If you are into gadgets, last week was pretty exciting.
There has never been more newspaper and TV coverage of a technology trade fair than for this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Add Apple’s CES-trumping announcement of the iPhone – or whatever it will be called if trademark owner Cisco pursues its threat to sue – and it has been tech heaven for some.
But what, if anything, does this mean for IT managers?
As Computing has said in this column before, the consumerisation of IT will increasingly influence business technology. Where once new products were proven first in the corporate world then adapted for consumers, now the reverse is happening. And with so many major IT vendors exhibiting at CES, inevitably some of what we saw in Las Vegas will be affecting businesses before long.
There are probably two major trends from CES that will most influence corporate IT – wireless and integration.
If you were wired at CES, you were tired. A cacophony of wireless technologies from Bluetooth to WiMax and beyond are being built into every new product. These devices will soon find their way into your organisation – probably in the pockets and briefcases of employees before they are part of the IT strategy. The security implications will exercise the IT department – all this unsecured spectrum bursting out of the building for anybody with an inclination to hack into.
But this also means user expectations will change. If a senior manager is tied to the desk by IT, but freed by the equipment they personally own, you can bet they will be knocking on the IT director’s door asking why.
Home integration was another hot topic. Software that interoperates throughout the house to bring together PCs, telephones, music systems, televisions, radios, security and even home appliances. Wouldn’t that sort of out-of-the-box integration be great for your business systems?
Consumers simply will not buy technology if it does not work together easily. We may be willing to pore through an Ikea installation manual, but if setting up your home systems means reading a book first, then it will not happen.
For years, business users have been pushing vendors to agree standards for software and hardware interoperability, with varying degrees of success. The consumer tech revolution means those suppliers no longer have any choice but to listen – and act.
Enjoy your new gadgets, but keep an eye on consumer developments that will influence an IT strategy near you.
What do you think? Email us at feedback@computing.co.uk
Further reading:
Firms must recognise the opportunities of consumer technology
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