Western economies have lived an unprecedented digital revolution in the last two years. The black swan who has supposed the pandemic during this period has made the previous role optimizer of the technology be replaced by the strategic engine for the whole of the productive activity.
Cloud Computing, Ecommerce, 5g, Blockchain, Internet of Things ... Some of these concepts have been popularized overnight on relatively recent dates. Others came from before, but they have consolidated in the Covid era. In 2022, this incessant drip of digital tendencies points to collecting a greater weight in the economy, to the point that more than half of the world GDP will be generated by technology, according to the IDC consultancy.
In this year that acts key to technological modernization, the metavese announced by Mark Zuckerberg in October aims to be the Trending Topic that stars in the greatest digital disruption, according to experts.
This technology, which is still beginning to be built, implies the arrival of a replica of reality to the digital space. That is, an immersive environment in three dimensions that will make a meeting point between the physical and virtual world so that users can interact through an avatar. And that does not only lead to a revolution for videogames, which will end up having decentralized universes with their own economy, but "it will be the launch of new projects applied to various sectors, such as education, architecture, tourism or health," explain Adriano Gil, creative director of XR, and Javier Martín, director of open innovation of the Sngular Technological Company.
First projects
In this initial phase, large consumption and fashion companies are leading the front by creating the first business experiences. Among them Nike, who has already announced his own virtual universe, or Zara and Samsung, who have taken collections of garments and virtual products in games such as Fortnite or on platforms that are the anteroom of metaverse, such as Zepeto.
From a replacement they believe that in the short and medium term "this trend will be followed and different companies will possess independent metavertops, which can be united by sharing elements in common."
Under this premise, estimates such as the WildBytes agency already speak of a market of 800,000 million dollars in two years thanks to the success of cryptomoneds or NFT emerging, digital assets that "will allow users to have a real possession backed by The Blockchain, which will enable an internal economy and a shared governance. " Something that already begins to be observed in art, with the creation of unique works from an algorithm scheduled by the artist.
As with the virtual money and the Blockchain, the experts indicate that the metaverse will be the key to make the increased and virtual realities of the great digital trends of 2022. It is not casual that Facebook (now, goal) acquired Five years the Oculus virtual goggles company.
As Pedro Gallardo, Director of Business Development of AtSystems, this boom is going to make solutions of all kinds come soon, such as "the creation of 3D prototypes, test environments and training accompanied by artificial intelligence, in the case of the Virtual reality, or the maintenance of machinery thanks to the increased reality. "
Meanwhile, media agencies such as Mediabrands Content Studio have already begun to work on "the design of hybrid experiences with augmented reality through mobile devices, or from virtual assistants and 100% entertainment scenarios already integrated into metavers, such as Roblox or Decetrand" , according to Lucía Álvarez, responsible for digital solutions of the company.
Artificial intelligence
In all these processes, the technological sector looks more closely than never to the advances of artificial intelligence as a touchstone of the new trends. If before it was to streamline operations through automation, experts agree that in 2022 we will see how human participation is reduced. In this sense, Gallardo alludes to generative artificial intelligence, based on automatic learning models: "is able to create new original and realistic artifacts from scratch, which can range from creative contents to software code that accelerates R & D processes In scopes as complex as the doctor. " As he adds, this technology is "behind the creation of realistic images of people who do not exist" and, according to the Gartner consulting, EN 2025 will be used by 10% of the companies that resort to artificial intelligence.
Algorithmic ethics
The fact that a machine can calibrate decisions will be the introduction of ethical criteria and "an algorithic justice", another of the great technological trends in the short and medium term.
This is expressly expressed by Fernanzo Ariza, Deputy Director General and Member of the Artificial Intelligence Ethics Committee on Lawying. In the judgment of him, in 2022 organs similar to his will appear in many entities, "because guarantee values such as dignity, equity or privacy should be the immutable basis for the algorithmic decisions we make may have a positive impact."
Other technologies that were already in vogue promise to go a step further throughout this year. Proglove, Industrial Ergonomic Wearable Company, includes digital twins among them. That is, virtual counterparts of physical objects that can be used to travel scenarios without risks with the help of virtual production or 3D. For example, represent certain circumstances in production ships and identify and discard dangers for employees.
Analysis of data
Digital transformation has also caused data analysis to be an essential element for the vast majority of businesses to better understand their customers. Therefore, from the Technological Consultant Baufest ensure that the field of predictive analytics will have an important growth in 2022.
As indicated, "this technology, which anticipates trends and forecast returns using both tools and statistical techniques based on past and existing data, allows to create future commercial strategies and review their objectives." Thus, they explain, the low client can be predicted up to six months before it occurs, in the same way that an insurer analyzes the increase in random rates or fraud prevention and applies sophisticated models to calculate competitive premiums.
Cybersecurity
The figures for computer attacks in 2021 (twice as 2020, according to Check Point Research) augur a greater rise of cybersecurity. Hyperautomatization is already a reality. And encompasses both the automation of robotic processes as a code of low or code code that facilitate the development of applications without being experts in programming.
