My technology-related predictions for 2009
New President, crazy economy…there are a lot of changes in store for small businesses in 2009. Well, there are a lot of changes coming on the technology front as well, and they will have a big impact on small businesses in every industry.
Not all of the changes are earth-shattering of course, but some of them actually are. So without further ado, here are my big technology-related predictions that will impact your business in 2009:
1. Small businesses will no longer buy technology, or pay for technology support!
That may seem to be a surprising prediction coming from the CEO of an IT management and support company, but I believe it’s true and it’s the best thing that can happen to your business and mine.
You see, I’m a big believer that nobody really wants to buy technology, and they absolutely don’t want to buy technology support. What they do want to buy are the benefits that technology can provide. Everon has always been focused on helping small businesses realize those benefits through better technology management and support.
But in the future, I don’t think that buying the technology or support will be the way technology is consumed. Instead, I believe that businesses will purchase what we call “technology as a service” – a suite of hardware, software, and services that is all bundled together to deliver a sought after benefit.
The model I’m referring to is very much like that of Salesforce.com. With Salesforce, you aren’t buying software, hardware, or support – you are buying the ability to more effectively manage your sales process through the use of web-based tools and processes. It’s simple, straight forward, and has a nice ROI, which is why Salesforce has grown so quickly.
In the coming months, Everon will offer a similar value proposition to our clients, delivering the benefits of technology without the ownership and support hassles associated with traditional hardware and software purchases. Stay tuned!
2. Apple and Google will make serious inroads into the small business office.
In the last six months, I’ve met more business people that own an Apple computer than I’ve met in the previous ten years. And I’m not talking about designers, artists, architects, or professors – I’m talking about business people with boring, normal jobs like finance, accounting, law, etc.! This is a major shift we’re talking about here – Apple has just become too cool for us working stiffs to ignore!
At the same time, Google has penetrated just about every area of my work life. It’s truly amazing – I work in some sort of Google tool – Google Docs, Google Apps, Google Sites, Google Search, Google AdWords – pretty much all day long. I imagine a lot of you reading this do as well. If you don’t, you soon will.
3. We will all start doing pretty much everything from “The Cloud”.
“The Cloud” means different things to different people, but what I’m suggesting here is that almost everything you use in terms of applications, technology, services, etc. are going to be delivered over the internet. This is a natural extension of Prediction #1 and the Google portion of Prediction #2.
If you look at my computer at any random time during the workweek at this point, you will find that I have Outlook open and 10-15 internet browser windows. Everything I do is over the web. This will become more true by leaps and bounds in the next year.
Will I be right?
We’ll check in this time in 2009 and see how I did.
Either way, I wish all of you the best of luck in 2009! The economy is tough, and there is a lot of change happening, but I’m a firm believer that times like this provide great opportunity if we just keep a sharp look out for it!
Mike Cooch
CEO
Everon Technology Services
Tags: 2009 predictions, Apple, google, salesforce, small business technology