6 Trends in Software Technology Likely To Dominate in 2021

• By Olivia Cuthbert
• 03-05-2021
• Technology

I will surely remember the COVID-19 situation as one of the disasters that affected the entire global economy. As the pandemic raged through the first and second quarters of 2020, all companies found themselves in disarray and had to take drastic measures to stay alive. Software development was one of the many industries that faced a downward trend, but it was not negatively affected by the pandemic thanks to telecommuting and other factors. 2020 demonstrated the need for greater digitization and customer-centric solutions across all industries. By the time the pandemic is over, the landscape in the software industry will undoubtedly be very different.

Gartner's research predicts that customer-centricity, location independence, and business resilience will drive software technology trends in 2021. In short, the challenges of 2020 will force organizations to adopt agile and cutting-edge technologies to perform well and compete in their markets.

Predictions made in 2020 for 2021 did not come true; many did, which is due to the flexibility and adaptability of software development teams to work in distributed and remote environments. Gartner's study forecasts narrowed down some technologies and highlighted some of the software trends likely to increase in 2021.

| Cloud-based development/microservices

Cloud-Native application development effectively leverages containers, DevOps, and microservices architecture to innovate and commercialize applications and services. Its ability to reduce application development time and improve the scalability of services as per market requirements has made it a popular choice among software developers. Cloud-native development solutions allow customers to optimize and integrate their applications as per the circumstances. The benefits of cloud-native development include:

Accelerated application development
Support for scalability
Improved performance

Organizations competing in a rapidly changing market understand the practical applications of microservices, DevOps, and containers and are moving to cloud-based development. The Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) revealed that since 2016, the use of CNCF projects has increased by 50%, and this upward trend expects to continue in 2021. In the same survey, an overwhelming 92% of respondents confirmed that they use containers. These numbers only demonstrate the upward trend of cloud-based growth.

| Hybrid cloud 

In the wake of the pandemic, most organizations had to deal with a buildup of workloads, and the apparent solution to this problem was to move to a hybrid cloud environment. Although cloud migration was on the rise even before COVID-19, a significant number of organizations were not ready for the cloud. Companies that entered the race for survival realized that hybrid cloud environments reduce latency, allow enterprises to adapt and optimize end-to-end, and provide security. It enables them to use more than one cloud service, making data sharing and collaboration between partners more sustainable in the long run.

While hybrid cloud looks promising, organizations that need to adapt it to achieve better business outcomes need to:
Although the move to the cloud was already gaining ground before COVID-19, a significant number of organizations were not ready for the cloud.

Companies struggling to survive have recognized that hybrid cloud environments reduce latency, allow companies to customize and optimize themselves.

It provides security that will enable them to use more than one cloud service, making data sharing and collaboration between partners more sustainable in the long term.

While hybrid cloud looks promising, organizations need to adopt the following for better business outcomes:

New security technologies such as confidential computing and quantum encryption

| AI automation 

Creating a single hybrid platform by integrating multiple cloud and on-premises systems
Ability to transmit multiple workloads to intelligent edge devices
In the coming years, organizations are likely to embrace these technologies and address the challenges they bring. Meanwhile, the size of the global cloud computing market expects to grow at a CAGR of 17.5% through 2025, with the hybrid cloud market expected to reach $97.6 billion by 2023. So technology enthusiasts can expect hybrid cloud environments to dominate the software industry.

| DevOps

In just over a decade, DevOps has become more than just "Dev" and "Ops." It now represents an effort to break down the barriers between enterprises and their customers. It has become a process that adds value rather than just delivering products and functionality. Business leaders recognize the benefits of DevOps and the value it brings to their organizations. As companies embrace cloud-native development, serverless computing, and Kubernetes due to the epidemic, DevOps will become ubiquitous.

DevOps' maturity will vary from organization to organization, but there are some structural changes that all organizations can make to improve it. The most apparent difference is using a platform for software delivery that allows android app agency to deliver high-quality software that meets business needs. Another barrier that hinders frequent software releases is change management. Organizations can implement the following DevOps practices and ensure regular releases, which are essential for DevOps success:

| Automate risk management

Manage risk management; manage risk management; manage risk management; manage risk management; manage risk management; manage risk management; and author code changes.

Employees can influence changes.

As they move to the cloud has become inevitable for enterprises, business leaders are likely to focus on implementing DevOps or increasing their DevOps maturity. It will lead to unprecedented digital transformation and, ultimately, business success.

| Internet of Things (IoT)

When things like mobile devices, home appliances, and cars connect to the internet and perform functions in response to data collected from user behavior, you get a Wallace and Gromit lifestyle. Unbeknownst to many of us, we use and benefit from a lot of IoT tools. But businesses are also realizing the potential of the IoT to improve their decision-making and security, as the IoT effectively collects and analyses data for them. Some of the most obvious ways the IoT can improve businesses,

Management reporting
Operational efficiency
Incident response time
Customer service

Technologies such as 5G are sure to boost the IoT market. Global spending on IoT expects to exceed US$1.1 trillion by the end of 2022. If this trend continues, the world will be full of 50 billion IoT devices by 2030.

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR).

AR augments the user's environment, while VR puts them in a virtual environment. Beyond gaming, AR and VR have massive potential in retail, education, and marketing. Many organizations worldwide, including the armed forces, hospitals, museums, and theme parks, are already using it to train professionals and provide a more immersive experience.

The market for AR and VR expects to grow to $1.6 billion by 2025, and retailers worldwide can benefit significantly from these technologies. AR and VR will help retailers by reducing operational costs and customers by providing an engaging experience. They can also open the door to innovative marketing methods.

AR has already made its way into furniture retailing with the launch of the Ikea app, which helps customers choose furniture for their homes. Large retailers and technology companies, recognizing the benefits and value they offer, have invested heavily in AR and VR applications. In the first quarter of 2020, more than 2,500 AR/VR-related patents grant globally, and this number is likely to triple by the end of the year.

| Hyper Automation

Gartner listed hyper-automation in its Top 10 Strategic Technology Trends for 2020 report, and this trend is likely to continue in 2021. Hyper Automation combines artificial intelligence (AI) and robotic process automation (RPA) to automate traditional business processes. It aims to avoid redundant tasks caused by business users and monitor business processes to automate them. By automatically and dynamically creating robots for business processes, hyper-automation streamlines them for better business results. Hyper Automation can unlock an organization's potential by bringing in artificial intelligence capabilities, the ability to involve the entire workforce in automation, and advanced analytics.

AI in hyper-automation leads to improved performance, reliability, and scalability. It also addresses maintenance issues. Companies using AI can make better decisions faster, accelerate discovery and prevent vulnerabilities. The demand for AI experts has increased by 75% in the last five years and will continue to grow as hyper-automation becomes more popular. On the other hand, RPA brings streamlined workflows, flexibility, and the ability to automate business processes cost-effectively and efficiently. According to another Gartner study, RPA software revenue expects to grow 19.5% from 2019 to 2021. RPA can also be used to leverage existing infrastructure without disrupting underlying systems.

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