In 2022, we expect three key software industry subsectors to consolidate: operational efficiency, emerging and consolidated technology, and risk management.This article will discuss why these subsectors offer businesses promising solutions to address organizational pain points and discuss specific trends that leaders should be mindful of.
Operational efficiency
Operational efficiency isn’t new in software, but as technology innovates, so do business solutions. The resulting reduction in time, labor, and financial resources required to complete a given task can substantially impact a business’ bottom line. In addition, as new solutions become available, organizations have the opportunity to evaluate their current practices to determine where to generate cost savings.
Areas like Robotic Process Automation (RPA), cloud services, and continuous integration and delivery (CI/CD) can help reduce or reallocate labor costs to put resources where they’re needed most.
RPA helps automate processes like communication, delivery, or financial transactions, which can help organizations respond to inquiries sooner by not being limited to traditional daytime opening hours. On the other hand, cloud services can help reduce IT infrastructure costs by reducing or eliminating the need for physical storage and server maintenance, enabling IT staff to prioritize different business functions. Lastly, CI/CD allows programmers and developers to update software and resolve issues as they happen, allowing for faster go-to-market timelines and reducing time-consuming rebuilds between product releases.
Emerging and consolidated technology
To gain a competitive edge in the market and streamline business processes, investing in emerging or consolidated technology can give businesses the upper hand. Emerging software technology refers to innovations that are still evolving, while consolidated technologies are solutions that are already helping to simplify the technological environment.
Early adopters of emerging technologies have the opportunity to gain a competitive advantage through innovation and dictate the market. However, for most businesses and organizations, consolidated technologies that help simplify technology use can be a game-changer by producing greater efficiencies and opening new revenue streams.
With respect to emerging technologies, augmented reality (AR) and blockchain continue to gain new use cases that can potentially change how users interact in digital environments.
As 5G technology gains greater adoption rates, the potential for AR is seemingly limitless. AR technology is already a hot topic in industries as diverse as autonomous vehicles manufacturing, healthcare, and building construction and maintenance. Additionally, occlusion AR, which puts an object in a 3D space, also has practical applications for consumers in the areas of navigation, retail sales, and arts & entertainment.
Similarly, blockchain technology is gaining momentum. Growing applications in this field include integration with governmental services, the emergence of national cryptocurrencies, blockchain as a service, and the use of blockchain wallets to purchase and track retail transactions.
In consolidated technologies, low code development and artificial intelligence (AI) for applications are helping make software and application development more accessible and efficient.
Low code development helps streamline software delivery by abstracting and automating each step of the development cycle. Low code environments present programmers with a graphical user interface rather than a traditional hand-coding interface. As a result, industries can work to keep up with software demand by simplifying the development process without requiring the level of expertise of traditional programming languages.
In addition to low code development, AI for application development can reduce dependency on data engineering by enabling app developers to use software solutions to build data models and select from use cases. By doing so, app developers can benefit from AI and machine learning technology to create mobile and web applications that require significantly less overhead.
Risk management
As more and more industries move to digital business solutions, risk management becomes a greater priority. By using risk management software, organizations can address data and security vulnerabilities.
Companies are investing in customized software development with security features specific to their organization or industry to defend against cyberattacks and data breaches. Whether it’s creating in-house solutions or custom integrations with existing vendors, customized software development is an increasingly popular option for organizations to protect prized information.
Using software trends to plan for long-term viability
Innovations in software can arise quickly, but implementing them into an organization’s core functions often takes significantly more time. By planning today for tomorrow’s essential technology, businesses can strategically position their organization for long-term success. Whether that means using technology to reduce costs or disrupt the market, forward-thinking organizations can help set the tempo for the next generation of business best practices.
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