By David Byerly – VP & Country Manager, Canada
Over the past year, the adoption of technology by businesses around the world seeking ways to adapt to a new way of working skyrocketed. This has resulted in a $678 billion boost in revenue among technology providers, according to a new Citrix new study – The Era of Hyper Innovation.
Of those surveyed, nine in 10 business leaders say that the rollout and adoption of new, pandemic-inspired work tools have vastly improved the way individuals and teams interact. But business leaders aren’t stopping there. As a result of their investments, 80% say they expect their organization to enter a stage of hyper-innovation over the next 12 months.
What is driving this acceleration of innovation?
Despite the many concerns business leaders had going into the pandemic, we are seeing boosts in revenue, productivity, and innovation. According to Citrix’s study, the biggest factor has been rethinking how we work due to remote work models.
Ninety-three per cent (93%) of those polled stated that increased digital collaboration has led to more diverse voices from across the organization being heard and a greater range of ideas being exchanged. Eighty per cent (80%) said that they, themselves, have had more creative ideas during the pandemic given they have more free time to think.
Innovation alone isn’t enough
While a commitment to innovating how work gets done is encouraging, it’s important to realize the broader impact this will have on employees. Organizations must also put in place policies that create an equitable environment to avoid the potential for a “Digital Divide” amongst their employees.
The digital divide is a concept that, when implementing a hybrid or remote working model, you may inadvertently create the serious risk that your workplace will be rife with inequity and unfair or unintentional biases.
Since the onset of the pandemic, employees have had equal access (or lack of access, depending on how well managed your business was) to management for support and guidance, as well as their co-workers for collaboration and advice. This occurred through online collaboration tools that everyone had access to.
As the return to the office continues, some employees are choosing to remain at home as much as possible. The playing field will no longer be balanced. The biggest struggle for businesses moving forward will be to maintain that equity, allowing productivity and employee wellbeing to continue, while ensuring a seamless and successful transition to hybrid working models.
What does this mean for the future of innovation?
As businesses continue to push through the pandemic, the proven success of adopting new technologies will play a large role in their future strategies. Sixty-nine per cent (69%) of the business leaders surveyed say they will increase investment in R&D in the next 12 months. As they do so, businesses must be prepared to succeed and support their team.
There are technologies specifically designed to do this already. They can empower all of your employees – no matter where they are working from – to be able to equally engage and collaborate in order to drive the growth and innovation your business needs. Now is the time to truly evaluate your organization from top to bottom and begin strategizing for the future of work you and your team want to see in your business.
IT Leaders Prioritize Secure Remote Work: Citrix
Posted in Commentary with tags Citrix on January 19, 2022 by itnerdTwo years ago, IT leaders were forced into remote work. Many viewed it as a temporary experiment. Today, they see it for what it is: the future of work. And they’ve made it their top priority. According to the results of a Pulse survey conducted by Citrix Systems, Inc., 100 percent of 400 IT and security leaders across North America, EMEA, and APAC have adopted the hybrid model, and rank enabling it as job number one for their organizations.
Leading the Charge
Business leaders who once bristled at the idea of remote work because they didn’t think employees could deliver outside the office now see the benefits it can deliver in terms of employee productivity and experience. They are calling on IT to enable it, and as revealed by the Citrix-Pulse survey, they’re answering.
When asked to rank their top five priorities over the next five years, respondents said:
Leaping Hurdles
But they’ll face some challenges in executing. When asked to identify the top obstacles to driving digital transformation, Citrix survey participants cited:
Lack of understanding the needs across the business to effectively prioritize investments (41 percent)
Cumbersome, complex infrastructure (34 percent)
Lack of investment in cloud (24 percent)
Security is also a concern. When asked what they see as the top risks opened by remote and hybrid work, those polled called out:
And, their teams are stretched to the max, with respondents noting:
Pushing Forward
How do the leaders polled plan to overcome these challenges? By focusing on seven key things:
You can find the full survey here.
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