Advances have also brought more vulnerability, which will make security models called Soción Zero gain weight this year. "They are based on the premise that companies must distrust everything," they say in Bauff. For that, they add, "a set of tools and practices such as multifactor authentication, the management of access with privileges, network segmentation and the principle of the minimum privilege" is used.
Cybersecurity also faces the arrival of metaverse and cryptomoneds, two markets still to take off but called to lead digital transformation.
The importance of SMEs in the Spanish economy is more than notorious if statistics are analyzed. These business organizations, according to official data, represent more than 95% of the productive tissue and employ 72% of the population.
That is why, to get out of the crisis generated by the pandemic, SMEs can not be left behind and must follow the wake of large companies, especially as regards digital transition. Technology has been shown from 2020 than anyone, from anywhere, can maintain a business.
But it is, in addition, it can become a perfect ally to combat inflation and continuous escalation of prices. Especially those of energy, one of the main expenses of any type of company.
The digital transition in Spanish SMEs has accelerated considerably during the last years. However, two studies of the consultancy McKinsey and CA Technologies published by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) indicated that almost half (46%) of Spanish SMEs suspended in digital matters at the end of 2021, while That only 13% was at an advanced stage of its digitization.
The Economy and Digital Society Index (Desi) of the European Commission is somewhat more hopeful, since it points out that Spain is above the Community average. "Only 20% of Spanish SMEs are digitized and there is still a long way to go, but we are almost at the same point as other European countries such as the United Kingdom or Finland," says Pertu Jalkanen, co-founder of AREX Markets.
For small and medium entrepreneurs, facing digital transition is an expensive and complex process for which they do not have the necessary resources. Therefore, he is winning adepts among the SMEs the process of migration to the cloud. Basically, it consists of moving partially or complete the work environment (systems, processes, tools, documents or programs) to a virtual space to which employees access.
As explained from Beservices, Technological Consultant specialized in migration to the cloud, this process can provide multiple benefits to SMEs. The main one of all of them, the economic savings.
Efficiency
"When we migrate our systems and workloads to the cloud we are doing an action to decentralize, that is, we grant the provider the responsibility to maintain and secure our technological environment," says Joan Neck, Director of Near Services.
As added, "direct costs, such as buying a server, licenses, light or maintenance costs, now move to a monthly fee that only takes into account the resources we consume at each moment."
The one of the increase in energy prices is one of the main problems that the Spanish companies are facing. Luckily, technology is also managing to mitigate its impact with projects such as Big Data Solutions, a Basque Start Up specializing in predictive models and advanced analytics. Thanks to its Big Data platform, many companies have reduced the energy expenditure of their factories by 10%.
The digital transition has also reached the food industry. For example, the company Potatas Meléndez has designed a strategy that is divided into three lines of action: the digitalization of potato cultivation, the incorporation of renewable energy and the start-up of an automated plant. All this must generate a savings of more than 30% in production costs.
Spain will try to give the final impulse to its digital transformation with the Digital Toolkit program, which will provide economic aid to SMEs and autonomous. In Digital District, a great technological hub of the Valencian Community that houses numerous Start Up, consider that the key to the success of this national project will be "capillarity, so that money reaches the companies that need it most."
Undertake is fashionable in Spain. In some cases by vocation, and in many others, by obligation (given the crisis caused by the pandemic). According to the GEM Report Spain 2020-2021 of the National Innovation Company (ENISA), the national entrepreneurial initiative dropped slightly after the beginning of the health crisis, from 7.4% in 2019 to 6.8% in 2020.es Bottom lower than that of other countries in our environment, but higher than the world average.
"Sometimes it is not necessary a brilliant idea, often the simple change of the business model opens an opportunity window. Do the same things, but differently," says Jesús Castells, professor at ESIC, Counselor in EDVE, School of Sales and author of the book JOSDEPUTAAAA !!! They have "echao" me!
Not in vain, today more photos are made than ever, but companies like Kodak are no longer to see it because of their lack of adaptation and resilience. "We listen to music or see television through Spotify or Netflix," explains Castells, whoever believes that a good idea at the inadequate moment is like a fish out of the water. "You have to see when it is more appropriate to launch."
Now the experiences based on the use of digital media and other information and communication technologies are used. Digital entrepreneurs rely on the characteristics of these means to look for opportunities. This happened with the Spanish Wallbox, among the best entrepreneurship projects in the world according to the Startup World Cup, competition that is organized in Silicon Valley.
The value of this manufacturer of recharge points for electric cars, which was born in 2015, has skyrocketed up to 2,000 million dollars three months after leaving a bag. "The advice we can share are the two factors that we believe have been key to success. First, surround yourself with the best and be very open to listening to your contributions and advice. Secondly, want to be better, not the most Large ", Slide Enric Asunción, CEO and Founder of Wallbox.
Having your goal CLARA has helped them maintain the focus at each step and meet the objectives of their business plan without deviating, accounts for the person responsible for this Unicorn (Start Up with a value greater than 1,000 million). Only future hopes explain that assessment for a company that barely sold 66,000 chargers during the first three quarters of last year and that it does not foresee a positive EBITDA until 2024.
