The Acceleration of Tech is About to Get Even Faster

To get an idea of how fast the tech landscape is changing, consider this: Digital adoption in the consumer and business sectors fast-forwarded five years in the first eight weeks of lockdown in 2020.

This push for growth and innovation resonates with the law of accelerating returns, which says

1. There is a common force driving technological progress (specifically information technology)
2. It speeds up exponentially over time

The disruptions we have seen in the past two years have amplified this phenomenon and the challenges and opportunities that come with it. The labor shortage, computer chip shortage, strikes, remote work, and inflation have all contributed to the current landscape. You can see it all around–our homes are now connected hubs for work, school, and play.

The pandemic has shown us how fast tech can evolve and has driven us towards accelerated automation on several fronts. Human intervention is needed less and less. Being able to adapt, respond, and jump on things like automation is crucial to any business wanting to stay relevant in the coming decade.

How Acceleration is Raising The Stakes

Constant Usage: 75% of people who began using digital channels for the first time during the pandemic indicated that they planned to continue using them when things return to “normal.” In fact, many of our behaviors are changing directly from better technology.

A More Powerful Network Effect: With larger groups of people in the digital sphere, the network effect is also accelerating alongside general tech. Seemingly overnight, there are new products and services that explode in popularity, leaving little opportunity for second place innovators (Tik Tok is a perfect example of this). This means the winner takes all and slow-to-innovate gets left in the dust.

Greater Internal Investment: The same risks are also true for internal initiatives. Offering strategic tech can improve productivity and fulfillment, but knowing how and where the focus needs to be is mind-boggling. To guide your organization to a successful outcome, leaders need to be fully aware of the internal and external pressures. You need to be ready to pull the trigger and take calculated risks.

Tech is an expansive industry, but scholars agree that the following industries are where growth in 2022 will be most noticeable:

• Computing: the AI market is forecasted to grow to $309.6 billion USD by 2026 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 39.7%
• Biology: such as the computing needed for the processing needs of mapping the human genome
• Energy: especially renewable energy
• Manufacturing: building precise components, using more diverse materials, and monitoring with IoT systems

Success in the Age of Tech Acceleration

The competitive global market requires growth from organizations to be continually successful and there is plenty of room. Looking over the past year, tech stocks in 2021 have been a triumph for both businesses and investors. The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (includes groups such as Microsoft and Amazon) has grown 42.3% in 2021.

This means that some things will be easier (expansion) but other things will be harder (finding developer talent).

In fact, we think the scarcity of technical talent is the number one threat to businesses over the next decade.

Building the necessary team for your success is possibly the most important initiative you can invest in. Simply put: if you don’t have a team to build and improve your digital products, you cannot be successful.

To find valuable engineering resources, you need to understand the needs of your organization and identify the culture you have cultivated. This will help attract the right developers and propel your success forward. As we like to say, it’s not as simple as, “let’s brag about PTO days.”

Creating people-focused organizations should enable organizations to gain a competitive edge on the monopolization of talent in large corporations.

It all starts with one step: understand what matters most for your developer’s career (surprise, it’s not always about compensation).

As you look to accelerate your own organization, look to Devetry to help accelerate that growth. Our culture is centered around respect, appreciation, and collaboration. Coupled with our drive and desire to solve problems, we can use our diverse team to bring value to your ideas by bringing them to market faster than ever before.

Tech is continuing to grow exponentially. We can help you get your organization to the next level.