Nine Tech Imperatives CIO/CTO to Watch for in 2022

Automation, Actionable Intelligence, Hybrid Workforce, Innovation with Vision, Cross-functional teams will be the top areas in navigating the pandemic and building strategies tailored for long-term success in 2022.

I feel that enterprise evolution is no longer a fancy trinket that gives the company bragging rights;?rather,?it is an absolute necessity for the enterprise to remain relevant.

The turbulence of the past couple of years has come to a head as forward-thinking enterprises have adjusted to the disruption. As technology continuously metamorphoses into a malleable yet critical tool of competitive advantage, the modern world is now more tech-driven than ever.?

Today, I continue to acknowledge the need to build a holistic perspective of what technology?offers. Evolution at scale and pace is the metric that will decide who will or will not survive in the days?to come.?

As we bid adieu to the past year, 2022 opens its doors to us. The onus of building tech capabilities tailored to enterprise goals is on us?again?as technology becomes the core of a global business?paradigm shift.

With a sharp focus on the?future possibilities, here is my perspective of the top priorities?tech leaders?should look into as 2022 approaches.

1. Embrace Intelligent Automation?

The ground zero of AI and ML implementation has extended in sync with the familiarity between humans and technology.?Evolving from their?initial implementation to automate redundant/ labor-intensive/repetitive tasks,?AI and ML have?grown into a transformational tech necessity.?

I like to reimagine the?Artificial Intelligence (AI) acronym?as?'Actionable Insights'?and not without reason. As the value of data-powered AI and ML reaches an all-time high, it?is time for CIOs and CTOs?to factor in?'smart tech'?that converges creative human thinking with automated processes. This is the bedrock of a concept known as Intelligent Automation,?a vital enterprise imperative?that combines?AI,?RPA, ML,?and BPA to orchestrate complex operations to enhance?the?process,?its?governance,?and?pertinent?data interpretation thus elevating?value for?all stakeholders.?

2. Keep an?Eagle Eye on Emerging Tech

As a leader, the disruptions of the past year put me front and center of the staggering change in the way businesses and customers thought and acted. The pandemic and its ramifications were catalysts of a lightning-fast technological revolution?that demands the integration of technology into every aspect of the business?to cater to the?market's 'never-seen-before' demands.???

With next-gen technologies?like?blockchain, quantum computing,?and unprecedented levels of RPA, global enterprise acceptance of emerging tech has witnessed a significant spike.

Enhanced immersion and building better products?and services are pertinent issues as emerging tech acts as the harbinger of?societal evolution,?the crux of which depends on how we interact with and experience technology.?

3. Build Strong Agile Mind-set?

Come 2022; enterprise agility will be synonymous with relevance as organizations across the globe leverage tools like SAFs (Scaled Agile Frameworks) to build greater flexibility and accelerate IT functions.??

Building an Agile?mindset?and matching tools and processes is now a mission-critical element of business success.?C-Suites?need to build agile capabilities if they wish to keep?in step with the flux of the macro-environment?and?remain?aligned to the specific niche they currently serve.??

4.?Strategize Best-Ever Employee Experience?

I have always believed that?the employee makes the organization,?and delivering a fulfilling employee experience is?crucial to?building value-based relationships with clients.

Pivots in talent acquisition and retention strategies will be key metrics of business success,?with technology acting as the prime facilitator and?the common denominator across stakeholders.?HR departments need to sit?in with C-Suiters to strategize for a best-ever employee experience.

5. Cloud and Collaboration is the?Core?

From where I stand,?I foresee the need for?hybrid and remote policies are?to extend well into 2022.?CIOs?need to blueprint and begin building on their companies'?hybrid work capabilities?while emphasizing?the necessity of?Omnidirectional?communication and collaboration?to enhance?productivity and efficiency.?

CTOs need to re-examine?Cloud technology as a tool to empower collaboration, storage,?and even service administration.?Such an approach?can shield?core business processes against socio-cultural and transactional evolutions driven by the possibility of a re-occurrence of a pandemic.??

6. Strong Vision and Energy for IT Innovation?

You can take a horse to water, but you can't make it drink. A willingness to accept change and?continuously innovate?is becoming a business imperative.?Building a?"smart structure"?that allows teams the energy and flexibility to adapt to technological change and direct their efforts towards overall business evolution is a mission-critical element of business success.??

The responsibility of bridging the gap between technology and the workforce lies with?CTOs. They?must assume the role of front-line champions?of business evolution in the macro space while also being?change?managers?dedicated to acclimatizing?teams to the new IT environment.?

7. High-focus on Cross-Functional Team is New Norm?

Business is evolving; so is the market,?and so are customers. As technological know-how increases in vitality, teams can no longer remain?siloed, or in other words,?restricted by their function.?

If CIOs want their enterprises?to remain relevant, there is a pressing need to focus on building?workforce?capabilities?as technologically adept as the function it is assigned to.?All tech influencers within the organization need to redouble efforts to?promote and incentivize upskilling within the organization.

Building diverse capabilities that support cross-functionality among teams will?offer competitive advantages when rolling out an intuitive product or service that resonates with its users.?

8.?Gear Up for Hybrid Enterprise?

The apprehensions?that enterprises faced during the outset of the pandemic have?now,?for the most part,?dissipated.?CIOs have?realized that given the right resources and?effective management, employee efficiency and productivity levels remain consistent, sometimes?exceeding pre-pandemic traditional work-from-office benchmarks.??

My experience states that the ideal employee?enjoys working?and draws meaning from it. A?slight nudge in the right direction and?the assurance of flexibility can lead to?the formation of an?ultra-effective working model that could prove to be a massive,?long-term?asset for enterprises?across sectors.

Bidding Adieu to?The?'Old'?and Welcoming in The?'New'?

As an IT leader, I am constantly?looking?for new technology and digital toolsets that could enhance productivity. From evolutions pertaining to tech assets and?policies and processes, I am excited for the?changes that 2022?is set to bring.??

As an enterprise, it is necessary to nurture a culture where people feel free to challenge the status quo and are treated with respect and trust while fostering a people-first approach towards day-to-day business operations.

At?Radixweb,?we are committed to?prepare?global?businesses to?propel?into a tech tomorrow.?Upscaling?our team to?prepare?for emerging technological?evolution?is also high on our agenda. We are constantly evolving our?employee?experience to?achieve?the?epitomes of a value-driven culture,?where every employee envision themselves as part of a greater mission, beyond simple revenue and profits;?this 'Human' perspective puts sustainable growth at the forefront, resulting in?our?market dominance.??

Continuing as a nimble?focused yet empathetic part of the workforce is essential?for C-Suites,?especially if the decision-making process rests on them. In summation,?I would like to end with an afterword by Darwin-

"It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change."

I wish all the decision-makers to achieve the most out of tech this year. If you feel I have missed some important priorities, do share in the comments, and if you have a business needing tech expertise, my team and I are happy to consult.?