
The Rise of the Knowledge Worker: As processes are automated and outsourced, most employees are becoming knowledge workers.

Ubiquitous Data: As mobile devices and real-time applications skyrocket, data volume and throughput increases exponentially.

Social Media: Customer and consumer interaction habits are changing, as are their expectations of how they do business with organizations.

Emerging Market Growth: New global markets are going to be a big source of enterprise growth, going toe-to-toe with developed markets.

Efficiency Shortfalls: Main functions such as IT, finance, supply chain, HR and procurement are reaching the limits of efficiency based on the current corporate structure.

Tech-Savvy Workforce: As the average worker gains technology knowledge and confidence, there will be a need for a deeper, rather than broader technology expertise among certain workers.

Technology-as-a-Service: The availability of infrastructure and applications in highly virtualized, configurable and scalable service form within the cloud is changing the way enterprises ‘buy’ technology.

The Industrialized, Externalized Back Office: As industry standards emerge for back-office business processes, third-party external providers will step in to offer more efficient outsourcing.

A Blueprint for Service Delivery: Standards changes in ITILv3 are likely to offer a path for reorienting IT around service delivery.

Desktop Transformation: The convergence of virtualization, SaaS, unified communications and an increasingly mobile workforce is going to enable device-agnostic service delivery.