Last year only a few technologies dominated the headlines, and quite likely to dominate the headlines again this year.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

As predicted last year, AI/ML dominated the headlines in 2017, and will likely do so again for 2018. We continue to make great strides in improving this technology and finding ways to implement in practice. In 2018 it will only get better and better, making it difficult to distinguish a machine from a real person.

Automation and Robotics

With AI/ML comes automation. Automation allows many of the mundane, routine tasks to be performed by a computer or robot, freeing people to do other things. However, many people take things further and believe that the robot will take over jobs completely.

The possibility of replacing human jobs exists. McKinsey predicts that automation could kill 73 million U.S. jobs by 2030, while Gartner predicts that Automation will render only 30% of the IT jobs in India relevant. Other researchers believe that more jobs will be created, but they will be lower paying jobs causing a shrinking middle class.

But all these fears did not stop progress on automation from happening, and more progress is expected in the upcoming year. We need to prepare for the next step, but what that is exactly is still up in the air. Some claim that creativity, critical thinking and empathy are skills required for the workforce of the future, while others think that the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) are. At this time, things are changing so quickly, it’s hard to go where the puck is going, but my money would be on STEM.

Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin prices grew 900% in 2017 and there’s no stopping bitcoin now. It’s a bubble, we know it’s a bubble, but yet people can’t help but get into it.

I’m still hopeful for the Blockchain technology, and blockchain technologies such as Ethereum. We should focus less on the marketplace and more on making the technology better. That will enable a whole new level in the business and financial world.

Original article: Technology Trends in 2018

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Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

If I was to choose just one technology that will dominate 2017 it would be Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (or Deep Learning if you must use that term).

Some are calling 2016 the year of AI, and it was indeed top-of-mind for many.

But don’t expect that the interest in AI/ML to not die down anytime soon. Instead expect that even more interest to develop around the uses of AI in 2017.

More companies are investing in AI/ML with a large amount of acquisitions of start-ups in 2016. And there are even more start-ups around AI/ML.

Businesses in the Caribbean should consider the ways that they can use AI/ML in their operations. The technology is available for anyone’s reach now and we should take advantage of it.

Internet of Things and Edge Computing

The IoT also featured greatly in the news, but unfortunately not all was good.

More needs to be done to secure these devices. We, unfortunately, cannot depend on the vendors to keep it secure, so we have to do our best to ensure that we address the risks of deploying such devices.

Even with the risks, the IoT still offers great advantages for businesses and individuals alike, and I fully expect that far more devices, services and tools will become available to make the IoT for accessible to everyone.

I also expect that even more standards will come out for IoT making a real standard for adoption even further out of reach.

Edge computing would likely become a thing too. Edge computing is to have some of the processing happen at the edge of the network before transmitting to the Internet. This is intended to save bandwidth and speed up some of the processing of sensor data. I believe that Cisco popularised the idea with their “fog computing”, but they have no ownership of it.

I see more interest in the Caribbean about the IoT and hopefully, we would continue to build on that.

Blockchain

Blockchain is a distributed ledger that provides a mechanism for establishing trust between untrusted parties without requiring a trusted, centralised 3rd party. Blockchain is the technology underlying Bitcoin.

There is a huge amount of hype around Blockchain, especially around Bitcoin. There are literally hundreds of startups experimenting with Blockchain, and even major banks are getting into it.

I’m still cautious about this one as I’m unclear about the implications and risks for financial applications. However, the use case for smart contracts and distribution of digital goods is a good one.

There is at least one startup in the Caribbean that’s doing work with Blockchain – Bitt – so there is hope that more people will take up the interest and do something with it.

Virtual and Augmented Reality

Pokemon Go showed the viability of AR and the popularity of Google Cardboard and Samsung Gear VR has improved the availability of VR apps on Android. With Microsoft’s HoloLens, there might be some commercial applications, however, the US$3,000 starting point might be too hard for some to swallow.

In the Caribbean, a few entrepreneurs have developed apps around VR and AR for marketing and information services. There are probably others that I don’t know of.

Either way, expect 2017 to have some great applications to come out beyond games.

Software Defined Networking and Network Functions Virtualisation

I keep adding this to my list and each year the interest is strong, but growth, not so much. 2016 was no different, and at this point, I’m unsure if there’s really a trend or just wishful thinking on my part.

