https://www.forbes.com/sites/waynerash/2021/12/28/what-to-expect-for-it-in-2021/?sh=58035ce6efee
The Covid-19 pandemic had a profound effect on IT departments globally. In the space of a few days, office buildings emptied as staff disappeared. IT services suddenly had to support an almost entirely remote workforce. Adding to the complexity, the IT staff also left to work at home, making user support difficult, and normal operations almost impossible.
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The result is that IT will be changed forever. Here are some of the things to expect in 2021.
· Remote work is never going away.
“Some organizations have discovered that they are able to maintain business continuity in a work-from-home environment while saving money on overhead costs,” said Dr. Barbara Rembiesa, CEO of the International Association of IT Asset Managers (IAITAM). “When the coronavirus epidemic first began and the shift to remote work started, organizations used ad hoc IT Asset Management (ITAM) processes to maintain business continuity and survive the government-imposed shutdowns. This worked in 2020 but is not be good enough for 2021. Organizations need to return to performing mature ITAM processes. Otherwise, they will be at risk of data leaks.”
· Working from home will continue beyond the pandemic. “Businesses that once felt that people needed to be in the office each day in order to be productive are realizing that their employees are just as efficient working remotely,”
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5G will begin to come into its own in 2021, but it will still have limitations. “...
Once 5G is established in an area, it can have a profound effect for remote workers. Even relatively modest 5G implementations, such as the low-band 5G from T-Mobile and AT&T can provide a real benefit to remote workers.
· IT budgets will be reduced in companies that are suffering financial losses because of the pandemic. “Due largely to the pandemic, many organizations will continue to struggle to stay afloat, and will experience a reduction in security budgets across the board,” said Gordon MacKay, EVP and CTO of Digital Defense. “More and more, attackers will target remote workers by using more advanced phishing, vishing, ransomware and even attacks on home computer infrastructure such as home routers.” MacKay said that organizations will need to plan for increased budgets to deal with IT security threats.
2021 will also bring changes in the data that organizations collect about consumers. There will be much less of it. “In the past, organizations have looked to get as much information on consumers as possible, even if they did not have a clear business use for the data,” said Marc Rogers, VP of security at Okta. This data poses a potential threat despite having no real use. In 2021, we will see executives become more aware of the volume and types of data their organization is collecting, handling and transmitting, and ultimately look to limit it to data which has a justifiable business need. ...
Planning for IT in 2021 will require adjustments in both remote working and in terms of new requirements. There will be new demands for increased staff, and for added staff training, and because most organizations will have such demands, it will become more difficult to retain the IT staff you have, and harder to hire new people. Think budget increases if you plan to stay in business.
