Latin America. What the future holds is something that humans have wanted to know since ancient times. We even look for different ways to do it: oracles, prophecies, crystal balls, palmistry, divination and we can continue adding methods to this list. But in the technological and business field, if we know how to observe reality and make a good reading of what we know today, we can find indications of what comes next.
Throughout this year, 2018, I had the opportunity to tour Latin America meeting with CIOs and CEOs of different companies, and I could see what challenges their businesses have, where they are moving to solve them and what we lack as a region to continue innovating. Based on that I want to share with you what I think will be 9 key points in 2019:
1. Smart workspaces: work is increasingly dynamic and cross-platform; the challenge that companies in the region will have to solve has to do with being able to handle a growing list of SaaS, Web and mobile applications that run on multiple clouds. In this sense, creating intelligent and fluid workspaces will be critical to give the workforce the tools they need while ensuring that the IT Department does not lose control and visibility of the infrastructure.
2. There is no cloud strategy in general: in Latin America we see that companies have a clear hybrid cloud strategy. In fact, they are not migrating 100% to the cloud or choosing a single cloud; in this way, they will have to find a way to manage multiple clouds centrally along with the growing proliferation of devices, networks, applications and legacy infrastructure.
3. Users and their context, the key to security: While hackers always seem to be one step ahead of companies, the weakest link in the data security chain is the user. To deploy more effective defenses, companies need to move forward in changing the approach; Contextual security allows you to understand how users use technology and applications to create risk profiles and make decisions in real time.
4. From Chief Information Officer to Chief Innovation Officer: The role of the CIO has been evolving for several years, but more than ever companies will need the CIO to stop worrying about tactical tasks to become a true driver of innovation. IT and business must merge because they can no longer be conceived as separate areas. We will see this change very strongly next year in Latin America because CIOs already have the tools to bring about that transformation.
5. The challenge of freelancers and outsourced professionals: many companies still fail to provide their employees with a smooth, safe and complete work experience, and – at the same time – face the challenge of focusing on how to manage and ensure the security of the data accessed by freelancers (Gig Economy) and outsourced professionals with whom they interact. Many companies are already moving in that direction but many others still do not contemplate it, this point will be key next year especially in terms of safety and work experience.
6. People-centric computing takes the IT agenda: the dispute between what users want and what the IT department prefers must come to an end. User-centric computing becomes that meeting point where the IT department must ensure that the user has the best possible work experience by enhancing their productivity and maintaining a proactive role in terms of security while maintaining visibility into everything that happens.
7. Artificial intelligence increasingly real and less science fiction: I believe that little by little and hand in hand with machine learning we will see a more real impact of AI in business, focused on enhancing human work and automating repetitive tasks to give way to a true focus of professionals on what is strategic.
8. The year of DDoS: Machine learning is a technology that will allow hackers (those with resources) to be even more lethal by being able to learn which attacks are most effective and be able to make modifications in seconds. In this context, devices, network and cloud will be more vulnerable. Creating a security perimeter will not be optional, it must be a strategy that every company contemplates.
9. Robotic Process Automation (RPA): RPA is a type of automation where software robots interact with company applications to streamline processes and operations. This is starting to reach the workspaces of the region but we will see it grow a lot as a way to move towards efficiency and productivity. Virtualizing these robots and running them in the datacenter will be key to adding security to this technology and being able to make the most of its benefits.
The beginning of a new year is just around the corner and I think we will see these trends become reality. It is time to take a step forward and be prepared to start a new stage in the digital transformation of companies. In short, as Steve Jobs said, "innovation is what distinguishes a leader from others."
Text written by Juan Pablo Jiménez, Vice President of Citrix for Latin America and the Caribbean.
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