With more and more interest into SDN and NFV, especially by telecommunications providers, I fully expect that greater advancements this year. Whether those advancements would happen in the Caribbean is another question.

More?

Do you think there are any trends that I missed in my list? Or do you think I’m wrong about anything here?
Let me know in the comments section below.

I take this opportunity to wish you a happy and prosperous 2017.

Original article: Technology Trends for 2017

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Prosperity over the last few year has been borne from high energy prices and extensive Government spending, even while our productivity has decreased. We can’t turn back the clock, but we can make the changes necessary to put us back on a growth path.

There is ample evidence to show that Information and Communication Technology use is a key driver of innovation and productivity, even in economies where other sources of productivity gains produce lower returns or have dried up.

A 2001 working paper by Jalava and Pohjola entitled “Economic Growth in the New Economy” found that ICTs enhance a country’s economic growth in three basic ways:

• Directly through the production of ICT goods and services
• Indirectly through the use of ICT in the production of other goods and services
• And the increasing application of ICTs leads to rising productivity

ICTs can help transform societies by improving access to services, enhancing connectivity, and creating employment opportunities through entrepreneurship and new business models.

The World Economic Forum, WEF, realising this transformative impact created the Global Information Technology Report (GITR) in 2001, and the Network Readiness Index (NRI) to help measure and rank the performance of participating countries in the use of ICTs.

Trinidad and Tobago in the 2015 release of the GITR ranked 70th out of 143 countries, placing 8th in the Latin America and the Caribbean region, and 2nd behind Barbados in the Caribbean, who ranked 39th.

A large reason for this can be seen by our rank in the Environment sub-index, where we ranked 89th, which is a measure of the extent to which the market conditions and regulatory framework support entrepreneurship, innovation, and ICT development. The Government clearly has their part to play.

But what is notable that while our ranking on individual usage of ICT is 58th, our business usage ranking is 86th. And our ranking for the Economic Impact of ICTs – a measure the effect of ICTs on the economy through technological and non-technological innovations – is 84th. It means that the private sector and business community are not doing their part either.

Greater investments into ICTs by businesses can help them to grow even in these turbulent times. Small and Medium Businesses, SMEs, are poised to make the most out of ICT investments as they are more nimble and can make faster decisions.

Businesses should, therefore, take the opportunity now, when things may be slow, to implement business improvements. While it seems difficult to spend time and money on improvements with less revenue, when the upturn comes around, it would mean that you are better able to take advantage of it.

Call me today to set up a free exploratory meeting to determine how ICT investments can help you and your business.

This post was written for the T&T Chamber of Industry and Commerce and appeared in the Newsday Business Magazine on May 5, 2016. It has been modified slightly for this post.

Original article: SMEs stand to benefit the most'">The importance of ICT investments SMEs stand to benefit the most

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While some businesses have decided to retrench workers to reduce expenses, this has the effect of also reducing production, which would erode revenues. The more creative companies have chosen instead to either make their businesses more efficient or are trying to figure out how they can increase their revenue streams.

Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) are one of the ways that businesses can go the latter route, which not only improves the business but improves production as well.

Here are some ways that ICT can help businesses.

It makes them more efficient

Technology can remove bottlenecks in processes by automating routine or monotonous tasks, which computers are good for. For example, getting approvals or having documents sent to persons for review, can be set-up in a document management system so that once something reaches one stage, it can automatically be sent to the next stage.

Helps you to measure progress and provide continuous improvement

By setting up processes in digital systems, you can measure its impact since you have an automated way to determine how long tasks take, or even how much it costs depending on the system. You can then determine which processes need improvement, and make small tests and check out the results quickly.

Process improvement need not be by leaps and bounds, but often by many little steps.

Improves relationships

Unclear communication is often the biggest issue preventing them from having a good customer service experience. Besides being used internally, automated systems can be used externally as well with customers, suppliers, or other stakeholders, allowing them visibility in areas that are important to them.

• Where is my order?
• What is the status of my refund?
• Where’s my payment?
• How are this month’s sales progressing?

All this information helps improves the relationships you have with people by reducing stress on them in trying to get the information they need. It also removes the stress from you by needing to provide that information every time they ask for it.

