Make Emerging Tech Your Competitive Advantage

Summary

In this episode of ThinkCast, Kasey Panetta speaks with Leinar Ramos from Gartner about the Emerging Technology Roadmap. They explore how this tool helps organizations navigate tech planning by highlighting 111 key technologies, focusing on what businesses should prioritize in the next 12-18 months. The discussion touches on trends like the rise of edge computing and challenges such as the talent shortage hindering tech adoption. Leinar also shares insights into controversial trends like IT automation and emphasizes the importance of using the roadmap for benchmarking and planning technology strategies.

Takeaways

• 😀 The Emerging Technology Roadmap is a tool created by Gartner to help organizations plan and benchmark their technology investments for the next 12 to 18 months.
• 😀 It is based on survey data from organizations, providing insights on which emerging technologies they are investing in and their outlook on these technologies.
• 😀 The roadmap differs from the Hype Cycle by focusing on short-term technology trends (12 to 18 months) rather than long-term predictions (2–10 years).
• 😀 The roadmap features six categories: compute, storage, network, automation, security, and digital workplace, covering a wide range of technologies within each category.
• 😀 This year, 111 technologies were selected for inclusion in the roadmap, based on recent research, including the Hype Cycle, and internal debates among Gartner analysts.
• 😀 For each technology, three key questions were asked: its value, associated risk, and current deployment phase (monitoring, planning, pilot, or full deployment).
• 😀 One major trend identified is the acceleration of technology investment in 2021, particularly in edge computing, which allows for real-time data processing near its source.
• 😀 Talent shortage emerged as a significant barrier to technology adoption in 2021, surpassing other risks such as security or vendor maturity.
• 😀 Zero Trust Network Access is highlighted as a key emerging technology, emphasizing a shift from perimeter-based security to continuous authentication and verification of devices.
• 😀 IT automation, despite its growing importance, became a controversial topic in 2021, with some organizations becoming more selective in their automation investments, particularly those focused on improving customer experience.
• 😀 Organizations can use the Emerging Technology Roadmap to benchmark their technology adoption plans and as a starting point for creating their own technology roadmaps.

Q & A

What is the Gartner Emerging Technology Roadmap?

The Gartner Emerging Technology Roadmap is a tool designed to help organizations navigate their technology planning. It provides a benchmark by summarizing data from a survey of organizations on their technology plans, focusing on emerging technologies that they are investing in or skeptical about in the next 12 to 18 months.

How is the Gartner Emerging Technology Roadmap different from the Emerging Technologies Hype Cycle?

The Emerging Technology Roadmap focuses on a shorter-term horizon (12 to 18 months), helping organizations understand which technologies are currently being adopted and planned for near-term investment. In contrast, the Hype Cycle looks at technologies with a long-term perspective, including those that may take years to develop or deploy.

What categories are covered in the Emerging Technology Roadmap?

The roadmap covers six categories: three for core infrastructure (compute, storage, and network) and three for IT (automation, security, and digital workplace).

How many technologies are featured in the 2021 Gartner Emerging Technology Roadmap, and how are they selected?

This year, 111 technologies are featured in the roadmap. The selection process involves analyzing recent research, including previous Hype Cycles, gathering input from clients, and debating internally among Gartner analysts to determine which technologies to include.

What are the key factors assessed for each technology featured in the roadmap?

For each technology, the survey assesses three factors: value (how valuable the technology is to clients), risk (the level of risk associated with deployment), and deployment phase (whether the technology is in the monitoring, planning, pilot, or full deployment stage).

What is one of the positive trends identified in the 2021 roadmap?

A positive trend identified is the acceleration of technology investment, particularly in edge computing. Organizations that had previously been piloting edge computing in 2020 are now fully deploying it, recognizing its value in scenarios requiring real-time data processing near its source.

What is the major negative trend highlighted in the 2021 roadmap?

The major negative trend is the talent shortage, which has become the primary risk for technology adoption. Many organizations are facing difficulties in finding skilled professionals to implement emerging technologies, hindering progress in adopting new solutions.

Why is talent considered a major risk in technology adoption?

Talent is considered a major risk because the implementation of new technologies often requires specialized skills. As organizations invest in emerging technologies, they find that the lack of skilled workers can delay or limit their ability to fully deploy these technologies.

What is one technology Leinar Ramos is particularly excited about, and why?

Leinar Ramos is excited about zero trust network access (ZTNA). ZTNA shifts the security model by not trusting any device by default, continually authenticating and verifying devices to prevent cyberattacks, especially in a more remote and decentralized work environment.

What is the most controversial technology trend identified in the 2021 roadmap?

The most controversial trend is IT automation. Despite being seen as crucial for future operations, the adoption of some IT automation technologies slowed down in 2021, with organizations becoming more selective and focusing on automation that directly enhances customer experience, rather than internal efficiency.