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Follow UsMUMBAI, INDIA: Despite a slowdown in the US, there is still a mad rush among multinationals to move into emerging markets, according to Gartner.
Peter Sondergaard, senior vice president of Global Research, said China and India is continuing to witness fast-paced growth across myriad sectors.
Amidst concerns being raised over the slowdown, there are also talks on the need for an IT makeover across the world. The question now being asked is, “would the economic clouds intensify in the coming months or would the sun keep shining?”
On the US slump, Sondergaard today said at the Gartner CIO event here, “Business leaders are concerned about an imminent slowdown, but they hope it will be brief.”
Web 2.0: Good and bad news
Gartner analysis has said there is an increasing awareness about Web 2.0 among the top management of the companies.
“In recent surveys, Web 2.0 started to appear in the radar of the CEOs. Good news is that there is a rising awareness of the Web architecture,” Sondergaard said.
He pointed out that 21 per cent of small to midsize US company CEOs have searched candidates via Facebook or Google and MySpace, which is becoming an increasing trend. He opined that Web 2.0 application could address skill gaps.
He, however, delivered the bad news too: “The bad news is that we are beginning to expect more than what can be delivered.”
Three ‘I’s
Global CEOs are looking out for three fundamental functionaries: Internationalize, Industrialize and Innovate.
Sondergaard detailed the six items that constitute innovation: findability, separability, collectivity, granularity, sensing and agility.
Companies worldwide follow the second ‘I’ -- Internationalization -- with a renewed vigor and Sondergaard said that GE views emerging markets as a vital component to fuel its growth strategy.
Firms are increasingly looking at inorganic means to grow and the increase in the number of mergers and acquisitions validates this point.
The third ‘I -- Industrialization -- is fast catching up with companies moving from industrial networks to frictionless networks.
Gradually, companies are looking at the option of cutting down their IT expenditure as a business strategy option.
With business leaders satisfied that IT is well measured on the basics, the question is, how could IT do more?
Sondergaard said the companies need to “align IT with highest value management tools” and surveys are showing that business leaders are supporting Web 2.0.
Green IT
Davos, January 2007, saw climatic change being voted as the most important shift, which would be affecting the businesses, technology and society and the global economy.
Question Sondergaard on the rise in Green IT and he cautioned: “The industry itself generates two per cent of carbon emission in the world so it’s important for you to keep Green IT as part of your agenda. Your ability to optimize this becomes mandatory. By the end of this year successful IT organizations would be the ones who would have Green IT as part of their CIO agenda.”
The IT makeover would be incomplete without the making the HR functionary strategic.