February 2, 2024 | Blog

2020 was the year when the world stopped. Pandemic happened. Nobody predicted the magnitude of what was coming for the world, especially for many businesses. Many remained resilient. Others stayed afloat. Few thrives. But for the rest? They had to live in the uncertainty and cut their business short.  

For IT Group, Inc., the experience wasn’t far from the majority. Since then, many businesses have sought ways to future-proof their companies, ensuring success in their business goals, regardless of what is ahead. One of which is making comprehensive strategic plans based on upcoming and ongoing tech trends and business insights, which can influence the whole business trajectory for the foreseeable future. 

Business trends in the Philippines, meanwhile, will focus on being digitally integrated with “e-commerce playing a pivotal role”. So today, we listed down business insights and tech trends that will help you navigate your business, not only in 2024 but, more importantly, on your long-term goals for your company in the coming years. 

Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Generative AI 

Artificial Intelligence or AI created a significant influence, helping every industry to elevate their business through technology. In recent years, however, AI made its pivotal turn that revolutionized everything, such as Generative AI and advanced Machine Learning, taking the lead toward modern-day business-to-business (B2B) transactions and business-to-customer (B2C) experience. Bernard Marr, a Forbes writer, columnist, and book author renowned for his tech insights and future trends, shared that “business trends today are largely driven by technology”. 

Marr cited The Boston Consulting Group that to be an industry leader in five years, you need a clear and compelling generative AI strategy today. “AI and machine learning have been making waves for more than a decade, and are thoroughly integrated into many of the products and services we buy from major companies. Now, generative AI puts the power to create and intelligently automate the customer experience–as well as internal operations– in the hands of nearly every organization,” he said. 

Moreover, Bart Willemsen, the Vice President Analyst of Gartner, acknowledges in their recent Top Strategic Technology Trends for 2024 report, that AI is a disruptive technology. “Some are driven by AI; others help you to operate and grow effectively and safely as customer expectations and business models evolve with AI. Your next steps will depend on which innovations are most likely to impact your ability to achieve business goals and how soon you can begin to adopt or plan to adopt them,” he said. 

Cybersecurity

But as every industry leans toward digital transformation, the opportunity to exploit loopholes and vulnerabilities of data and information arises, too. Mary Meehan tackled the trends for 2024 in her Forbes article, explaining that as much as “innovation and progress can be exciting”, the need for transparency and regulation is still a gray area that somehow creates a “worrisome” feel. “Expect global regulations and keeping customer values in mind when implementing these new tools,” she said. Cybersecurity is crucial as we go deep down the path of digital transformation, including AI.

Also read: ITG and ManageEngine’s Best Practices for Cybersecurity

Meanwhile, in the same Gartner report, Willemsen shared that through AI we can also optimize our cybersecurity. Artificial Intelligence Trust, Risk, and Security Management or AI TRiSM is a holistic framework that relies on creating reliable AI systems that help businesses protect data and limit the potential risk of AI Technology. According to their prediction report, by 2026, enterprises that apply TRiSM to control and monitor AI applications will increase the accuracy of their decision-making by eliminating 80% of faulty and illegitimate information.

Also read: ‘Data Privacy’: Our Tech Experts Share Their Insights 

AI TRiSM aims to promote self-governance cybersecurity and proactively ensure—regardless of what AI system it is—to promote “trustworthiness, fairness, reliability, robustness, transparency and data protection”.  Aside from AI TRiSM is Continuous Threat Exposure Management or CTEM. The premise of CTEM is simple: businesses can review and evaluate their cybersecurity vulnerabilities and assess the accessibility and exploitability of their system, leading to better and stronger risk mitigation responses. ManageEngine, one of the ITG’s technological partners, offers solutions that can help you and your business start your cybersecurity journey as well. 

Sustainable Business and Technology

As technology and businesses move towards the digital landscape, the rally over sustainability and compliance becomes more relevant than ever. Natalie Chladek, an Associate Product Manager at Harvard Business School Online, explained the impact of overall sustainability in business. “Sustainability doesn’t mean sacrificing profits or putting success on the back burner. Instead, it has become a crucial element to any organization’s successful strategy. A business that doesn’t factor in sustainability risks is less successful in several measures, including profitability, growth, and employee retention.” 

Also read: Digital Transformation, Sustainable Business, and Cybersecurity in the City of Smiles

Marr, meanwhile, added that public consumers become environmentally conscious, which revealed that many customers prefer “companies with a solid commitment to reducing their environmental footprint”. Moreover, Gartner’s research predicts that by 2027, 25% of CIOs will have compensation linked to their sustainable technology impact. Willemsen also shared tips on how to have a better approach when it comes to sustainable business. “Involve your ethics board in developing a roadmap for structured decision-making. Instead of finding trade-offs, pursue optimization of any value in favor of improved overall organizational sustainability,” he said. “Select technologies that will help drive sustainability in your industry and are identified as a priority for the business and key stakeholders. This may include cloud services, AI, and others.”

The success of sustainability relies on human initiative. Organizations that have a proactive approach to creating sustainable long-term plans and incorporate technology to leverage their compliance will ensure a sustainable business is a compliant and profitable business. Oracle NetSuite, ITG’s partner, offers the #1 Cloud ERP that can streamline your business processes like turning from manual to computerized accounting system, helping you to have less manual recording, less carbon footprint, and more positive environmental impact that supports sustainability. 