Keeping your customers happy will go a long way to not just improving sales, but ensuring longevity, especially in harsh times.

Empowers employees

Having automated systems means that there can be less micro-management as employees are now responsible for managing tasks assigned to them. There will be some culture changes involved, mostly by the managers, but you will reap great rewards.

In this new era, employees want autonomy and want to be more in control of their jobs. Implementing these systems, employees can have all that and stay productive while you can still be on top of things.

Better collaboration

Communication within teams is one of the major challenges in organisations. There are systems that assist in keeping conversations going within teams to address projects, tasks, or issues that come up. And because conversations are kept in a single place, it can always be referenced later for any clarifications.

These areas should be judgement free, allowing open and free communications. People will be unwilling to place their comments if they feel it would be used against them in some way.
In the end, better collaboration means greater productivity. And greater sharing of ideas means more innovation and inventiveness.

Opens new possibilities

New technology isn’t just about doing what you do better, faster and easier. It’s also about doing and producing new things.

Let’s face it, some businesses would not survive a recession, simply because the economic realities just would not have allowed them to, no matter how much improvements they made. What would be required is a change in the business model. IT can help change your business model and adapt to a new world.

For example, you may create an e-commerce site for your goods, but then later offer other vendors the capability to offer their goods on your site for a fee. Now you’re no longer a retail store, but a marketplace.

Technology does not just change businesses… it changes mindsets.

This article originally appeared in the Business Guardian in the T&T Chamber of Industry and Commerce column on May 12, 2016.

Original article: Even in a recession'">ICT Investment as a Driver of Growth of SME Businesses Even in a recession

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Based on the progress that was made in 2015, There are a few great things that businesses could look forward to in the new year.

Here are what I consider the major technology trends to look at in 2016.

The Trends

The Internet of Things

I predicted that 2015 was going to be a growth year for the IoT, and, sure enough, it has been.

Cisco suggests that in ten years there are going to be over 50 Billion devices connected to the Internet and the entire market will be worth US$14 Trillion. That’s no small figure.

And more so the security and privacy concerns, with cars being hacked, and Barbie dolls possibly being able to leak private information.

I see no end to the hype, and I predict that this trend will continue. More and more “internet connected” devices will proliferate the market including wearables, along with more security concerns.

We may actually see some standards happening this year.

Virtual and Augmented Reality

Virtual reality is about creating and seeing virtual worlds. Augmented reality is about adding more information to the world that we live in.

And both is expected to take a pretty big leap this year.

While VR and AR have been around for decades (anyone remembers the movie, the Lawnmower Man?), with expected commercial releases this year of Facebook’s Oculus Rift and Microsoft’s HoloLens, there is a greater chance of these technologies going mainstream.

While Google Glass didn’t fare too well, I do think that the releases by Facebook and Microsoft will help move the technology along. Besides, Google took a step back and brought you Google Cardboard.

Artificial Intelligence

AI was a huge deal this year.

First Google open-sourced TensorFlow, the software engine that it uses for its deep learning services. Then later, a group that includes Elon Musk and Sam Altman unveiled a US$1 billion non-profit called OpenAI that will share all of its AI research to the world.

Of course, Google and OpenAI aren’t the only players in the game, and other players such as IBM’s Watson has been around for quite some time. But these developments open AI to everyone, and will help push development along.

AI has been a touchy subject. Stephen Hawking, Bill Gates, Elon Musk, and Steve Wozniak have all sounded alarms over the rise of AI, including AI in warfare. This is one of the reasons that Musk put money behind OpenAI to begin with.

AI along with advances in robotics will make automation easier by creating intelligent robots. It means that routine manual labour, including dangerous tasks, may soon be able to be performed by robots. This automation is causing concerns among some people. Oxford University researchers have estimated that 47 percent of U.S. jobs could be automated within the next two decades.

I, on the other hand, see huge potential for both business and society as a whole.

Trends that didn’t happen in 2015

Before we go, let’s take a look at my 2015 predictions that didn’t quite pan out, but I still think might do well this year.

Wider adoption of enterprise wireless networks

The adoption rate has been slow for the newer IEEE 802.11ac standard, albeit growing. The slow adoption has been blamed for either the lack of endpoints that support the standard, as well as the cost of the access points. However, growth is expected to pick up this year as more end-points are released that support the AC standard, and the access points become cheaper.

