This is not a list of trends that includes the Metaverse, Blockchain, Crypto and other Big Tech buzz terms. We wanted to gather our thoughts on how 2022 will likely shape everyday businesses and empower them to work better with their customers and employees.
In the third and final part of our list about tech predictions and trends, we are going to explore which technology strategies and trends will help businesses transform, adapt and win in this new reality. Part One and Part Two are also available and will help you improve your business and marketing operations in 2022.
We are facing a hybrid future where product/service consumption, work, interactions and life in general, will become increasingly integrated. Businesses will transform outdated service offerings into hybrid digital/physical offerings to improve customer satisfaction and create new opportunities for profit.
Businesses have invested millions in digital transformation and new technologies over the last decade, especially during the pandemic. Not all of these projects have succeeded, in fact, most of them have failed. And, from now on, we will see an increased interest among business leaders to safeguard their investment from the start, asking digital agencies and vendors for more transparency, cost and time certainty before the digital project starts.
Due to the common digital project failure, businesses will start auditing their operations, customer and employee engagement, technology, and experiences to understand what needs improvement before committing to an expensive digital transformation programme.
By transforming products and services into hybrid offerings, businesses open new possibilities to profit. We expect that the subscription business model will be one of the most popular and lucrative for companies of various industries. Subscription-based models enable businesses to connect with their customers better and keep them coming back to purchase. It also provides a better deal for customers as they enjoy products and services on demand, most of the time from their home, effortlessly and at a lower cost. And, businesses should keep in mind that convenience can be a great differentiator, just think of why we all use Amazon or Netflix.
Subscription models are not great just for entertainment companies and SaaS/PaaS businesses. They can work for other types of companies in healthcare, retail, food, professional services, education, and the list goes on.
As mentioned earlier, we expect 2022 to be the start of businesses providing personalised experiences that respect customers' data and privacy. This expands into the wider business environment including employees, partners, supply chain and third parties.
Privacy-enhancing computation is a method that secures the processing of people's data in untrusted environments. It uses various privacy-protection techniques to allow businesses to work with personal data and extract value from it while still satisfying compliance requirements.
Businesses will continue their efforts to become more agile and anticipatory. They will strive to reach a position where they are not preparing for "something that could happen" in the future but establish strategies with actional - dynamic steps that will prevent them from suffering after the crisis happens. It's about having the right technology, strategy, partners and mindset to act when crisis strikes, from security breaches and technology issues to health, financial and organisational difficulties.
Due to a significant shortage of software engineers and technical talent, companies will find it very hard to form successful in-house teams. Outsourcing or augmented teams will be the best solution in most cases. However, the process of choosing digital agencies and tech vendors will be even harder and longer, so businesses can ensure digital project success and cost certainty.
The struggle to find knowledge workers will increase globally, and companies will be forced to change and adapt. Adopting a hybrid model and culture will be an advantage, but businesses will also try other radical solutions like shortening the work week. They will invest in automation, advanced knowledge management systems, and internal communication to improve efficiency and connectivity. At the same time, the tools used for remote work provide insights that help managers measure and improve their team’s performance.
With all the above trends dominating 2022, businesses will increase their tech budgets to stay ahead of the competition, delight and retain their customers and win new ones. In fact, Gartner predicts that tech budgets will grow by 3.6% in 2022, the largest increase in a decade.
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