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 Back to 2005 Press Releases
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Consumer Power Will Drive Business Technology Decisions |
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Many new IT-related technologies deployed within the enterprise will have their roots in the consumer space
Goodbye B2C, Hello C2B |
Cannes, France, 8 November 2005- The growing integration of technology into every aspect of life - home, office, home office, family, car and recreation - will profoundly impact business technology over the next decade, Gartner said today. Speaking at the company's annual Symposium/ITxpo in Cannes, analysts predicted that the control of technology will shift from corporations to individuals, 'consumerizing' business IT and creating an entirely new consumer to business (C2B) as well as business to consumer (B2C) marketplace.
"What was once a straightforward two way relationship between business and technology has suddenly become complicated by the arrival of a third party - the consumer," said Steve Prentice, vice president and chief of research at Gartner. "Now that the dynamics have changed, the enterprise will struggle to dictate how employees and customers use technology. Products will increasingly be designed for consumers and IT professionals will just have to work out how to use them within the organisation!"
According to Gartner, several major social trends - including new working practices, expectations of instant response and greater personalisation - are already having a significant impact on the technology markets, as consumers look to technology to improve choice and lifestyle flexibility. Providers of consumer technologies have been quick to capitalise on this desire as the rapid growth in household broadband connections and proliferation of mobile devices illustrates. Gartner has found that for every one mobile device sold worldwide mainly for business use, more than 20 are sold mainly for consumer use.
However, bound by the chains of legacy systems, flat budgets and risk-averse management, enterprise IT has not kept up with the pace of change in consumer markets, and is steadily falling further behind. "Current corporate applications simply cannot compete with the consumer experience and consequent user expectations. The technology used at home is so sophisticated that it outstrips the vast majority of commercial offerings," said Mr Prentice. "As home and office environments continue to merge, the knowledge worker of the future will demand the same level of functionality and flexibility in the workplace that they have got used to at home. When those demands are not met by the enterprise, history shows us that they will find the technologies and tools needed themselves in the consumer market."
Technologies such as WiFi, 'smart' mobile phones, instant messaging, personal electronic devices, the Internet and even the PC itself, as well as consumer software like Google Desktop and Skype, have steadily infiltrated the enterprise, introduced by technophile employees from their experiences as consumers. These technologies have had an impact on every layer of the enterprise infrastructure, in some cases revolutionising the way businesses operate.
"Ignoring the social context of technology is a recipe for business failure. If organisations continue to dictate what technologies their employees can and cannot use then they risk ignoring innovations that represent significant opportunities in the future, such as 3D graphics, rich media and consumer-oriented websites as platforms," said Mr Prentice. Furthermore, consumer technologies will provide the opportunity to streamline overweight IT systems and build towards lower-cost, leaner, more agile IT infrastructures.
"This is less of a revolution and more the coming together of a series of evolutionary changes - societal, technological and in the marketplace - at the right time," said Mr Prentice. "Some parts of society, especially the knowledge workers, are very open to change. Technology penetration levels and end-user expertise are high. The technology is reliable, inexpensive and effective, and has become good enough to engender significant change in the corporate marketplace."
Mr Prentice also acknowledged the huge role played by the Internet and particularly what many are calling 'Web 2.0' in the progression of the consumerization of IT. "The widening use of new consumer technologies by employees within the enterprise is creating a second Internet revolution whereby the Internet will move into the very fabric of the business rather than continuing its current existence as a supporting technology," he said. "The first Internet revolution was largely focused on the consumer and got people accustomed to using the Internet for relatively mundane and simple activities. Now commercial companies are embedding Internet applications into their IT and business make-up."
The technological empowerment of end-users within the organisation represents significant challenges to the enterprise, with significant future likely ramifications including:
" Employees and customers will own and manage their own information and devices and will grant enterprises access, reversing the current situation where enterprises own and control the environment.
" Companies will deliver corporate applications into personal computing domains and will offer a portfolio of web-based services for individuals to configure their own applications.
" Consumers, already used to Internet-based interactions at home, will increasingly use the same tools to collaborate within the workplace, fuelling a new style of collective intelligence and innovation which ignores conventional organisational or physical boundaries.
One of the major changes that Gartner is predicting is the streamlining of corporate IT systems through the introduction of consumer technologies. Analysts believe that just as company-owned cars ceased to be an integral element of the employee's package, so company-owned computing devices (and especially notebook computers) need no longer form part of the overall benefits package. "Although the technological challenges of accommodating what is essentially someone else's PC on the business system are significant, they are by no means insurmountable, particularly with the advances in PC virtualisation we anticipate in the next few years," said Brian Gammage, vice president at Gartner. "This way the end user gets to choose the device that suits his or her needs and the enterprise gets to free up the balance sheet and reduce their own costs and risks." As consumer technologies become further embedded in corporate systems, hardware need not be the only area where costs savings can be made. If all employees are using mobile phones there may no longer be a need to maintain a PBX address system for employees just as the need for corporate e-mail infrastructures may will become obsolete as consumer software is introduced into the enterprise.
For organisations who can meet the challenge presented by the consumerization of IT, Gartner believes that the innovative use of new, technology-enabled channels could lead to significant benefits. "Above and beyond the anticipated cost savings on hardware and software, companies who embrace consumerization rather than trying to fight it will ultimately benefit from a more innovative, contented and productive workforce, " said Mr Prentice.
According to Gartner, vendors that ultimately understand the consumer AND enterprise markets are most likely to succeed. "Most vendors fall neatly into consumer or enterprise camps," commented Mr Prentice. "Those with experience and understanding of both sectors will have the greatest opportunities as the IT industry shifts towards the consumer, with brand awareness and image becoming critical factors."
"Vendors and end-user organisations alike need to recognise the reality of the consumerization of IT and accommodate experimentation," said Mr Prentice. "Our top-line advice to businesses is to accept this major phenomenon, learn to control it and ultimately adapt and benefit from it. Consumerization is the future of IT."
Press Contact:
For further information please contact Bite Communications on Tel: +44 (0)20 8834 3508 or email: gartner@bitepr.com.
About Gartner Symposium/ITxpo:
Gartner Symposium/ITxpo is the IT industry's largest and most strategic conference, providing business leaders with a look at the future of IT. For more than 9,000 IT professionals from the world's leading enterprises, Gartner's annual Symposium/ITxpo events are key components of their annual planning efforts. Attendees rely on Gartner Symposium/ITxpo to gain insight into how their organizations can use technology to address business challenges and improve operational efficiency. An integral part of the Gartner Symposium is the ITxpo showfloor, where 60 technology companies will give attendees and press an opportunity to see and experience the latest technology solutions. For more information and to register for Symposium/ITxpo visit http://www.gartner.com/eu/symposium.
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About Gartner:
Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT) is the leading provider of research and analysis on the global information technology industry. Gartner serves more than 9,000 clients, including chief information officers and other senior IT executives in corporations and government agencies, as well as technology companies and the investment community. The Company focuses on delivering objective, in-depth analysis and actionable advice to enable clients to make more informed business and technology decisions. The Company's businesses consist of Research and Events for IT professionals; Gartner Executive Programs, membership programs and peer networking services; and Gartner Consulting, customized engagements with a specific emphasis on outsourcing and IT management. Founded in 1979, Gartner is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, and has more than 3,900 associates, including more than 1,200 research analysts and consultants, in more than 75 countries worldwide. For more information,
visit www.gartner.com.
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