Nothing stands still for long when it comes to business and technology, which means that it often pays to try and stay ahead of the curve by keeping pace with the latest trends and how they enhance and influence your own company.
Keeping up to date is essential when it comes to investment opportunities for example, accessing market prices here from Money Morning, being one example. Here is a look at some expected technology trends and innovation changes that are expected to become established practices in the future.
The post-PC world ahead
One of the strongest technology trends and indeed, a shift in the way many of us lead our daily lives, is the ever-increasing shift away from using our PC and migrating towards mobile devices instead.
If your business is not highly visible and accessible via mobile technology, there is a fair chance that you could be swept aside by a tsunami of rivals who have geared themselves up to adapt their business model to reflect the fact that commerce and all things internet will be primarily driven via mobile devices.
The unstoppable rise in mobile technology usage is not seen as a passing trend but a definite shift in the way people communicate and carry out transactions such as shopping, banking and many other aspects besides.
Time to re-invent the core wheel
One thing that is particularly noticeable when you take a look at a number of different industries, is that their core systems that are the engine room driving their back, mid and front offices, are in definite need of a technology boost.
Digital innovation is only truly possible if the core systems that are the very IT foundation required to meet technology innovations in the future, are re-invented and are modernized for the challenges ahead.
Blockchain technology can have a big impact
You may well have considered Bitcoin to be something that would fade away into the background after such a high-profile appearance when the digital currency first hit the scene, but the blockchain technology behind Bitcoin could have a much bigger impact in the future.
One of the problems that many businesses are trying to face up to and find a solution to, is how to acclimatize to a global economy that is becoming ever-increasingly digitized
Trust is a valuable currency in business, arguably more valuable in the long run than Bitcoin for example, which is why some forward-thinking businesses are exploring the blockchain technology behind the digital currency and seeing just how it could be used to create a level of institutionalized trust that could eventually underpin business and government transactions, with a revolutionary new infrastructure.
Some analysts believe that blockchain technology can have a profound impact on how we communicate and complete transactions in the future, creating a change in the way we work that is as radical as the invention of the internet itself, which is some prediction to make.
Internet of Things continues to grow
So many devices, including even household appliances, are becoming increasing part of the Internet of Things revolution.
Beyond an intelligent fridge that tells you when you have run out of milk and places an order for you, there are a number of savvy businesses who are investing heavily in developing IT systems and data management processes that are built around the Internet of Things strategic thinking and principles.
What this actually means, is developing the capability to move beyond simply passive anticipating and reporting that then requires intervention to take the next step, and instead, having a system that has an automated response.
You might use the Internet of Things to ensure that your fridge never gets empty at home, but the business community are seeing that it offers some real technology breakthroughs that translates seeing to doing.
Planning for the future
It seems that the majority of business executives have expressed general concerns about the speed of technology changes within their own specific industries, which is understandable, but those fears can be negated when you put some viable plans in place.
If you are going to embrace innovation and use it to your advantage in order to grow your business and improve efficiency, you are probably going to have to take a bold approach and take a look at where your in-house innovation ambitions lie.
If you are not already making use of big data and mobile technology for example, it could be a good time to see what innovative changes you could embrace in order to drive your business forward.
Peter Berry enjoys writing articles on a variety of technology, business and investment topics. He is recently married with a baby on the way, building up his business and enjoying life!
