10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Tech Trends 2019

Beyond the digital frontier
 EXPERIENCE & DIGITAL REALITY ANALYTICS & COGNITIVE CLOUD BLOCKCHAIN

Asset User Wireless Information Information Cloud

intelligence engagement and mobility management automation revolution
User Applied Real Capability
Social engagement mobility Visualization analytics clouds
computing
User Enterprise Geospatial Big data Hyper-hybrid
Gamification Social business empowerment mobility visualization goes to work cloud
unleashed
Gamification Social Finding
goes to work reengineering Mobile only the face of
by design (and beyond) your data
Industrialized Digital Cognitive
crowdsourcing Social engagement Wearables analytics Cloud
activation orchestration
Dimensional Ambient Amplified
marketing computing intelligence API economy

AR and VR Internet Industrialized Blockchain:

go to work of Things analytics Democratized trust
Machine Dark Everything- Blockchain:
Mixed reality intelligence analytics as-a-service Trust economy
Enterprise API Blockchain to
Digital reality data sovereignty imperative blockchains
Beyond Intelligent AI-fueled NoOps in a
marketing interfaces organizations serverless world

Trending the trends: A decade of research

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

Connectivity DevSecOps Risk

of tomorrow and the cyber implications
Exponential imperative
technology No-collar Reengineering The new Risk
watch list workforce technology core implications

Exponentials IT unbounded Inevitable Risk

watch list architecture implications
Social impact of Right- Autonomic Reimagining Risk
exponentials speed IT platforms core systems implications
CIO as chief Software-
Exponentials IT worker of integration defined Core Risk
the future officer everything renaissance implications

Exponentials CIO as venture Real-time In-memory Technical Cyber

capitalist DevOps revolution debt reversal security
Design as Business CIO as IPv6 (and Reinventing No such thing
a discipline of IT postdigital this time we the ERP as hacker-proof
catalyst mean it) engine Outside-in
Measured architecture Digital
innovation identities
The end of the “Almost-
CIOs as “death of ERP” enterprise” Cyber
revolutionaries applications intelligence
Value-driven Best-of-breed
application CIO operational Virtualization enterprise Services Cyber
management excellence applications thinking security

BUSINESS OF TECHNOLOGY CORE RISK

 Executive summary

L
OOKING back a decade to headlines of the day, we are reminded how at that now-distant moment much
of the world was still grappling with a cataclysmic recession. In the technology sector, Oracle announced
it was acquiring Sun Microsystems.1 Apple was gearing up to launch the iPad® mobile digital device,2 and
a mean-spirited worm called Stuxnet was changing the rules of cybersecurity.3
And a small number of dedicated tech enthusiasts at Deloitte Consulting were preparing to launch our
firm’s first annual Tech Trends report. Though this freshman effort was only one-third the length of subse-
quent Tech Trends reports, it effectively captured the awe that we and our clients felt about the incredible pace
of technology-driven change underway, and the profound impact that change was having on business. This
report featured chapters on cloud, cyber security, the internet of things, mobile’s looming impact on the en-
terprise, and user-centered design—all topics that at the time felt overwhelming and fantastical. Interestingly,
many of things that seemed so incredible 10 years ago are now foundational.
Looking back, we can see the value these emerging innovations offered, but in the moment, their promise
seemed less clear. It is, therefore, remarkable how quickly organizations across sectors and regions navigated
through the “so what” and into the “now what” for these trends, and went on to successfully traverse the new
digital landscape.
This journey from uncertainty to digital transformation informs our latest offering, Tech Trends 2019:
Beyond the digital frontier. A persistent theme of every Tech Trends report has been the increasing, often
mind-bending velocity of change. A decade ago many companies could achieve competitive advantage by
embracing innovations and trends that were already underway. Today, this kind of reactive approach is no
longer enough. To stay ahead of the game, companies must work methodically to sense new innovations and
possibilities, make sense of their ambitions for tomorrow, and find the confidence to boldly go beyond the
digital frontier.
So here’s to the next decade of opportunity, whatever it may be. Along the way, embrace that queasy
feeling of uncertainty. Be excited about it. Because what you are actually feeling is tremendous, unimaginable
opportunity. Today, when every company is a technology company and everyone is, in some way, a technolo-
gist, there could not be a more exciting time, a more opportune time to leave your mark your company, your
industry, and on an entire world of possibility that awaits just beyond the digital frontier.

