2010: Investment in innovation will be back

Dr Giles Nelson, director of strategy at Progress Software, looks forward to innovation firmly coming back onto the agenda as the global upturn begins.

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3. Mobile computing will be the biggest driver of innovation

Vast leaps have been made in the last few years to break the PC stranglehold on personal computing. Smartphones, PDAs, ultra-portable laptops will continue to improve substantially. Together with better wireless communication and location positioning technology these devices promise to deliver the ‘always connected’ and ‘context aware’ computing systems that have been promised for some years. Mobile, consumer-oriented social networking applications will be a very innovative area with business applications using and translating successful trends. The Internet is now properly mobile -- using a Web browser on a PC to access it will seem almost old fashioned.

4. Real-time insight and business control will become a must-have

Organisations can ill-afford to lose money and customers through being slow to notice problems in delivery. In 2009, our research found that 67% of businesses only become aware of problems when customers report them. Better real-time insight into what customers are doing is required. 80% of companies already have critical business events they need to monitor in real-time, but currently only 8% of organisations report on these. In 2010, insight into these events powered by the right technology, will be essential to success.

5. CIOs will be forced to justify IT investments

The recession has killed off the notion of ‘IT for IT’s sake’ once and for all. CIOs must demonstrate rapid return on investment, business relevance and the strategic importance of IT to innovate, to ensure funding is released for projects.

What may seem like small changes in IT -- further innovations in mobility, increased cloud take-up and changes in our approach to managing information -- will lead to new frontiers opening up. Driven by the need to work efficiently, reduce costs and innovate together with a world economy beginning to recover, 2010 will see much greater innovation than the straightened times of 2009. CIOs must ensure they’re aware of their skills, technologies and trends, which will further lead to an always-on, information ‘now’ business environment.