Customer Experience 

AI, Cybersecurity, and Sustainability. These three pointed out one significant thing in business; the customer and client experience. Tech in the Business explores the limit of how creative you can get and how engaging you can be with your customers. The accessibility, quality, and relevancy of your products and services, including pre and post-transactions, are crucial to building solid customer relationships with your (potential and existing) customers.

As the saying goes, first impressions last. For businesses, it’s more than making an impression, it’s about long-lasting positive experiences with clients and customers. Nowadays, Generative AI, or AI in general, helps to create content from images, text, speeches, video editing, and more. Long before, it was the labor-intensive manual tasks where tech and innovation thrived. Today, even the art and creative side of the business, Tech, with the help of Generative AI, can be maximized. Although human talent remains premium and builds id and emotions, AI will help to speed up and generate collaborative ideas in the blink of an eye. Best examples are self-ordering kiosk stores, Alexa of Amazon, Siri of Apple, ChatGPT, Chatbots, and more.

Moreover, the security and safety of your products and services also contribute to the overall customer experience of your clients. If you have strong cybersecurity against malware and cyber-attacks, it echoes how you value the confidentiality and sensitive information of your customers. It builds customer trust and the proven integrity of your company, showing your commitment to data privacy and security. Sustainability also plays an important role as consumers are now actively involved with social and environmental issues and are more conscious not only of the products and services they consume but also of the companies they try to support. These three are interconnected, which many companies should focus on when ensuring and delivering excellent customer service.  

Diversity and Inclusion

As much as technology drives businesses and vice versa, investment in people will remain the greatest asset of any company. For companies to thrive and reach their business goals, they should have the right people—regardless of age, gender, sex, social background, ethnicity, and race—to help them lead the way.

“Talent comes in all ages, shapes, sizes and colors. Unconscious racist, sexist, or ageist bias can easily seep into systems around hiring, training, performance management, or development, resulting in talent being marginalized, mismanaged, or overlooked,” Marr said. “There has always been a business case for ensuring diverse and inclusive workforces, but in the age of AI, as we increasingly rely on machines to make decisions that impact humans, it’s more important than ever.” 

Also read: IT Group, Inc. Celebrates 20 Years in the IT Industry

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), nevertheless, empower companies to attract talents—fit and skilled—to operate, analyze, and enhance the disruptive technology we have today. It also means when a company puts its people first and welcomes diversity, it allows human experiences to be part of the actual plan and operation of the business, where people can understand customer experiences better, rather than rely only on technology like AI, which has a limit of understanding based solely on patterns and algorithms, that misses human emotions and empathy. 

Best example? Customer Service. Clients and customers prefer human interactions instead of robotic transactions. Or, even creating a sales pitch to new clients or networking with business partners. Things like these are sometimes overlooked, which only human experiences can offer. Most businesses are too focused on a fast, easy, and quick reliance on ROI from machinery and technology.  

Workforce

Businesses in 2024 should find the balance between workforce, diversity, inclusion, and the use of technology for business management. After the pandemic, many companies reassessed their management, focusing more on being future-proof companies and ready whenever “economic downturns, environmental events, war, global pandemics, or the emergence of a disruptive new competitor” happened unexpectedly. 

“It’s no longer about companies surviving the pandemic, it’s about offering flexible arrangements, valuing employees’ time and harnessing the potential of a global workforce,” Marr said. “But employers are also ensuring that they retain the ability to work with geographically dispersed teams and attract talent from anywhere in the world. For these reasons, we’ll see the number of job postings with “remote” or “hybrid” locations remain well above pre-Covid levels throughout 2024.”

The workforce is not only about automation and integration anymore, but the genuine workforce lies in how effectively your company can balance the use of technology and delegate tasks to the right pool of people. 

Industry Cloud Platform

In the data-driven world, businesses are forced to adapt to change. Since digital transformation is ever-changing, IT Group, Inc., one of the leading IT Solution partners in the ASEAN region, can help you start your digital transformation journey. 

One of the pivotal parts of tech trends and business insights for 2024 is saving your data and information into the industry cloud platform. Many businesses invest in a cloud platform that fits their business needs to protect, save, and maximize their data. Gartner’s report predicted that by 2027, more than 50% of enterprises will use industry cloud platforms to accelerate their business initiatives, up from less than 15% in 2023. 

“IT leaders can use the composability of these platforms to gain the adaptability and agility to respond to accelerating disruption in their organization’s industry,” Willemsen said. “Industry cloud platforms (ICPs) are tailored cloud proposals specific to your industry and can further be tailored to your individual organization’s needs. Address industry-relevant business outcomes by combining underlying SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS services into a whole product offering with composable capabilities.” 

Let’s Venture Together with IT Group, Inc. 

This Tech and Business for 2024 are all based on recurring reports, news, trends, and predictions from some of the world’s trusted and respected organizations such as Forbes, Gartner, Harvard School, and McKinsey & Company. As we move forward this year, IT Group, Inc., curated information that will help you to navigate your business goals and reach your company’s success.

ITG is one of the leading IT Solution Partners in the Philippines and the ASEAN region. ITG is your leading technology partner for system-wide innovative solutions to accelerate your business plans and goals, delivering seamless integrations and processes, from Business Management Solutions, IT Management, Integration & Automation, and Enterprise Data Management to IT Infrastructure.

We are also an ISO 9001:2015 Certified company with regional offices located in Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia, helping 200+ clients across the region on their digital transformation journey, along with our technological partners, gaining a solid portfolio of 250+ successful projects.