Bill Briggs Scott Buchholz

Global chief technology officer Emerging technologies research director
Deloitte Consulting LLP and Government & Public Services CTO
[email protected] Deloitte Consulting LLP
Twitter: @wdbthree [email protected]

1
Tech Trends 2019: Beyond the digital frontier

Macro technology forces at work

Technology trends past, present, and future

D
IGITAL EXPERIENCE. ANALYTICS. CLOUD. In pursuit of digital transformation past, present, and
the previous nine issues of Tech Trends, we future: modernizing core systems to serve as a
have examined these powerful forces as they foundation for innovation and growth; elevating
evolved from promising innovations and novel ap- cyber and the broader risk domain from a com-
proaches into full-fledged trends. We recognized their pliance-based activity to an embedded, strategic
disruptive potential and looked to the horizon to find function; and reengineering an organization’s tech-
innumerable strategic opportunities they could—and nology function to deliver against the promise of
eventually would—present. Indeed, each proved to technologies emerging and existing—or risk failing at
be far more than a trend; over time they evolved and its mission.
expanded across industries. Today they are considered Just because these nine forces—digital experience,
foundational components not only of enterprise IT, but cloud, analytics, blockchain, cognitive, digital reality,
of corporate strategy. business of technology, core modernization, and
So in the context of technology trends, there is cyber—are no longer particularly novel doesn’t mean
nothing much left to say about digital, analytics, and they are not vitally important. In fact, one of the most
cloud, right? Not so fast. Despite their ubiquity and pressing challenges technology and business leaders
proven value, these technologies’ full potential re- face is how to excavate and harness the value these
mains largely untapped. Investments in them are often macro forces can deliver collectively.
departmental and limited in scope. Likewise, in some For example, the factory of the future needs to
companies, analytics, cloud, and digital initiatives are bring together next-gen ERP, machine learning,
disjointed, even competing efforts. embedded sensors across the production floor, aug-
Meanwhile, three newer trends—digital reality, mented reality training, mobile visualization and
cognitive technologies, and blockchain—are growing predictive flow scheduling, secure networks, and
rapidly in importance. In the last several issues of Tech cloud-based tools for managing workflow across
Trends, we discussed how virtual reality and augmented the supply chain. Not to mention the need to retool
reality are redefining the fundamental ways humans workers and cross-pollinate between traditional
interact with their surroundings, with data, and with information and operational technology roles
each other. We tracked blockchain’s meteoric rise from and skills.
bitcoin enabler to purveyor of trust.
And as cognitive technologies such
as machine learning, robotic process
automation, natural language pro- CASE STUDIES & EXTERNAL PERSPECTIVES
cessing, neural nets, and AI moved Read the full report to find out more about how Walmart,
from fledgling siloed capabilities to Talanx AG, and KONE are tackling the macro forces.
tenets of strategy, we have explored
their profound potential for business
and society. These three trends are poised to become as Through their collision and the innovation un-
familiar and impactful as cloud, analytics, and digital leashed, these forces will likely dominate enterprise
experience are today. IT, business, and markets to an even greater extent
Of course, any pursuit of tomorrow’s promise than they have as individual technologies. With macro
should start from the technical realities of today. forces, it’s the controlled collision that leads beyond
Three formative forces have proven essential in the the digital frontier.