Software Defined Networking

SDN in the data centre didn’t happen as I expected. While development of an SDN standard still continues, the adoption of SDN has been slow.

Slow growth in the data centre can be attributed to lack of readiness in both the infrastructure and the people, the cost of implementation, the cost of related hardware and software, and a lack of perceived value of such systems.

One area where it has grown though is in the Software Defined WAN. Quite a few providers have solutions to help manage WAN traffic such as Cisco’s Intelligent WAN. Carriers have also invested heavily into SDN and Network Functions Virtualisation (NFV).

At this point, I still expect growth of SDN in the data centre, but it will be slow.

Greater IT security within organisations

Against my hopes, the rash of breaches in 2014 didn’t quite stem the breaches in 2015. In fact, there seemed to have many more high profile breaches. The Ashley Madison hack was probably the most famous, and apparently didn’t seem to stem the growth of users allegedly looking for extra-marital affairs.

But the most serious hack, in my opinion, is the VTech data breach, where 5 million customer accounts and kids’ user profiles were breached. Luckily, it appears as there was no ill-intent to the breach, however, it should make us wonder in this connected world, how great is the threat to our children.

I could only hope that 2016 would bring some sense to people to properly secure their data.

More?

Do you think there are any trends that I missed in my list? Or do you think I’m wrong about anything here?

Let me know in the comments section below.

I take this opportunity to wish you a happy and prosperous 2016. Be safe out there.

Original article: 3 technologies businesses should look out for in the new year'">Technology Trends for 2016 3 technologies businesses should look out for in the new year

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I’m the one who will use something until it’s dying breath before I find something different, as long as it’s performing well enough for me to get the job done.

You can read some of my arguments against regular technology refreshes in my previous post.

But I do believe that technology refreshes are important in some instances.

• The core network. Here, performance is important. And as services grow and become more complicated, it may require that the core be replaced. But this replacement should happen about every 10 years or more, and not every 3 as we will typically see in some enterprises.

  Whatever we are replacing it with should be scalable and support growth for another 10 years.

• The cost to support the old product exceeds the gains in keeping it. Like an old car, there comes a point where the time and money spent keeping it running exceeds the value you get in having it. The same goes for running some IT systems, mainly software.

  For example, Windows Server 2003 support ends on July 14, 2015. After that date, Microsoft will no longer be supplying security updates for it, leaving businesses running critical applications on Server 2003 at risk. The business may not wish to upgrade their system for one reason or another, such as the applications only run on Server 2003, or the cost to upgrade is prohibitive. In order to keep that system running securely means that additional security mechanisms need to be put into place such as host firewalls and intrusion prevention systems.

  After a while, the cost of those mechanisms may exceed the cost of upgrading.

• The cost of not updating is much higher than the cost to update. This is ancillary to the previous point. For example, not implementing a security fix to a vulnerability can cause far more harm if an exploit is made available for that vulnerability and you are compromised.

  I always recommend quickly reviewing security updates, testing it, and implementing it into production systems. But always ensure that the update applies to you. It makes no sense applying a patch for IIS or Apache when you run neither of those systems.

• The cost of updating is negligible. Cost here implies the cost to purchase an update, the labour involved, and the cost of switching (users should not have to be trained in the new system, nor should there be any changes that would affect the workflow).

  This only happens with minor updates for bug fixes. And even then, there may be a cost. Microsoft has been known to roll out security updates that cause more harm than good. So always test your updates.

• There are significant and quick gains to be realised in updating. And I do mean that the gains should be significant and quick. This is because there are many costs to updating that we may not know beforehand, such as licensing, training, hardware or software requirements, or bandwidth requirements for instance. These costs add up and erode away at the expected gains of the update leaving you with a bad taste in your mouth.

  The gains should also be quick, within 6 months to a year I would say. This is because the longer the return on investment is projected, the more likely it is that those hidden costs may show it’s head.

  For example, you may replace the old IP Telephony system that you have with a new system because the maintenance and capital costs are lower and the projected ROI is 3 years. But what you didn’t realise was that the licensing costs for new users or additional features that you want to implement was much higher than that of the old system, meaning, at the end you paid more for the new system, including the training you had to put your staff through.

