As we all learned in the tumultuous, often tragic months of 2020, technology is essential to nearly every aspect of our lives — from health and learning to work plus entertainment.

Yet while technology has been a lifeline for millions, it needs to get better. Way better.

That’s why I’m excited about what is to come. The pandemic drove technologies adoption in amazing ways — indeed, the future arrived seemingly overnight. Networking, cloud, security, collaboration, and other digital technologies almost all played a huge role in keeping the world running.

Despite our current struggles, I see a time when we move past the particular pandemic plus into that better globe. Here are some associated with the top technology styles that We believe will lead the way towards a better future in 2021.

The COVID-19 pandemic put a glaring spotlight on the biggest inequities in our society and around the world. Today, a lack of connectivity separates half the global population from opportunities inside learning, business, and healthcare. In virtually every country, the particular digital divide affects rural communities and the poor disproportionately.

The next generation of wireless technologies —including 5G and Wi-Fi 6 — can go a long way towards closing the separate.

These systems will raise the bar on bandwidth, speed, and latency, plus reach areas where fiber is prohibitively expensive — including rural communities, from African villages to Native American reservations.

Frontline mobile workers, telehealth, manufacturing, and education will just about all benefit through next-gen wireless as well. We see pervasive wireless connection as the ultimate flattener associated with the electronic divide as these new technology spur growth, innovation, and opportunity with regard to millions of people who are currently on the wrong side of the divide.

We’ve been hearing about the promise from the Internet of Things for years. But lately, the confluence of innovations — including advanced network technologies, next-gen wireless, and AI, to name a few — are making it the reality. Add to that cheap, smart, plus soon-to-be pervasive sensors, and we will be interacting with our world, our machines, and one another in exciting new methods.

The workplace is a great example. Data-based insights delivered by sensors may help provide a healthier, and more productive environment. Combined with WiFi, location technologies, and infused into collaboration platforms like Webex, they will identify underutilized or overcrowded spaces, while monitoring conditions like room temperature, humidity, air quality plus light.

But the potential regarding sensors will be even greater. For example, sports sensors will be alert intended for signs associated with concussion. And fatigue sensors will monitor alertness within potentially dangerous environments.

All of this data can be collected and turned into actionable, real-time insights, along with AI playing an increasing role in keeping us informed to get better decisions.  

Cloud and mobility were critical to the agility that kept the planet going in 2020. But with so many far-flung workers plus devices spread across multiple clouds, the very concept of a security perimeter has blurred — most in an environment where fast responses in order to security threats are crucial.

Almost all that demands security that’s integrated, automated, and simple to use and keep track of. In Cisco’s global 2021 Security Outcomes Study , a well-integrated technology stack was a top driver of success.

One of the biggest challenges in security is knowing what’s real and what’s a threat in complex environments.

Zero Trust was developed to ensure that nothing — and no one — gets simply by without verification. It reacts to the constantly changing environment, ensuring that only the particular right users or devices get access to your network. In the 2021 Security Results Study, 39 percent associated with respondents said they had been “all in” on zero-trust, while an additional 38 percent were “moving in that direction. ”

At the same time, a password-free future is on the near horizon, as enabling technologies such as biometrics become popular with both consumers and enterprises.

Organizations have long invested in one-size-fits all technology solutions. That meant paying for features that will users might never actually need. Today, software as the service enables organizations to pay pertaining to the features and capabilities they presently need, with the option to scale other services along with great speed and agility, when needed.

Consumption models will continue to shift, especially as more and more features plus capabilities are available via software program, whether upon site or even in the cloud. The flexibility and cost savings that pay-as-you-consume models provide are simply too good in order to resist.

This shift to pay-as-you-consume spending gives organizations more flexibility and cost predictability in order to manage their IT spend — something that 85 percent of CIOs and IT decision makers in Cisco’s 2021 CIO and ITDM Trends Pulse report agreed is important to their company (43 % called it very important).  

In the particular early weeks of the outbreak, organizations had to adapt quickly to meet highly unpredictable changes. Cloud was the critical enabler of this new agility. With regard to many businesses, it has been the only way in order to meet the particular rapidly shifting demands of their customers plus employees, regardless of costs.

Ten months later, the applications at the heart of our businesses are highly distributed. Our workforces are more mobile than ever before. Plus the needs on our systems are usually unprecedented.

Looking ahead, THIS teams will need increased agility. With enhanced observability solutions, teams can change from checking everything to monitoring just the data and insights that matter. Both insights plus automation is going to be essential in order to future development, competitiveness, and resilience.

Today, mobile apps enable everything from shopping and banking to learning and well-being — plus they’ve even helped track COVID cases. Mobile apps also allow both public and private-sector organizations to connect with and understand users in ways that were unimaginable just a few years ago.

Of course, most business processes also run on applications.

The most advanced of these promise more personalized relationships, along with instantaneous responses. That will demands the particular ability in order to turn masses of current information from the network in to actionable information. And to do it quick.

Armed with such capabilities, companies can respond to a customer even before they report an issue or a need. It’s this particular combination of immersive, intelligence-based personalization and experience that will transform baseline customer satisfaction into deep customer engagement, excitement, plus loyalty.

Along with innovation accelerating at a fast pace, there’s the tremendous opportunity to use brand new technologies to create organizations that are more flexible, responsive, and resilient. At the same time, I believe our higher mission is usually to use technology in order to improve lives across the planet.

Which technology trends do you have on your radar?

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