2
 Executive summary

AI-fueled organizations
Reaching AI’s full potential in the enterprise

T
HE JOURNEY TO FULLY AUTONOMOUS investing in AI platforms as complements to their
artificial intelligence is part of a growing trend core functionality.
in which companies transform themselves into • Open-algorithm. Numerous startups and bou-
AI-fueled organizations where AI is an integral com- tique software shops are developing AI solutions
ponent of corporate strategy. This trend is also about to meet specific business needs, use cases, and
a sustained commitment to redesigning core systems, verticalized issues.
processes, and business strategies around AI and its
AI-fueled organizations place artificial intelligence,
possibilities. Its end goal: an organization in which
machine learning, and other cognitive technologies at
humans and machines work together within designed
the very center of business and IT operations, which
digital systems to harness data-driven insights.
can result in disruptive ramifications that ripple across
The number of companies following in the foot-
the enterprise, with particular impact in data manage-
steps of AI pioneers will likely increase in the next
ment, training machine learning, ethics, talent, and
18 to 24 months as more leaders identify ways to use
culture.
cognitive technologies to achieve strategic goals. In two
consecutive Deloitte global surveys
(2016–17 and 2018), cognitive tech-
nologies/AI have topped the list of CASE STUDIES & EXTERNAL PERSPECTIVES
emerging technologies in which CIOs
Read the full report to find out more about how Anthem, Pfizer,
plan to invest.4 Though these CIOs— Canada, The Adecco Group, and Google Cloud are becoming
much like society at large—may be AI-fueled organizations.
fascinated by cognitive technolo-
gies’ sci-fi-like possibilities, their AI
Traditionally, CIOs have spent much of their work-
ambitions are likely grounded in more practical (and
days (and careers) maintaining legacy systems and
achievable) benefits: AI can increase productivity,
“keeping the lights on.” As AI, ML, and other cognitive
strengthen regulatory compliance through automation,
tools drive automation across the IT ecosystem, CIOs
and help organizations derive meaning from ever-
and their teams may spend less time on maintenance
larger data sets.5
and more time helping the enterprise with informed
And as organizations move from using the tech-
decision-making about how they use and what they
nology in isolated pilots to deploying larger AI systems,
expect from technology. Ultimately, the AI-fueled
they should consider three system models that are cur-
journey presents CIOs with an opportunity to redefine
rently in play:
their own role, from chief information officer to “chief
• Cloud-native. Given AI’s ascendance in the en- insight officer”—the organizational leader who serves
terprise technology arena, it is conceivable that as custodian, facilitator, and catalyst for informed
an AI-as-a-service platform could be the next big decision-making at the corporate level.6
operating system. Enterprise tech leaders, start your engines. The
• Package-adjunct. In an alternative approach time to launch your company’s AI-fueled journey
to the cloud-native model, several vendors are is now.

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Tech Trends 2019: Beyond the digital frontier

NoOps in a serverless world

Shift IT’s focus from operations to outcomes

T
RADITIONALLY, THE CIO’S RESPONSIBILITY of veloping new, value-add capabilities that can enhance
keeping business-critical technology systems operational speed and efficiency. In NoOps environ-
running has absorbed up to 70 percent of IT’s ments, traditional operations like the code deployment
budget as well as considerable amounts of labor band- and patching schedules remain internal responsibili-
width. Cheaper storage, cloud, and outsourcing have ties—they are simply automated to the extreme.
lowered this budgetary outlay by 20 percent or more. Serverless computing offers CIOs a toolkit for
Yet in an era of perpetually tight IT budgets, finding transforming their IT operations. Its potential ben-
ways to redirect financial and human assets from op- efits include effectively limitless scalability and high
erations to innovation remains a top CIO goal.7 availability, NoOps (or at least less ops), and no idle
time costs. This does not replace or
compromise the potential of DevOps.
In fact, it reinforces the need to re-
CASE STUDIES & EXTERNAL PERSPECTIVES
think technology culture, roles and
Read the full report to find out more about how Gene Kim, responsibilities, enabling tools, and
Cargill, Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group, and Verizon
processes.
view the NoOps in a serverless world trend.
Transitions from traditional
to serverless environments do not
In many reengineering initiatives, automation is happen overnight. During these transitions, opera-
the keystone that makes meaningful efficiency and tions talent may still have to do some routine database
cost reduction achievable. Now, as part of a growing tasks and make sure that core systems are tuned and
trend, CIOs are taking their automation efforts to the maintained. But they will now have the bandwidth to
next level with serverless computing. In this model, upskill and redefine their roles.
cloud vendors dynamically and automatically allo- As you explore serverless offerings, be aware that
cate the compute, storage, and memory based on the this computing model is still evolving—it should not be
request for a higher-order service (such as a database construed as a cure-all for development and operations
or a function of code). In traditional cloud service problems. The journey from legacy internal servers to
models, organizations had to design and provision cloud-based compute, storage, and memory will not
such allocations manually. Now they are seeking to be without challenges. But as more and more CIOs are
create a NoOps IT environment that is automated and realizing, an opportunity to fundamentally transform
abstracted from underlying infrastructure to an extent IT from being reactive to proactive is just too good
that only very small teams are needed to manage it. to ignore.
CIOs can then invest the surplus human capacity in de-