  However, if you replaced the old IPT system with a new IPT system by the same vendor (trade-in for new) because this one has a built in contact centre software and cloud-based management and connectivity allowing users to connect softphone wherever they are without a VPN at no cost, allowing you to recoup your investment within 6 months, then it may well be worth it, as long as subscription costs are reasonable, and you can cancel at any time.

  Always do you due diligence to ensure you are getting your money’s worth.

Final thoughts

I still run Microsoft Office 2007. There is absolutely no reason for me to upgrade. I can still open office documents from newer versions (as I should be allowed to) and there are no features to entice me to update.

However when the new Microsoft Windows 10 comes up, I will upgrade my Windows 7 PCs since the update will be free. The operating system uses fewer resources allowing me to take more advantage of the hardware I have, and I can implement new security features like BitLocker to encrypt my drive. That is worth it.

The blind requirement to refresh systems should be a thing of the past. If we wish to run a sustainable business and an environmentally conscious world, then we must find a way to take the most advantage of what we have.

We are living in a world of consumerism, where the economy is based on consumers constantly buying the latest and greatest. But the world needs to change that mindset and try its best to make the most of what it’s given.

I hope that this series of posts has given some food for thought in how you approach technology refresh and has helped you somehow.

What are your views of technology refreshes?

Original article: When should you look at updating enterprise systems.'">The Technology Refresh: When is it worth it? When should you look at updating enterprise systems.

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There are so many vehicles being sold after being owned for as little as a year. Many more after three years.

I couldn’t help but notice the similarity to what we in IT call the “technology refresh”. This is where old hardware is changed, to newer ones, after reaching its “end-of-life”. I often wonder why we call it end-of-life, since the device may be still alive and kicking, and posing no problems whatsoever.

The question arises: Is a technology refresh necessary?

The main arguments for the technology refresh are:

• The device has reached end-of-life, which could mean that it’s no longer being sold or it will no longer be supported. Therefore, you will not be able to get replacement parts for it, or support if anything goes wrong.
• There may be new features available on new devices that you can now take advantage of.
• You need to ensure that the network is highly available so by using newer hardware, you can improve availability.
• Performance limits on older hardware stifles growth and newer hardware would improve it.

Let’s look at some of these arguments.

• If a device has reached end-of-life, it does not mean that it’s not supported as a vendor may support a product long after this date. Nor does it mean that you can’t get a replacement if necessary.

  I would advise that you purchase a few spares so that you can replace devices if anything goes wrong. When you replace those spares, purchase newer devices, checking to ensure that there are no compatibility issues, which would then replace other devices that malfunction. Spares should be an important part of any business that wants to ensure availability.

• If there are new features available, are you going to use it? You can find out those features before purchasing and determine if there is a need for it. Don’t purchase something simply because there may be a need for it in the future.

  I’ve seen many businesses purchase newer equipment to replace older ones, and they’re configured exactly the same. No changes whatsoever, so there’s no difference between the two.

• There is some truth to the failure of devices the older they become. There is a figure called the “Mean Time Before Failure” or MTBF for short. This is a probabilistic number that indicates the average run-time of a device before it may fail, or the average time between failures. I’ve seen devices fail within days of being installed, and some devices that have been running for more than 10 years. Proper maintenance often improves the lifetime of a product.

  Purchasing spares would improve availability by ensuring that failed devices can be replaced quickly.

• Newer devices would typically offer better performance once you are replacing a device with the vendor’s updated part. But do you need better performance?

  Many businesses do not monitor or analyse their network performance to determine whether they are under or over capacity. They generally go with the feeling of the “network being slow” or whether users complain about the same. Then wonder why little has changed when switches or routers are replaced.

  Slow performance may be due to the network, or to the applications, or servers running the applications, or clients accessing the application, or just people having different perceptions. Unless you are monitoring the performance of your network, it’s difficult to prove whether things are getting better, worse, or unchanged, and where it’s happening.

So are there reasons to do a technology refresh? Yes, I do agree that there are some, which I discuss in my next post.

Original article: A look at some of the arguments for regularly upgrading enterprise systems'">The Technology Refresh: Is it necessary? A look at some of the arguments for regularly upgrading enterprise systems

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There’s a great blog post on the Harvard Business Review titled “Here’s How Managers Can Be Replaced by Software” written by Devin Fidler.

