Worldwide IT spending is projected to total $3.9 trillion in 2020, an increase of 3.4% from 2019, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc. Global IT spending will cross into $4 trillion territory next year. By Clutch.co, about 52 percent of small businesses will outsource jobs and raise software development budgets from 6.0 to 9.1 %.
We listed trends we expect to see in the IT business world, based on research and our experience, for the current year.
Quality > Pricing
Since the beginning of time, companies were rushing to find cheap labor offshore, expecting quick gains and decreased spending, only to end in a lot of poor outsourcing deals, resulting in substandard quality products, not saving money after all.
We see a shift happening for some time now, and in 2020 this will be the norm. Companies are moving their focus from finding the cheapest developers to finding quality engineers, competent teams of expert developers that are not just salary-driven, but rather driven by challenging projects.
The emerging result is a better product, which results in the partnership continuing, and for both sides, this is where the real savings come in getting the most value for what you are paying. Businesses are realizing this and forgoing the “SAVINGS NOW” attitude in favor of value-rich quality work. Aim at building strong relationships! This brings us to our next item
New Collaboration Models
Each year we see IT becoming more and more personal, with a focus on outcomes and relationship building rather than pure outputs, which helps clients choose the best companies, which ensures the best quality. Customers naturally go towards businesses that offer them personalized service and care, reducing the noise and giving them precisely what they need, and it is IT turns to realize this.
Furthermore, Risk-Sharing and Involvement are expected to move. 2020 will see a change in the way companies share risks with their partner companies and service providers. Resulting in revenue-based contracts and a deeper involvement of both parties
Building strong relationships is both a real value maker and a cost-saver for both partners. Time and money are not wasted researching a new software development vendor or customer and getting them up to speed. Partners understand how to work together, meaning: no long briefs, no steep learning curves, and desire on both sides to produce an excellent product and continue their relationship.
More IT outsourcing options
As Economic and Political Uncertainty Lessens, fierce IT companies rise from Eastern and Central European regions, such as the Balkans, Romania, Poland, and became new top-notch places for outsourcing software development.
These regions are especially interesting for businesses based in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Austria, Sweden, and other European countries, for their convenient geographical location and timezones and mentality, and cultural similarities.
Massive talent pool and dynamic IT community, with the number of talented software engineers on a constant rise, with more than a million skilled developers currently, make these regions very attractive and highly competitive markets.
Tech Trends
With the rate of technology evolving, the demand for specialist software engineers is high as ever. Even companies that employ in-house developers will profit from collaborating with an outsourcing partner with specialist expertise.
AI – Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) provide a practical and real possibility to automate processes and delegate them to machines
Cloud – Cloud computing enables to storage and backup of data, and rent IT infrastructure on a pay-per-usage basis. Gartner says that the accelerating trend of cloud computing is going to break its record and exceed spending of $1 trillion in 2020
AR/VR – At present, these technologies still have a long way to go. Yet, they are already mature enough for enterprises to leverage them as powerful tools to enhance their businesses.
IoT – Smart homes, smart shops, smart cities, smart cars, smart healthcare. Especially the development of mobile apps in the service industries. IT outsourcing companies will concentrate on IoT development as the market is on the constant rise.
Conclusion
In 2020, we’ll see the rise of the IT outsourcing market located in Eastern and Southern Europe. The tech world will erupt with AI-powered services. The AI and AR/VR tech are expected to stimulate a rise in fintech, telecommunications, and healthcare.
The collaboration is moving towards one based on risk-sharing, outcome-based approach, sustainable value, customer-centricity, and improved quality.
2020 will see successful companies outsource their projects to achieve business agility and understand that this process is a long-term investment with a long-term payback.
Let’s make an impact together!