The past 10 years have seen cloud move from a concept to a critical business tool, the Internet of Things from postulated idea to realised potential and Artificial Intelligence already embedded into chatbot and call centre. And, according to Mandla Mbonambi, founding CEO of Africonology, technology will continue its relentless evolution, transformation will become increasingly focused on the customer and service delivery and testing will remain critical in ensuring the success of both.
“Innovation and Digital Transformation have placed the customer at the centre of the enterprise,” said Mbonambi.
“Technology is allowing for the business to take products and services to market far more effectively and is putting it under pressure to ensure performance is closely aligned to customer demand.
“The changes that have taken place in the IT sector have been the biggest drivers of Digital Transformation and it is affecting each industry, regardless of type and product.”
Mbonambi added that the organisations that invest in digital are those that are consistently and agilely refining the management of the value chain and unlocking out new revenue models and opportunities.
“Customer expectations are consistently revising, upwards,” he said.
“Speed of delivery and getting the product to market first has become critical to meet these expectations. It is also the agility and ability to pivot on opportunity – the ability to recognise customer trends or needs and to fill them before anyone else.”
“I believe that there will be even more services and automated solutions entering the market over the next few years.
“Users will be able to access their services through technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). These changes aren’t years into the future, either, they’re imminent. They are also going to change the skills landscape.”
For Mbonambi, the next 10 years will not only see the rise of the robots but of new skills.
“I think that performance testing is also going to play a pivotal role in the success of any Digital Transformation strategy or implementation,” he said.
“We need to ensure that the services being created can satisfy clients and their objectives while remaining aligned to regulatory requirements and being compliant. This is particularly relevant when it comes to AI and IOT as regulation will continue to adapt to meet the challenges presented by these technologies and the enterprise has to keep up.”