The article discussed how a prototype software application automated the decision and delegation process to create a 124-page research report.

The software was named “iCEO”, which I expect to be trademarked by Apple Inc. soon!

The post explained that after spending a few hours configuring iCEO and then setting it to run, iCEO:

routed tasks across 23 people from around the world, including the creation of 60 images and graphs, followed by formatting and preparation.

The processes were so smoothly operated that the team was simply spectators.

We rarely needed to intervene, even to check the quality of individual components of the report as they were submitted to iCEO, or spend time hiring staff, because QA and HR were also automated by iCEO.

In the end, the full report was created in just weeks, compared to a traditional management-employee structure that may have taken months to complete.

This is awesome if you think about it… unless you’re a manager that is.

There’s an especially important point to note here that you may have missed: all of the actual work was outsourced via Elance and Odesk.

So it’s not only the manager’s job that may be at risk, but also the workers under his employ.

The Knowledge Worker at Risk

Automation, since the industrial revolution, has threatened jobs of workers. Manual work replaced with mechanised ones caused jobs to no longer be worthwhile. Now we have thinking work being replaced by computers and software.

In his book, “The Zero Marginal Cost Society“, Jeremy Rifkin mentions that:

Automation, robotics, and artificial intelligence are eliminating human labor quickly in the white-collar and service industries… Secretaries, file clerks, telephone operators, travel agents, bank tellers, cashiers, and countless other white-collar service jobs have all but disappeared in the past 25 years as automation has driven the marginal cost of labor to near zero.

He goes on to later say:

We are in the midst of an epic change (my emphasis) in the nature of work. The First Industrial Revolution ended slave and serf labor. The Second Industrial Revolution dramatically shrank agricultural and craft labor. The Third Industrial Revolution is sunsetting mass wage labor in the manufacturing and service industries and salaried professional labor in large parts of the knowledge sector.

Others are also anticipating this level of disruption to knowledge work.

A 2013 McKinsey Global Institute report predicts that by 2025, the automation of knowledge work would have potentially the greatest economic impact second only to the mobile internet, and exceeding that of the Internet of Things and the Cloud. (See the figure below.)

Time to address the skill gap

As with the industrial revolution, workers have to be ready for the next stage. It means that they need to learn new technologies and new ways of working. Learning skills that can be repetitive, regardless of the complexity, is under threat as they can be replaced with automation.

According to the Institute for the Future, the new worker will be required to have skills such as Social Intelligence, Sense-Making, Novel and Adaptive Thinking, Design Mindset, Computational Thinking, Cognitive Load Management, New Media Literacy, Cross Cultural Competency and Virtual Collaboration.

The challenge we have right now is that the rapid evolution of the Internet, the cloud and automation may change the workplace faster than we can retrain workers to work in this new environment. It means that we have to start training the new workers from the schools.

But this does not mean that we can’t start training for the new era. We can start learning the new skills required, as well as teach it to others before we are out of a job.

What the future holds?

I don’t know what the future holds, but automation offers great opportunities for businesses to function at a far more efficient and economic level than ever before. It means that we can look forward to cheaper and (hopefully) more sustainable goods and services.

It also means that we can let go of mundane and repetitive tasks and focus on creating greater things.

We can choose to fear what the future holds, or look forward to it with excitement and anticipation.

I’m in that latter group.

What about you? What are your thoughts on the future of automation?

Original article: The knowledge worker has a lot to lose if we don't act.'">Will automation eliminate your job? The knowledge worker has a lot to lose if we don't act.

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The Caribbean is still trying to keep up with global development trends, but that’s not to say that we are not making any successes.

Despite the downturn in many of our economies, and the high-debt in some cases, we’ve had new entrepreneurs launch businesses, and organisations make large investments in new infrastructure.

So interest and investments are there.

These are what I see as trends that you should look at for the year ahead. There’s a lot of hype behind these trends, so take them with a pinch of salt.

1. The continued exponential growth of the Internet of Things…

The Internet of Things (IoT) continues it’s hype and growth trend, and for good reason. The IoT offers some of the greatest opportunities at this time and has the power to impact chain management, energy management and personal healthcare.

The continually decreasing costs of electronic sensors and computing power, coupled with a rapidly expanding maker movement has added fuel to the growth.

