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IT will see major change in 2012
January 30, 2012The next 12 months will witness significant and systematic changes in IT, as many of the emerging trends of 2011 gain a firmer hold on the enterprise. According to a recent 451 Research report, a number of technologies are poised to change the way business IT departments function.
One such technology is mobile applications. During 2011, many organizations focused on developing mobile device management policies and similar solutions to allow employees to use personal smartphones and tablets for voice and video functions in the workplace. During 2012, 451 Research expects companies to shift their focus to mobile applications, either purchasing or building their own solutions to ensure that workers have access to the tools they need to be as productive as possible.
The enterprise data center is also expected to experience a major shift during the coming year. Modular setups are poised to become more popular in 2012, delivering flexibility and efficiency to enterprise IT environments, the report said. According to 451 Research, the majority of new data center construction projects in the coming year will be built on modular principles, changing the supply chain and disrupting how IT manages data center assets. Furthermore, the news source explained that how data center resources are handled will change, as innovative systems solutions will lead to more converged architectures, specialty servers and low-power processors within IT.
Data center networks will also change. IT departments will increase their dependence on software-oriented network systems, the report said, as they work to adapt hardware deployment models to match the requirements set forth by virtual server architectures. Essentially, the traditional network is being replaced by a more fluid, adaptable infrastructure that is heavily supported by software-based solutions.
Essentially, both the end-user experience and the underlying hardware that lets IT deliver that experience are set to see major changes in 2011. Because of this, businesses may want to consider upgrading their IT help desk software and CMDB systems. The help desk shift is necessary to handle the new end-user experience that many organizations will roll out through mobile updates, while the CMDB has to be in place to ensure change management is handled properly when data center enhancements are put in place. Without these supporting systems, the technology upgrades designed to improve productivity and efficiency could be mired in an excessive learning curve and difficulties establishing interoperability within IT.