Well it’s officially the New Year and along with well-intentioned but insanely optimistic personal resolutions, we are also treated to a vast list of predictions for the coming year.  Typically, these predictions focus on news, disasters, sports, celebrities or politics. I’ve been waiting for some industry specific oracles, but generally the most that appears from the IT gurus is focused on technology tools and toys. I don’t have any earth shattering personal resolutions to share this year, since they are all the same as last year.  I do, however, feel compelled to share my predictions about the future of the IT industry as a whole – not technology and tools, but demand, careers and the evolving role of IT in society as a whole. 

 Information Technology is changing, and these changes are beginning to accelerate as society responds to economic and social pressures.  Here are my predictions for trends we will start to see over the coming year in the IT industry:

 

We will see a DECREASE in…

We will see an INCREASE in…

1. 

RFPs issued for major IT projects

RFRs for specific project roles with specialized skills/expertise.

2.

 

Demand for network/server staff roles

Contracted network/server/infrastructure services

3. 

CIO/VP IT roles at executive level

IT Director/Manager roles at operational level

4. 

Enterprise Architecture and Technology Architecture within organizations

Business Architecture and Information Architecture within organizations

5. 

Trying to view IT as a ‘partner’ with business

Viewing IT as an utility or contracted service

6. 

Maintaining IT as a separate operational unit and cost centre within the enterprise

Absorbing business-focused IT expertise into business units and supplementing with external contractors

7.

Custom application development by major organizations

Identifying and adapting packaged solutions to meet key business requirements

8.

Maintaining IT resources and developers for key business applications

Contracting with external providers for application hosting and maintenance

9.

Vendor controlled and defined products

Client controlled agreements defined by service levels

10.

Considering IT as a distinct, specialized industry and profession

Fragmentation of existing array of IT functions into specialized, distinct types of services

 
So these are my predictions.  Nothing earth shattering, I think, but not everyone will be comfortable with some of the direction stated here.  Over the coming months, I’ll take each of these items and expand on it in my regular blog, to provide some context for the observations and hopefully generate some discussion.  As the year progresses, we’ll see how close I am in each of these predictions!