My prediction is that the IoT will continue to grow, along with privacy and security concerns.

2. … followed by the continued growth of big data, data analytics and visualisation…

With the sheer amount of data being produced by normal business operations, the addition of the data from IoT will now pose a challenge on how that data can be used. This is where data analytics come into play, with a new position within the company called the data scientist, whose role will be to help make sense of all this data, which includes visualisation.

So far, businesses have not had much success getting returns from big data, nor are they implementing large scale deployments, but it has not stopped them from making investments in big data technologies.

My prediction is that businesses will continue to invest in big data, but still struggle to get returns from it. Data scientists are going to make a killing though.

3. … and adoption of reliable enterprise wireless networks

Too many organisations use consumer grade wireless access points (WAP) in their network to provide wireless access to users. These devices may have a lot of security weaknesses, and further, there may be no management capabilities built in. You can’t tell how the wireless network is performing, and worst, can’t tell if someone is trying to break in. The only indication that you have that something is wrong, is when users complain.

Many of the sensors used for the IoT requires wireless access, and organisations hoping to take advantage of those technologies now have to re-look at their wireless infrastructure and replace it with enterprise grade devices with centralised control and management, and far greater security features.

This is not to say that only if you have an IoT project at hand you should consider enterprise wireless networks. Unless you’re a home user, you should always consider enterprise wireless network infrastructure.

My prediction is that with the proliferation of mobile devices, and the IoT, you will find enterprises implementing enterprise wireless infrastructure.

4. Software defined everything

Software Defined Everything is really the virtualisation of hardware via software and includes Software Defined Networking (SDN), Software Defined Storage (SDS) and Software Defined Data Centre (SDDC). SDN is the main leader in this trend, with many competing technologies available. Commercialisation has already started with offerings available from leading vendors such as VMWare and Cisco.

My prediction is that businesses heavy in VMWare technologies may move to adopt SDS and SDDC, however, the current trend of few businesses adopting SDN will continue until a major standard emerges.

5. Automating the enterprise

This is not new, but new technologies are making it easier to automate processes and keep track of changes. Products such as Puppet and Chef, and programming capabilities built into virtualisation as VMWare has.

My prediction is that as more services are being brought online, IT departments will need to look for automation technologies to help manage the new services and infrastructure. IT staff will have to learn to write code and scripts, with some becoming increasingly fearful of automating themselves out of a job.

6. Greater adoption of cloud services and mobility

In the Caribbean, companies are slowly moving services into the cloud, but concerns about costs and reliability of Internet services pose challenges.

Microsoft has been generally successful with getting users of its office suite to move into the cloud, but I’m not exactly sure if the businesses are actually using the cloud services, or just taking advantage of the lower licensing costs. I’ve only come across one company utilising Microsoft’s Azure to run internal services.

That’s not to say that adoption is not coming. On the contrary, I’m seeing much more renewed interest in the cloud and expect more organisations to make the switch this year, especially to Microsoft Office 365.

With the growing adoption of cloud services, I predict that more mobile access will be requested by end users and management to allow them to work on the road. Meanwhile, data loss due to theft of mobile devices will increase.

7. Greater IT security within organisations

This is really a hope rather than a trend. With the rash of high profile hacking that took place last year (Sony, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Home Depot), many companies should take a deep look at their security processes and infrastructure.

But I don’t expect to see that in the Caribbean, because you don’t hear about any attempts or breaches in the Caribbean. While I may hear something from someone who knows someone, there is no requirement to report breaches, and the cybersecurity monitoring and response mechanisms are almost non-existent at this time.

My prediction is that organisations within the Caribbean will continue to take security for granted with one high profile attack happening this year to change things around.

More?

Do you think there are any trends that I missed in my list? Let me know in the comments section below.

I take this opportunity to wish you a happy and prosperous 2015. Be safe out there.

Original article: 7 IT Trends to expect for 2015

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Multi-vendor environments are those where the infrastructure is a combination of devices and products from two or more vendors.

A single-vendor environment is where only one vendor is used. This type of environment is affectionately known as a “<vendor name here> shop”, e.g. a Cisco shop or a Microsoft shop.

So a multi-vendor network environment may use Cisco switches, Juniper routers and Aruba networks for wireless, whereas the single-vendor environment may use only Cisco for its switches, routers and wireless.

