2020 for me was the most defining year from a technology perspective in all of the past 25 years I have been working in the industry.
The pandemic that we have all been dealing with has broken down barriers across a huge demographic range, kicking an already rapid phase of tech adoption over the last few years up a gear.
The almost universal shift to video working for the traditional office worker happened over the course of a month from the end of March as the realisation hit home that we weren’t getting back to the “office” any time soon.This was then taken a stage further in homes across the country on a nightly basis by families connecting for a virtual quiz or trivial pursuit over video to keep close to people that they couldn’t meet with anymore. Huge numbers of people who had never use the words “video conference” talking about Zoom, Teams and Facetime as if it has always been part of their lives.
I’ve experienced the change of acceptance first hand both in my own personal habits and with friends and family. My eldest son of 23 has grown up using his phone and his Xbox to socialise with friends , for him this was no big change. But prior to this year he and I never used video to speak to each other , always just a phone call or message. Fast forward 10 months and its unusual for us not to use video when talking to each other , its just become part of our routine.
My mother in law, a self-confessed technophobe in her “very early” sixties, is part of several Italian language classes. Some she attends , others she tutors , but all historically were held in person in someone’s house. Nowadays you can find her on most days , iPad in hand doing the lessons over Video. Will they go back to meeting in person ,yes , for some of the lessons, but not all of them as they’ve found they get more people involved with video sessions.
The recent news surrounding the decline of the high street retailer doesn’t really come as much of a surprise. On line retail has been accelerating over the past few years and the final nail in the coffin has come when people have simply not been able to leave their homes. Those that resisted buying on line have suddenly been forced to and with that a large proportion have found the experience enjoyable. Larger selections, easier to work out the cheapest price, no hassles with parking and all from the comfort of their armchair. This is forcing the retail industry to up their game even further.
My wife and I were recently looking for a new sofa and rather spend the obligatory Sunday afternoon traipsing round a retail park we did it online. The augmented reality available from one of the main high street retailers that meant we could “place” the sofa in our room to see what it looks like in situ was slick and easy to use. How long before this becomes the norm for more costly , if not all , purchases, my guess is that we’re not that far away as consumers are becoming more impatient and more demanding.
So how is this affecting the commercial world and the typical CIO or IT Director trying to construct and operate a sensible technology roadmap for whatever sector they operate in? It’s becoming near on impossible as the landscape is constantly shifting and changing, coupled with the fact that the influence and decision making within most businesses has changed in line with the cultural shift I’ve been talking about.
I’ve been involved in the selling Technology services for the past 25 years to commercial organisations and the shift of attitude in the board and C level over the past decade is significant. It wasn’t that long ago that the words “cloud” were being talked about in IT teams , written in strategy docs by CIO’s and pushed by the IT companies. Often the response from the rest of the C-Level would in some cases be cautious, in others point blank refusal due to a fear of new technology not being secure , reliable and robust. This approach over the past decade has moved from a position of distrust to one of concern if the “cloud” is not being used enough. Can we afford not to , are we falling behind the market. The fear factor switched around and is often now the CIO having to explain why certain services cant be moved to the “cloud” yet.
This challenge is now accelerating faster than ever due to the rapid adoption of technology over the past year and acceptance of a new normal. CIO’s are tearing their hair out as they hear that across their estate they have suddenly adopted Zoom , Teams , Webex, GoogleMeet, Slack and a handful of unpronounceable messaging apps because they are all used by staff “at home” or “with friends”. Board meetings are concluding with an instruction to “become more digital “ , “provide flexible working “ and to ensure that we are using Cloud services.
The workforce is also demanding change at an unprecedented rate, Generation Y, those who grew up in the 80’s and 90’s have been pretty good at adapting to the new technology as its become available. We have transitioned from mobile phone to smartphone, DVD Boxset to on demand service. Generation Z though, those that have been growing up in the last 20 years and are now entering the workforce , don’t know any different. They have grown up using all the tech that we see as leading edge in the workplace on their laptops and games consoles. Now in the workplace they expect more and their consumption of services in their personal life drives business demand even further.
The Forge view is that we are living through one of the most exciting technology adoption phases we have ever seen and we need to make sure we support our clients through the journey using all of combined expertise and experience. Getting the right technical foundations laid now to support the inevitable changes over the coming decade is critical and in our view the only place to start the journey. Our teams will work with you to understand the business and personal drivers that need to be taken into consideration to map out your digital roadmap and then work together to optimise those services.
We look forward to joining you on the journey!
