Trends for digital transformation in 2021

In the 2020 era of the Global pandemic, going digital has not been any longer a luxury for businesses but an issue of survival in the market. Digital transformation was vital to enable remote working, moving forward to collaborative workflows, and to re-align operations. 

The pandemic has swung digitalization to the topmost priority in the brains of the CEO. It has become an inspiring force to encourage companies to upgrade their customer experience and generate higher ROI (Return on Investment).

Many companies have begun their journey of digitalization, while some are at the planning stage. There is a dynamic technology landscape. Though the pandemic put limits on organizations to adopt digital drivers like Big Data, Automation, Digital workforce, etc., they were soon supplanted with the next huge wave of digitalization. Such a wave has introduced fresh patterns that will impact the new normal of the business world.

Thus, the pandemic has intensified a new change in the business world- that of digital transformation across all industries the world over. Industry experts note that the last 6 months have seen more efforts of digitalization compared to the last decade. The tectonic shift in the business world is set to move into full gear in 2021. With regard to the complete adoption of digitization in 2021, we can expect more milestones in technological innovation in the near future.

Following are the top trends in digitalization of businesses expected in 2021:

Hyperconnectivity

If Science Fiction movies of the last decade had their way, the whole world would have been hyper-connected by the start of 2021. Though the reality may be distant from the imagination of the reel, the fact is that we are quite near to this reality. Particularly in current times, when the lockdown due to the pandemic has forced everyone to connect with each other digitally.

The concept of hyperconnectivity basically implies continual connectivity between machine to machine, machine to person, and person to person. Thanks to the internet of high speed and connectivity in real-time, connectivity from machine to person and person to person have become a reality. Digital capacities are also enabling companies to construct an IoT (Internet of Things) system that is always connected in which machines communicate with each other.

Additionally, because of the sudden boom in demand for excellent network strength, 5G initiatives have been put in full speed in 2020. Therefore, what was dreamt in theory so far, has been converted into practical usage.

Hyperautomation

This was a top trend projected for 2020 and will stay as an important trend for 2021. Hyper automation has also spawned a trend of Hyper autonomy. With digital automation and end-to-end intelligence, machines will become increasingly autonomous, needing very less manual interference.

The progress in the field of autonomous cars is only one example in which digitization and automation are set to revolutionize the world of logistics and mobility. These autonomous, digital devices prove to be important in the implementation of stringent measures with regard to situations like the Pandemic era.

In the world of software testing, automation has already carved a deep impact. In 2021, one can expect a wider expectance of test automation as a favoured mode of software testing. This will result in higher quality and faster releases.

Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions are being created and deployed to a much greater degree. The buzz as regards Intelligent Test Automation is gaining much attention from global IT companies. Having observed the advantages of using ML and AI capacities in processes like software testing, such digitalization trends are expected to rise in the coming months.

Cybersecurity

Both users and providers of software solutions have always been wary of concerns of Cybersecurity. Also, the rise in such awful cyber incidents has also worsened such concerns.

If 2020 has been the glory year for digital transformation services, it has also been the ideal time for malicious elements to compromise the security of the IT infrastructure of organizations.

Since currently, most organizations are operating remotely, from the IT sector to the Education sector, Cybersecurity has emerged as a top priority. Because of the model of remote operations, there is a broader area and lesser control for falling prey to a cyberattack. Hence, the smallest ignorance or neglect can prove fatal to an organization.

The new normal is expected to be remote working. Hence, organizations need to not only consider the vulnerabilities and risks of their in-house infrastructure but are also required to consider the end points of external users. Though it is much more challenging to secure this fresh set up of the network, it has become more critical than ever.

Digital banking

Financial institutions (FI’s) are expected to offer digital functionality which is both quick and straightforward. FI’s will focus on internal procedures, processes, and data flow to instantly satisfy the rising needs of customers like giant tech companies. Sometimes, FI’s may indulge in isolating their layer of external presentation from the data layer in the back-office to enhance the digital experiences of consumers.

5G going mainstream

The benefits of 5G have been discussed in the last few years. But the pandemic and its impact on digital collaboration, video-conferencing, and distant work have brought fresh impetus to the adoption of 5G and its enhanced bandwidth and connectivity.

The rising dependence on gadgets like tablets and smartphones highlights the need for multi-path expressways as envisioned by telecom providers. Currently, organizations cannot afford to be disengaged, and arrangements for 5G have become vital.

API

Most companies have adopted Cloud for continuity in their business. API’s (Application Programming Interfaces) are vital in constructing Economies of Scale. From transforming legacy infrastructure to micro-services, API’s will help companies with lowering data siloes and enhance collaborative experiences. It will also help them transform distributed applications into a single giant data bank to help them make critical decisions and raise overall ROI.

Work from home

The trend of work from home has been demanded by workers always in the last few years, but companies were reluctant to grant this concession. However, the pandemic era has transformed the scene, making work from home the new normal, especially in areas with lockdowns. Many big companies like Facebook and Google have extended work from home arrangements to 2021. Small companies are keeping such flexibilities as operational choices.

In sum, the lesson of 2020 was that every business should be a digital business. Also, in the next normal, all companies must be capable of creating value as per the speed of requirements. The future is that of autonomy and automation.