Five Tech Trends for 2019

Tech promises to push the boundaries of what we’re doing today and open up opportunities for what we can do in the future. Smart businesses are watching tech trends with an eye on how they can adopt them, and what kind of workers they’ll need to get in on the action.

1. Mixed clouds

The cloud held the promise of limitless storage for every business, but the truth is some of your data shouldn’t be out there. Some of the biggest cloud service providers are listening and offering hybrid options: public and private cloud access. Managing these systems will be a key component of protecting data for business while keeping it accessible for users.

2. Chatbots take control

More companies are using chatbots to automate rote processes, from customer care, first interviews to helping employees navigate benefits and more. Their adoption has been slow and has had a few bumps along the road, but the potential is there. A recent survey put 40% of businesses anticipating they’ll be using some form of automated system in 2019.

3. AI augmentation

As more business taps into the value of data, AI will continue to grow. The tech that transforms may temporarily put workers off the payroll, but they’re expected to return quickly as AI augmentation grows. AI augmentation is the combination of artificial and human intelligence where each complements the other. Rather than displacing workers, one survey estimates AI will create more jobs than it eliminates: up to 2 million by 2025.

4. AR and VR

While VR may have been slow growing in the past years, the future looks promising. Large companies are adopting the tech to train workers you wouldn’t expect. In the retail sector, you wouldn’t think virtual reality has a place to train employees, but mega-retailer Walmart has sent 17,000 headsets to its stores to train its retail staff. Other industries are adopting the tech as well.  Food processing companies are using the tech to train for safety: food service companies are adopting it for their own use. Even the insurance industry is on the bandwagon, using VR to train insurance claims adjustors. As more industries see the value of hands-on training without the risk, the tech will likely continue to gain momentum.

5. Big data and analytics

More businesses are looking to capitalize on the data they’ve amassed and analytics (and the people who can perform them) will likely trend in 2019. From supply chain to the Human Resources Department, who recently began culling the information they have on employees and candidates to forecast performance metrics and more, every aspect of business has the potential to benefit from big data, if they can only analyze it. . The challenge for the coming year and beyond will be sorting throw the data amassed to determine what we can use, learn and extrapolate from it. As tech continues to reshape the workplace of today and tomorrow, the only constant may be that employees will be needed to keep pace and keep us connected. Any shift in the tech landscape will need visionaries to make it happen, employees to keep it working, and innovators to upgrade it. For all your employee needs, turn to Rankdone to make sure you’re getting the best talent available. Contact us today.