see a great shift coming where even traditional businesses are looking aggressively at their platform strategies.

As mentioned earlier "Manage for today innovate for tomorrow"! Easier said than done! today with so much of hype & clutter around in an ever changing dynamic landscape where technology trends come and go like the wind it was important to distinguish some tech that is rooted firmly than the rest. These will affect change in how we perceive, interact and carry out our day to day activities in the future.