4
 Executive summary

Connectivity of tomorrow
The spectrum and potential of advanced networking

T
RADITIONALLY, NETWORKING HAS LIVED • Software-defined networking. SDN is a
in the shadow of high-profile disruptive enter- software layer that sits atop a physical network
prise technologies—such as digital experience, composed of networking appliances such as
cognitive, and cloud—that capture imaginations and switches and routers. Long restricted primarily to
headlines. Networking, though mission-critical, is not use within the data center, the technology is now
particularly sexy. This is about to change. being extended for wide area networking to connect
Increasingly, network-dependent technology data centers or other multilocation applications.
forces are transforming enterprise architecture. For • Network function virtualization. NFV replaces
example, proliferating mobile devices, sensors, server- network functions such as routing, switching, en-
less computing, exploding volumes of shared data, and cryption, firewalling, WAN acceleration, and load
automation all require advanced connectivity and dif- balancing provided by dedicated physical network
ferentiated networking. Indeed, advanced connectivity appliances with virtualized software and can scale
is fast becoming a linchpin of digital business. As they horizontally or vertically on demand.10
develop advanced networking strategies, CIOs should
start by examining how core capabilities may be able to CIOs can use these advanced connectivity building
advance their digital transformation agendas. Consider blocks together with existing local area networking
these advanced connectivity building blocks: technologies such as Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and wide-area
capabilities such as Gigabit broadband and 4G LTE
• 5G. The fifth generation of cellular wireless tech- to create configurable networks that can be tailored
nology represents a sweeping change with greater to fit a variety of enterprise needs. Similar to how en-
speed, lower latency, and—importantly—the ability terprises utilize elastic cloud computing infrastructure,
to connect massive numbers of sensors
and smart devices within a network.8
• Edge computing. Applications
such as industrial automation, virtual
CASE STUDIES & EXTERNAL PERSPECTIVES
reality, and autonomous decision- Read the full report to find out more about how Professor
making will require high computation Theodore Rappaport, BHP, and MSC Cruises view
capabilities with very low latency connectivity of tomorrow.
(round trip time from the device to
the cloud and back). In these situations, data pro- with SDN and NFV they will be able to spin up, tear
cessing can be partitioned with a portion executed down, and optimize network capabilities on demand to
in a “mini cloud” as close as possible to the device— fit specific application or end-user requirements.
ideally, embedded within the device or the end Advanced networking is the unsung hero of our
point itself. 9
digital future, offering a continuum of connectivity that
can drive development of new products and services or
And CIOs are virtualizing parts of the connec- transform inefficient operating models. In the coming
tivity stack using the following network management months, expect to see companies across sectors and ge-
techniques: ographies take advantage of advanced connectivity to
configure and operate tomorrow’s enterprise networks.

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Tech Trends 2019: Beyond the digital frontier

Intelligent interfaces
Reimagining the way humans, machines, and data interact

I
N AN EMERGING TECHNOLOGY TREND THAT • Tracking customers’ offline habits. Just as
could redraw—or even erase—boundaries between search engines and social media companies can
humans and computers, a new breed of intelligent track their customers’ digital habits, some intelli-
interfaces is turning the farfetched into reality. These gent interface capabilities already make it possible
interfaces combine the latest in human-centered de- to track physical behavior.
sign techniques with leading-edge technologies such as • New products and solution sets. Under-
machine learning, robotics, IoT, contextual awareness, standing customers at a personal, detailed level
and advanced augmented reality and virtual reality. will make it possible to “micro-personalize” prod-
Working in concert, these techniques and capabilities ucts and services.
are transforming the way we engage with machines, • Efficiency. Today, companies are exploring op-
data, and each other. portunities to use VR, AR, mixed reality, 360, AI,
For example, using cameras, sensors, and computer and sensor technologies to enhance operational
vision, a retailer can track and analyze shoppers’ store efficiency and individual productivity.
movements, gaze, and behavior to identify regular cus-
tomers and gauge their mood. By cross-analyzing the Any intelligent interface initiative involves under-

