Digital transformation, automation, low-code - the top IT priorities in 2021

By David Brown, Founder & CEO, TORO Cloud

David Brown, Founder & CEO, TORO Cloud

While the process of creating new digital products or services out of existing systems and processes or data was already on the minds or directives of CEOs before 2020, the presence of the Coronavirus pandemic has shifted and accelerated IT priorities overnight.

Remote working forced organizations to accelerate their digital transformation efforts. But, in order to facilitate this transformation, a lot of change – both technological and cultural – would have to be undertaken in order to move forward.

We look to 2021 with a lot of optimism, but there will certainly be some changes needed for organizations to safely navigate through the challenges of the year to come.

Here are TORO Cloud’s top predictions for the IT industry in 2021.

1. Flexible, remote working options are here to stay

A lot of offices around the world have either shuttered off or have become hot-desking sites due to the pandemic. The remote workplace and work flexibility is going to stay, as several organizations have realized that they’re seeing a lot of productivity improvements from this.

But, it’s not going to be entirely remote.

We recognize the fact that some people will still be more productive in an office environment, as not everyone lives in a house where they have their own office spaces. Some people work in the living room where their children watch TV, in the garage, or in their kitchens where there can be a lot of distractions. Others need the hustle and bustle of the office, where they can bounce off the ideas of other colleagues and plug into the office energy.

But one thing’s for sure – ongoing support for working from home is going to be the norm for most organizations. This means employees will come in two-to-three days a week, or when they just need to. People who need to be there CAN be there. The pandemic forced us to look at the current work setup and realize that we can transform our workplaces with the technologies that we have. We now have the power to apply what’s practical and what makes the most sense for organizations to do.

2. Digital transformation and automation will be the highest priority for CIOs moving forward

With remote working becoming the norm, digital transformation and automation will be a top priority. CIOs will need to deliver on digital transformation for their organizations to provide guard rails around user-generated systems and shadow IT, while ensuring that they improve customer experience. However, because of all the staff reductions and the challenges brought by the pandemic, they’ll have to achieve this at a fraction of the time and the cost. And they can do this with automation.

Any business looking to survive will have to automate their business processes, IT support, and workflows. Before, automation was only a “nice to have”, and was always placed on the backlog. But now, automation will become the foundation that will allow organizations to progress.

3. Organizations will adopt multi-cloud strategies to innovate

Organizations will go multi-cloud to leverage the features that they love from each provider – especially the ones that work very well with their native systems. Cloud providers will reach a saturation point with their features and technologies and will start building applications or services that people aren’t really demanding – so they’ll have to accept the fact that they have to play well with other public cloud providers to make their customers happy.

Organizations aren’t going to be locked-in to just one cloud vendor – rather, they’re going to have the flexibility to choose from several vendors and come up with the hybrid solution that works best for their systems and make them communicate as a cohesive whole.

4. Enterprises will leverage on low-code to develop, deploy, and deliver applications quicker

As the need to respond to the digital, post-pandemic business landscape arises, the need for faster development, integration, and deployment of applications is putting pressure on the limited I.T. resources of enterprises. They will turn to using low-code application development environments, which will enable I.T. departments to produce more applications with fewer resources. Moreover these applications will result in smaller, more modular applications that are easier to maintain and can adapt to an organization's changing business requirements over time.