Gartner has released a report titled “Special Forecast 2006,” in which Gartner presents six forecasts regarding key trends in information technology expected to occur from 2006 onward.
1. By 2008, approximately 10% of companies will require all their employees to have laptops. Gartner predicts that most technology companies at that time will equip their employees with laptops, which will eventually become the personal property of the employees through various means, such as installment payments or discounted sales. Desktop computers will gradually decline in number in all offices.
2. Wireless networks will dominate: 90% of mobile connections in 2004 were from mobile phones. Internet phones are increasingly pushing landlines into the past. By 2009, around 99% of connections to the digital world will be wireless.
3. The job market for pure IT professionals will decrease by 40% by 2010. In the coming decade, professionals from various fields will also become IT experts in their respective industries. They will form a unique group of “two-in-one” individuals, possessing high expertise in their fields while having sufficient IT knowledge to “digitize” their own projects effectively. Utilizing such versatile professionals will be far more efficient compared to the current model of one IT expert plus one industry specialist.
4. By 2008, the use of offshore outsourcing (utilizing external resources or outsourcing parts of business operations) will become a dominant trend in the information technology sector.
5. Investment in healthcare and medical software will increase by 50% by 2013. Automated health checks via computers alone can reduce the risk of sudden death by 50%. The application of information technology across all healthcare fields will see a significant surge compared to the present.
6. Investment in all new technologies will begin to slow down from 2008. Any new technology emerging at that time must be extremely useful and effective. The “technology saturation” period may arise, requiring all companies to be wise and discerning when researching and launching new technologies.
HOÀNG KIM ANH
