At Hotwire, we’re fanatical about technology and all the latest trends the industry has to offer. Now is the time of year when everyone gets out their crystal ball to predict what’s going to be big in the year ahead.
So what are the analysts saying? And what do our in-house experts think? In this series, we will be discussing some of the biggest topics in tech for 2022 including hybrid working, sustainability, cloud computing, AI and more! Stay tuned for more insights.
In our first blog, we’re investigating hybrid working. Like a pet that’s not just for Christmas, but for life, hybrid working is THE big trend that continues to impact technology businesses.
Let’s take a look at what the analysts say…
According to Forrester…
- Companies will fail at anywhere-work and it won’t be the virus’ fault
- Ten percent of companies will commit to a fully remote future. For the remaining 90%, vaccine mandates will lead to complications but won’t be the cause of most return-to office failures. The real pain will be felt at the 60% of companies shifting to a hybrid model: One-third of first attempts at anywhere- work simply won’t work.
- Leaders will claim support for hybrid work but still design meetings, job roles, and promotion opportunities around face-to-face experiences. When it’s clear that productivity is suffering, these same execs will blame hybrid work rather than looking in the mirror at the real culprit.
- A smaller number of failures will come from the 30% of companies that insist on a fully in office model, only to find that employees simply won’t have it. Attrition at these companies will rise above their industry averages — monthly resignation rates will rise as high as 2.5% for as much of 2022 as needed until executives feel the pain and finally commit to making hybrid work … work.
According to Gartner…
- The number of distributed enterprises will continue to grow
- The virtual-first and remote approach will digitise the employee and customer experience
- Three-quarters of organisations that utilise distributed enterprise will see their revenues grow by 25%
According to IDC…
- Organisations will be driven to deploying remote / hybrid-first work models
- By 2023, digital transformation and business volatility will drive 70% of G2000 (Forbes list of world’s largest public companies) organizations to deploy remote or hybrid-first work models, redefining work processes and engaging diverse talent pools
- As part of remote / hybrid working models, technology will play an even bigger role in recruitment and onboarding
- By 2023, 60% of G2000 businesses will deploy AI- and ML-enabled platforms to support the entire employee life-cycle experience from onboarding through retirement
What’s our HotTake? Matt Cross, head of B2B, EMEA at Hotwire:
“Despite lamenting the fact we have been cut-off from our colleagues in so many ways this year, there’s no denying that we’ve also got rather comfortable in our new flexible routines, and, as it turns out, pretty productive too. With many businesses lowering OPEX while seeing productivity increases, it’s no wonder that maintaining this status quo, or encouraging a form of hybrid working is top of the agenda.
“Working for a consultancy like Hotwire, where hybrid working has been the norm for the last four or five years, it is easy to forget many businesses are still really finding their feet – Forrester’s forecast of hybrid horrors should act as a forewarning therefore. Provisioning for hybrid and remote working should be listed as an essential element for digital transformation not merely as a consideration while planning overhauls across CX, CRM or ITSM.”
P.S. Want to make sure your tech business is set up for success next year? Rethinking your comms or marketing strategy? We’d love to hear from you here.