information with these customers’ purchase histories, lying technology capabilities to bring it to life. As the

the retailer can push promotions in real time to shop- fidelity and complexity of these experiences evolve,

pers’ mobile devices—or, in the not-too-distant future, developing the supporting infrastructure necessary

be able to predict a need based on a customer’s subcon- to harvest, analyze, and disseminate infinitely more

scious behaviors and preemptively place an order on data from more input sources will make or break ex-

her behalf. periences. There are also data syndication, capture,

Currently, voice use cases are proliferating in ware- storage, compression, and delivery considerations,

house, customer service, and, notably, field operation and this is where having an IT strategy for managing

deployments where technicians armed with a variety the backbone elements of intelligent interfaces will be

of voice-enabled wearables can interact with company crucial.

systems and staff without having to hold a phone or To say this trend is potentially disruptive would be

printed instructions. Though conversational technolo- an understatement—simply put, it represents the next

gies may currently dominate the intelligent

interfaces arena, many see a different breed
of solutions gaining ground. They feature, CASE STUDIES & EXTERNAL PERSPECTIVES
among other capabilities, computer vision, Read the full report to see what Professor Pattie Maes,
gesture control devices, embedded eye- Sony Entertainment & Technology, Snap, and Delta Air
tracking platforms, bioacoustic sensing, Lines are doing with intelligent interfaces.
emotion detection/recognition technology,
and muscle-computer interfaces. And soon
this list also may include emerging capabilities such great technology transformation. And this transforma-

as brain-controlled interfaces, exoskeleton and gait tion is already underway. If you are not exploring the

analysis, volumetric displays, spatial computing, and role that voice, computer vision, and a growing array of

electrovibration sensing. other interfaces will play in your company’s future, you

Intelligent interfaces offer B2C and B2B opportuni- are already late to the game.

ties in several areas:

6
 Executive summary

Beyond marketing:
Experience reimagined
CMOs and CIOs partnering to elevate the human experience

M
ARKETING TECHNOLOGY IS UNDER- of a digital strategy. CMOs increasingly charged with
going a renaissance. Channel-focused solu- owning the delivery of the entire customer experience,
tions such as websites, social and mobile which includes customer experience systems, suddenly
platforms, content management tools, and search find themselves taking on facets of the CIO’s tradi-
engine optimization are fast becoming yesterday’s tional role. At the same time, CIOs are being called on
news. As part of the growing beyond marketing to transform legacy systems and build new infrastruc-
trend, organizations are adopting a new generation ture to support next-generation data management and
of martech systems that deliver unprecedented levels front-office customer engagement systems. CIOs and
of customer intimacy, targeted engagement, and pre- CMOs are finding they will have to collaborate more
cision impact. By deploying new approaches to data closely than ever in order to deliver not only on their
gathering, decisioning, and delivery, companies can company’s new marketing strategies but also on estab-
now create personalized, contextualized, dynamic end- lished digital agendas.
to-end experiences for individual customers.
These experiences, in turn, can help cus-
tomers create deep emotional connections to
products and brands, which drive loyalty and CASE STUDIES & EXTERNAL PERSPECTIVES
business growth. Read the full report to see how the United States
With its emphasis on the human experi- Tennis Association, Tyson Foods, and Nationwide
ence, the beyond marketing trend represents Insurance are approaching the Beyond marketing:
a turning point in marketing strategy and Experience reimagined trend.
practices. Traditionally, marketing’s broad
goal was to bend consumer will in ways that
advance a seller’s strategy. Going forward, its goal will From a technology perspective, the beyond mar-
be to adapt the seller’s objectives and methods of en- keting trend involves reengineering your company’s
gagement to meet specific customer expectations. To do current approach for data (the starting point for all
so, some companies are looking beyond longstanding efforts), decisioning (automated determination of
relationships with marketing services providers and ad how and when to provide an experience), and delivery
agencies and are bringing data management and cus- (dynamic content delivered consistently across chan-
tomer engagement processes back in-house. They are nels) to meet consumer expectations. But this does
trading in “black box” customer marketing solutions not require ripping out your legacy technology stack
for cloud-based, flexible, automated marketing sys- and replacing it with a host of shiny new tools. Rather,
tems that offer greater control of data. Organizations your goal should be to integrate the technologies and
further along in their beyond marketing journeys are processes that can make your existing systems smarter,
exploring opportunities to integrate first-, second-, and and provide real-time, seamless interactions with
third-party data, cognitive analytics, machine learning, customers.
and real-time/right-time touchpoint delivery into their In today’s world, the customer is in charge. And
data management stacks. in a marketplace of endless options and chan-
Technology has created a multitude of ways to nels, companies should elevate their marketing
engage customers on their paths to purchase. But the operations from art to a blend of art and science,
tech stack required to engage and deliver an end-to- while keeping the customer firmly in the center of
end customer experience can be incredibly complex all decisions.
and challenging if not developed within the parameters

