Whitepaper - Trends in technology

Whitepaper - Trends in technology: cloud, cybersecurity and remote workforce

100+ technology leaders discuss cybersecurity, data, cloud and organisational systems.

At The Studio @ Home, late in 2020, over 100 technology leaders were brought together virtually for an invite-only thought leadership event. These CIOs, CTOs, CISOs and Chief Data Officers hailed from six continents and represented the technology and digital functions at some of the world's largest businesses. The purpose? It was two-fold: to widen our understanding of the key technology and business trends affecting the global industry today, and to widen their own networks with the mindset that shared challenges make for greater solutions; they both form the very essence of what it means to be a part of a community. This White Paper details what the HotTopics.ht’s technology leaders community sees happening across three major technologies and trends: cybersecurity, cloud technology and the future of work. 

Cybersecurity, privacy and data

Overnight in early 2020, the CISO became one of the most crucial leadership positions in the industry. One by one country after country, business after business, made the difficult decision to send as many workers as possible home, under lockdown conditions. Suddenly, remote work was the new normal. Digital infrastructures had to quickly adapt to distributed teams, cybersecurity leads had to ensure both hardware and software were up to date to protect them from afar, whilst monitoring an opportunistic spike in phishing activities. The CISO’s remit spiked in tandem–but their CEOs and Boards were also watching (and reconsidering their investment ratio). 

Almost a year later and what have they learned? CISOs at The Studio @ Home debated their increased stock within the C-Suite and the new cybersecurity technologies proliferating the supply chains. They also considered the privacy measures in place and what the relationship was between that and increased monitoring capabilities, as well as the large volumes of data at their disposal to maximise their measures. Finally, region-specific challenges were discussed, as, from the US to the UK to India, cybersecurity leaders compared their company structures. 

Remote working and the hybrid workplace

The business trend that will define this generation is the future of work. In some quarters, remote working was touted as a future system even decades ago. Certain socio-cultural barriers remained however, such as lack of trust between middle management and employees, and so in many sectors frowned upon. That all changed in 2020 when businesses didn’t just continue to operate despite the pressures of a pandemic, but in some cases productivity actually increased. The genie was truly out of the lamp. 

There are consequences of remote working, however. Living conditions are now a board meeting discussion, family life lends with work on a daily basis as children, pets and unsuspecting partners flash into one’s Zoom call. Mental wellbeing has dropped significantly for a whole segment of the population and for leaders of business, empathy and vulnerability have been the characteristics that have defined leadership in a new normal. These technology leaders presented their own experiences of remote working and of their teams’, whilst considering the wider business implications of a more distributed workforce.

The future of cloud technology

Cloud computing proved its value in 2020. The technology has long been a feature of the investment landscape for CIOs and any movement along the journey of cloud adoption was only as fast as the vision (or impatience) of its technology executive. Yet the pandemic showed the quickest to adapt to remote working were those cloud-ready organisations. The remainder paid a literal price for their slow adoption. But, what next?

At The Studio @ Home the relative benefits between hybrid and on-premise cloud computing was debated, as was the importance of data and data governance strategies that will come to define the next decade of competition. Cybersecurity principles were also considered in relation to the vendor-client relationship—who has overall responsibility, was one such question. These trends in cloud computing, they showed, will come to define many other features of the digital economy. It also shows the cloud journey is far from over.

Join our technology community

The Studio @ Home Whitepaper represents the collective insights of numerous technology leaders. Their roundtable discussions are now on the HotTopics.ht website , and you can watch them for a more detailed understanding of their trend forecasts.

The Studio @ Home is a virtual filmset with 30+ recorded Studios bringing 100+ technology leaders from 6 continents to network and generate 1000+ pieces of premium content.

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