Independent software consultancy nFold has identified five software trends that will affect business in SA, ahead of an enterprise software survey it will conduct with technology research company World World Worx.
"The core question for many organisations that depend on their IT systems is not only how to choose the right systems, but how to measure the existing value of their current system investment. The intention of this survey is to help provide them with an answer," says World Wide Worx MD Arthur Goldstuck.
Sandy Pullinger, MD of nFold, believes the next frontier of innovation is moving towards ways to use available software in order to leapfrog competitors.
Another trend is the adoption of subscription and pay-per-use models, says Pullinger, as subscription and rental pricing reduces upfront costs of buying and installing software for mid-sized companies.
The next trend is seamless hosted and networked systems, says Pullinger. Users are beginning to strive to gain a single view from which they can seamlessly work on any function in any system from any device, whether the system runs on a local network or anywhere in the world. This is in line with some of the major software companies such as Oracle and Microsoft, she says.
There is also already a shift from infrastructure expenditure to spending on systems that improve performance. Although infrastructure will always be seen as mission-critical, Pullinger sees it increasingly becoming a commodity, with more money spent on value-adding systems.
The final trend is the increase in use of open source systems. Although noting that open source software usage is still relatively low, Pullinger sees an increase in adoption, especially in use as a server operating system, and also in database and server application software.
"nFold started doing software research because customers had no access to relevant software trends for the local business environment. Understanding the issues our customers face has given us the opportunity to help them in this regard," concludes Pullinger.
To participate in this survey, e-mail info@nfold.com.
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