"To identify business opportunities first, it is advisable to perform a pestile analysis, which allows us to know the political, economic, social, technological, ecological, environmental and legal variables of the context where we are going to undertake and understand the trends operating in that market. This way, we will be more prepared to perceive better opportunities, "advises Federico Mazzon, professor and mentor of the bootcamp momentum of the International University of Valencia.
In the scenario of the postpandemic era, trends based on changes in consumer behavior, habits and preferences have been accelerated exponentially. Also, in new technologies that allow transforming traditional sectors and enhancing technological, with a strong weight of sustainability.
The experts consulted coincide in pointing out several key sectors. Although the face-to-face classes tend to normalize, eLearning will reach 370,000 million dollars by 2026, Statista predicts. Electronic commerce is growing at a vertiginous rhythm and seems to have no limits, with a forecast of 31.4% per year until 2027, according to the Global Consumer Survey Report of Astound Commerce. In addition, HealthTech (digital telemedicine solutions) increased by 500% during the first weeks of the pandemic and, in a scenario without restrictions, retains more than 60% of its new users.
By not being centralized, teleworking exposes companies and workers to potential cybersecurity threats. And a new scenario is also opened for the FINTECH, driven by increasingly digitized banking users.
Digital talent has gone from having an emerging role to become an imperious need. While it is true that the technological profiles already had pull before the pandemic, the digital acceleration occurred during this period has led to the demand of these professionals today today most of the job offers. Your boom is unquestionable. In fact, technological positions have increased by 38% since the beginning of the health crisis, according to LinkedIn data.
"The current society suffers constant changes to vertiginous rhythms but, although it is true that it destroys jobs, it is also that it creates double," explains Óscar Source, director and founder of IEBS. In this digital tsunami in which companies are, the power of the data has triggered the employability of the specialists who know how to squeeze it.
Specifically, the source places analysts and data scientists between the most searched profiles at present. Already in 2019, specialized professions in Big Data led all demand rankings by companies, and last year their jobs increased by 64%. "They are not just an analytical profile, but they have to know how to interpret the information they collect," he argues.
And that, in the height of the ecommerce or the fintech passes, according to source, for accessing useful information. For example, "in the repercussion of online marketing campaigns, how users behave, trends in different sectors or keywords".
Of course, within the great claim that the Big Data supposes, there are different specialties that copy the market: "From the Chief Data Officer (CDO) to the Data Engineer or the Data Manager," he stands out.
Along with that field, in IEBs, they affect the high price of other marketing related positions. They are the cases of the Digital Product Manager or the Growth Hacker, an expert in combining techniques of this sector, web analytics and programming to grow a business with few resources.
Transversal roles
In any case, if something characterizes the success of the digital profiles in the current labor market, that is its transversality. As explained from The Valley, an obvious example is that of specialists in Cloud, Keys "systems so that any company has a safe storage space on the Internet" through the cloud.
New business models have led companies to raffle these profiles, at a time when joining development and safety. Therefore, Mariano Kostelec, CEO of Studentfinance, emphasizes the importance of specialized professionals on both slopes.
Experts in coding, design and maintenance webse have made indispensable, in a scenario in which computer languages such as Python or Java have become universal. "The profile Full Stack Developer is the most demanded by companies, followed by the front End or Java Developer," he says. In fact, the demand for these profiles increased by 30% by 2021, according to the Consultant Recuit. And that contrasts with the fact that "the needs of the Spanish market for these professionals are not being covered," says Kostelec.
In turn, the proliferation of crime in the network has promoted the demand for specialists in cybersecurity to record figures. Not in vain, according to StudentFinance data, the claim for security analysts experienced an increase of 278% from October 2020 to March 2021.
With the technological requirements that the pandemic has raised, sectors like the financial one before them the challenge of providing their templates with these and other specialists. In fact, from the ECSC they affirm that digital transformation already "is generating new jobs in cybersecurity and credit analysis, robotics and blockchain". To the point that its effervescence will be equivalent to jobs related to regulatory compliance.
Recycling
But not only seeks to hire, but also renew. Hence, as they indicate, the entities have enhanced "Agile Methodologies to implement personal and digital competences".
It also happens in the health sector. An example is the sanitary group Ribera, which has launched an application of emotional well-being called Minds. The objective is that patients receive continuous follow-up through online therapy. According to Tania Menéndez, Digital Transformation Officer of the Group, these advances are achieved with "multidisciplinary teams", formed by clinicians, data and safety, mathematics, developers or designers, who jointly devise "new products and digital services".
On the other hand, the arrival of the metaverse and the development of the digital economy point to the appearance of new profiles. From Cecabank, they ensure that a segment to explore is that of the cryptoactants. Meanwhile, from IEBS Vaticinan the appearance of new engineers (of virtual and augmented reality) for the next digital disruption.
Date Of Update: 05 February 2022, 03:15