7
Tech Trends 2019: Beyond the digital frontier

DevSecOps and the cyber

imperative
Elevating, embedding, and evolving your risk response

D
EVOPS TACTICS AND TOOLS ARE • Reinforce and elevate through automation.
dramatically changing the way IT organizations Automation of recurring tasks throughout the de-
innovate. In the midst of this transformation, velopment life cycle, testing, and during operations
IT leaders are finding that longstanding approaches for makes it possible to embed preventative opera-
integrating security into new products are not keeping tional controls, create ongoing audit trails, and
pace with high-velocity, continuous delivery software respond quickly in a repeatable fashion.
development. Indeed, in the DevOps arena, traditional • Risk-oriented operations and action-
“bolt-on” security techniques and manual controls able insights. Organizations incorporating
that rely on legacy practices often are perceived as DevSecOps into their development pipelines
impediments to speed, transparency, and overall can utilize operational insights and threat intel-
security effectiveness. ligence to drive process flow, prioritization, and
Now, in a growing trend, some companies have remediation recommendations.
begun embedding security culture, practices, and • Proactive monitoring and recursive feed-
tools into each phase of their DevOps pipelines, an back. Automated, continuous testing helps identify
approach known as DevSecOps. Deployed strategically, problems before they become issues.
DevSecOps can help improve the security and
compliance maturity levels of a company’s
DevOps pipeline, while boosting quality and
CASE STUDIES & EXTERNAL PERSPECTIVES
productivity and shrinking time-to-market.
Building on your experience of developing and Read the full report to see what Maersk, PayPal, the
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases,
operating applications, DevSecOps enables
and the US Food and Drug Administration are saying
you to automate good cybersecurity practices
about DevSecOps.
into the toolchain so they are utilized consis-
tently, helping ensure every product you stand
up is a known entity—tested, secure, and reliable. DevSecOps incorporates secure culture, practices,
DevSecOps is not a security trend in and of itself and tools to drive visibility, collaboration, and agility
but, rather, an aspect of the ongoing DevOps revolu- into each phase of the DevOps pipeline. Like any other
tion that offers companies a different way of thinking IT program, DevSecOps should directly tie to your
about security: broader IT strategy, which, in turn, should be driven by
your business strategy. If a DevOps program supports
• Open collaboration on shared objectives. your IT and business strategy, then embed the “Sec” at
Security architects, developers, testers, and op- the same time. In short order, it may help you bolster
erators share expectations and metrics that align to your cyber maturity.
security and focus on business priorities.

8
 Executive summary

Beyond the digital frontier:

