I believe it is in moments of adversity that innovation thrives. Technology has always been a sector of rapid growth and the pandemic forced the acceleration of tech at an unprecedented rate. Almost overnight, the responsibility to iterate products that would allow us to continue our lives, at work and play, was handed to tech builders and new age hybrid leaders; it was no surprise that they are rising to the occasion. 

Fast forward to a post-pandemic world and we’ve transitioned successfully to our new normal; we have technology to thank for that. Many areas of our lives have been forever transformed: how we communicate, collaborate, travel, parent, consume, and more.

As we adapt to the changing conditions of today’s market and spectators debate whether the momentum the tech industry enjoyed for so long is sustainable in a hybrid workplace, I am positive about the future. I envisage the tech landscape and the hybrid leaders delivering even more transformation and even more tools that will benefit us. To that end, I have a few predictions on where the tech industry is heading. 

Technology will become more data-driven.

Business leaders who currently rely only on gut instinct to make strategic business decisions will add data tools to their stacks. This does come with one major challenge. Data specialists, data scientists, and analysts have historically been the ones with the keys that unlocked and interpreted the information hidden inside. I believe it will be the responsibility of technology builders to democratise this access so that anyone, regardless of industry or role, will be able to understand and take actionable insights from data.

Technology will become more concentrated.

The market offers countless cloud softwares and apps to assist in all areas of our lives. Especially when it comes to work, tech is fuelling automation and efficiency, freeing people up to make more technological advances and reducing the amount of time it takes for humans to execute tasks manually. Companies however are finding that they’re having to adopt multiple softwares to perform different but associated tasks. Take the hiring industry as an example. Employers are using one software for sourcing, another for sorting candidates, another for hiring, etc. I see the tech landscape providing more one-stop-shop solutions that execute all tasks in one place, reducing the clunkiness of multiple softwares and making processes more seamless for users.

Technology will help companies save money.

Businesses are always looking to stop hemorrhaging cash in important areas of their businesses. Labor is one of the costliest areas, so making advantageous hiring decisions cuts to the center of this pain point. A high turnover of staff is an expensive practice and it will be even more important for business leaders to use tech to make the right decisions the first time round in order to avoid having to repeat the process after a few months when incompatibility surfaces and goodbyes happen. There is technology available right now that does this with high accuracy.

Technology will facilitate human connections.

Since the pandemic, companies have adapted their work models from a one-size-fits-all approach to meeting the needs of workers on an individual basis. Remote work has its advantages: an improved work/life balance and the freedom to choose the hours that best suit. However, as remote-first teams grow and the gig economy continues, companies will need more than video call subscriptions and communication software. They will need to choose the right technology that helps their people connect and fuel company culture, productivity, and deepen collaboration across screens. 

We may be facing difficult times in the near future; in May 2022 alone,15K people were made redundant across the tech industry. However, we are constantly witnessing technological experimentation and innovation that knows no bounds, and with the influx of tech Talent on the market, employers have the unique opportunity to attract these great minds to build the products of the future. It is down to those in the tech industry to rise to the challenge and elevate us all, never more so than in moments of uncertainty.