John Hagel, co-chairman of Deloitte's Silicon Valley-based research center, and Deloitte's national technology sector leader Eric Openshaw offer their predictions for the new year as they pertain to manufacturers:
Green IT:
Expect to see the emergence of "warranting" bodies or services certifying environmental and energy conservation claims.
The unbundling of the corporation:
There will be an increase in the separation of product development and customer relationship management into distinct businesses, which will be seen most dramatically in tech and bio-tech.
Social media:
There will be a growing impact of social media as an enterprise tool.
The continued "consumerization" of the tech industry:
The old paradigm is reversed -- consumers will increasingly be first to adopt new products and services, with enterprises then adapting them for business advantage.
Mergers & acquisitions:
Expect the pattern of "predator" and "prey" behavior to continue.
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