Mapping your future
Digital transformation demystified

T
ODAY, WE REFER TO THE PROCESS OF • Imagine. The first step is getting the right focus,
using emerging technologies to reimagine an en- quickly setting ambitions, and charting a path to
tire business as digital transformation. Simply success with a deliverables road map. This process
put, digital transformation is the process of future- involves sensing, scanning, and scouting the market
proofing one’s organization. It typically begins with to uncover trends and establishing an initial hy-
leaders and strategists defining new ambitions—often pothesis of potentially untapped or trapped value.
in the broadest of terms and grandest of visions. • Deliver. The next step requires putting your ambi-
But digital transformation can and should be just tion in motion by moving from early ideas to fully
as concerned with modest and immediate ambitions as tested, refined, and validated offerings rolled out
it is with broadly reimagining the future. For example, in the market or the enterprise. Two other compo-
reengineering individual business units and processes, nents are essential at this stage: a digital foundry
or creating opportunities for specific products and for agile delivery of new technology, and product
customers, can have a more immediate impact on long- teams focused on preparing existing core systems,
term competitiveness. By adopting a strategy of putting data, and operations for the reimagined offerings.
smaller, more tightly scoped offerings into the market • Run. Some digital initiatives overlook one of the
quickly and successfully, organizations can incremen- most important aspects of digital transformation:
tally achieve an end-state business ambition. how to scale and then support fledgling ideas and
Yet all too often, companies anchor their innovative new offerings. It is important to es-
approach to digital transformation on a specific tablish common standards for product scalability
technology advance. To fuel impactful digital and support across all dimensions of a digital
transformation, leading organizations combine game- transformation effort.
changing technologies with other catalysts
of new opportunities—from the connectivity
of evolving ecosystems to human-centered OPPORTUNITIES ON THE HORIZON
design, macroeconomic forces, real-time data
Read the full report to see how digital transformation
intelligence, and more. And they do so with a
affects the Future of Work, Future of Mobility, and
repeatable, disciplined approach.
the Future of Health.
Your goal should not be about creating
glorified proofs of concepts or spinning up
random acts of incremental digital to substitute ac- Mapping your digital future is no small order. But
tivity for progress. You should embrace and embed the if you can be deliberate about sensing and evaluating
digital mindset into business, operating, and customer emerging technologies, considering the nontechnology
models. The key is to iterate rapidly to get offerings forces unlocking new opportunity, and creating a se-
into the market as quickly as possible. Along the way, ries of well-defined but aspirational ambitions, you can
you will be laying the needed foundation to imagine, make the unknown knowable—creating the confidence
deliver, and run the future. and construct to embrace digital, while setting the
stage to move beyond the digital frontier.

9
Tech Trends 2019: Beyond the digital frontier

Endnotes

1. Andrew Clark, “Oracle’s takeover of Sun Microsystems comes as surprise to software industry,” Guardian,
April 20, 2009.

2. Tech Trends 2019 is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise
approved by Apple Inc. iPad is a registered trademark of Apple Inc.

3. Kim Zetter, “How digital detectives deciphered Stuxnet, the most menacing malware in history,” Wired,
June 7, 2011.

4. Bill Briggs et al., 2018 global CIO survey: Manifesting legacy, Deloitte Insights, August 8, 2018.

5. David Schatsky, Craig Muraskin, and Ragu Gurumurthy, “Cognitive technologies: The real opportunities
for business,” Deloitte Review 16, January 26, 2016.

6. Deloitte Consulting, “CIOs can become chief insights officers,” WSJ CIO Journal, November 6, 2017.

7. Bill Briggs et al., Follow the money: 2018 global CIO survey, chapter 3, Deloitte Insights, August 8, 2018.

8. Sacha Segan, “What is 5G?”, PC Magazine, October 2, 2018.

9. Brandon Butler, “What is edge computing and how it’s changing the network,” NetworkWorld,
September 21, 2017.

10. Ibid.

10
 Executive summary

Executive editors

BILL BRIGGS
Global chief technology officer
Deloitte Consulting LLP
[email protected]

Bill Briggs’ 20-plus years with Deloitte have been spent delivering complex transformation programs for clients
in a variety of industries, including financial services, health care, consumer products, telecommunications,
energy, and the public sector. He is a strategist with deep implementation experience, helping clients
anticipate the impact that new and emerging technologies may have on their business in the future—and
getting there from the realities of today.

In his role as CTO, Briggs is responsible for research, eminence, and innovation, helping to define the
vision and strategy for Deloitte Consulting LLP’s evolving technology services and offerings. He also serves
as executive sponsor of Deloitte’s CIO Program, offering CIOs and other IT executives insights on how to
navigate the complex challenges they face in business and technology.

SCOTT BUCHHOLZ
Emerging Technologies research director and
Government & Public Services CTO
Deloitte Consulting LLP
[email protected]

With more than 25 years of experience in technology innovation and implementation, Scott Buchholz focuses
on helping clients transform the way they deliver their missions and businesses through technology. He
supports organizations across industries by providing advice and insights on how to evolve their technology
and their organizations to improve performance, effectiveness, and efficiency.

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