CompTIA released its Outlook 2023 report. Let’s run through it.
The first item, Business As Usual Gets a Hard Reality Check, is a key one. Quoting the report.
“Business as usual is no more, and doing things as we always have may no longer be the safe option, even for companies that are content with flat or minimal growth,” said Carolyn April, senior director of industry analysis at CompTIA. “Many technology businesses will have to leave their comfort zone to thrive. That means thoroughly examining and adjusting their current operations, sales and marketing, human resources, and strategic innovation efforts.”
The evolution of the customer is why these steps are necessary, according to April.
“Customers are as enthusiastic as ever about the role technology plays in their success, but they’re also much more scrutinous and demanding in their tech journey,” she explained. “If you sell technology, the ability to convincingly make a specific business case for every product or service is not just a nice sales differentiator anymore; it is essential.”
The complete report covers ten trends in total. I’ll highlight these additional five.
- Worker-employer Relationship Gaps Expose New Challenges in Hiring and Retaining Tech Talent – Employers will be tested to fill positions with workers skilled in new and emerging tech disciplines and support roles while balancing a newly empowered workforce and macroeconomic uncertainty.
- Cloud Acceleration Drives Demand for Orchestration and FinOps – Acceleration in cloud computing adoption has led to most organizations taking a cloud-first approach. The next adoption stage will focus on handling the complexity of a multi-cloud environment.
- Vendors and Partners Eye Greater Automation With Optimism – and Concern – Tech vendors and their partners will need to work together to find automation comfort zones that are efficient and connected rather than disconnected and cumbersome.
- Cybersecurity Metrics Are Tied to Evolving Risk Analysis Approach – Risk analysis has grown in popularity for organizations to measure progress in cybersecurity. But most firms are not yet performing analysis in a comprehensive way. That will change, driven heavily by ongoing digital transformation.
- Inflation Uncertainty and Supply Chain Issues Continue to Complicate Sales Forecasting – A confluence of economic factors has found countries and companies grappling with high inflation rates not seen in decades. In 2023 companies will have a much-diminished ability to forecast sales accurately quarter to quarter.
Why do we care?
It’s getting to be that time of year – I’m writing my 2023 predictions to release at the end of December. Tech Talent is becoming a recurring theme, one I heard both at Acronis’s CyberFit Summit and IT Nation. I’m dismissive of the noise of tech layoffs – the actual story in IT services is employee scarcity.
There’s a bit too much jargon in this report – I’m not sure what to make of the automation prediction, despite my interest in improving the productivity layer.
That cybersecurity prediction feels too weak to me – I’ll clarify. Insurance companies will set the rules for what’s measured, as the technology space failed to answer the need.