There are arguments for and against multi-vendor environments, with the majority of arguments against them coming from vendors who can supply all the devices. Cisco once had a report prepared by Deloitte that discussed the risks of multi-vendor environments such as higher operating risk in service, support, and operational integration.

The Pros and Cons of Multi-Vendor Environments

I have put together my own list of the challenges and the advantages of multi-vendor environments.

Challenges

• Support. You have several people whom you need to contact when you have a problem. You have multiple relationships to maintain, multiple support contracts to renew and multiple SLAs (Service Level Agreements) to keep track of. This can sometimes be overwhelming depending on the number of vendors and devices installed.
• Administration. While devices of the same type may perform the same task, the vendor implementation may be very different. Ask anyone who has managed both a Cisco and a Checkpoint firewall (like me!); while both are firewalls, the configuration is quite different. Someone with a Cisco background may find the Cisco ASA less daunting than someone with a Checkpoint background. You will find that the IT administrators in a multi-vendor environment will have to know and experience much more than those in a single-vendor environment. Some people thrive in multi-vendor environments, while others flounder.
• Troubleshooting. Whenever problems arise, vendors may blame each other for them. Troubleshooting the problem becomes a battle, with IT coming in the middle of it. In a single-vendor environment, that vendor has to take ownership of the problem regardless of the device. I’ve seen instances in single-vendor environments where the tech-support personnel pass tickets between each other while trying to resolve problems, and the IT administrator doesn’t have the headache of mediating between vendors.

Advantages

• Best-in-class features. By using multiple vendors, you can choose the best product with the features that you need and want. You don’t have to settle for a lesser product, or an over-the-top one, simply because you want to stay with the same vendor.
• Leverage. When you’ve made a choice to go with a certain product or vendor, there is a cost to change from that product to another vendor’s product; this is known as the cost of switching. This cost reflects the costs associated with retraining employees, reconfiguring infrastructure, and changing processes. In a single-vendor environment, the cost of switching is high as the IT staff has little knowledge of or experience with other products. Vendors know this and are sometimes complacent about their relationship with the customer. In a multi-vendor environment, the IT staff has more experience and exposure to other products, and there is a lower cost of switching. As a customer, you also have greater leverage as the vendors know that you have options and are willing to exercise them.
• Excitement. While working in a multi-vendor environment can be frustrating sometimes, it is hardly ever boring. IT staff are exposed to a wide variety of devices and technologies, and there is always something new to learn. And since IT is not tied to a vendor, they are free to explore technologies and solutions that other vendors offer that one vendor may not.
• All of your eggs are not in one basket. There is some risk involved in a single-vendor environment. What happens if the vendor makes some drastic management changes? Or what if a company is acquired by a larger rival and then changes the way products are supported? In some cases, the same software codebase is used in different devices within the same vendor, for example Cisco IOS or Juniper JunOS; what happens if there is a security bug in the core code? Then all the products are potentially at risk. Multi-vendor environments reduce that risk.

Choice of environment

By now, you may realise that some businesses may be better-suited for either multi-vendor or single-vendor environments. So how do you choose? Use the following as a guide.

You may like a multi-vendor environment if…

• Your IT infrastructure is relatively small and easy to manage. You can afford to have many vendors without compromising your supportability.
• You want the greatest value for your money and want the flexibility to be able to choose the products and features you want.
• You have an IT team that prefers variety and thrives in an environment that is always changing. They also have a wide range of expertise and experience and are also willing to learn new technologies.

You may like a single-vendor environment if…

• You have a large IT infrastructure, and managing too many vendors may be difficult, especially when uptime and availability is important.
• You prefer simplicity and supportability and are willing to pay extra for that and to have a single person to call.
• Your IT team has invested heavily in learning a certain product range and prefers working in a stable and minimally changing environment. Their range of expertise is limited, but their knowledge of the current infrastructure is outstanding.
• You have a great relationship with the vendor and you are well taken care of.

There are no right or wrong choices when choosing between a multi-vendor or single-vendor environment. Be aware of the advantages and challenges of both, and make the choice that best suits you.

Original article: How to choose between investing with one vendor or many.'">Multi-Vendor or Single-Vendor Environments How to choose between investing with one vendor or many.

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