The global economic recovery will gain momentum in 2011, leading to increased manufacturing output, retail sales and global freight flows. We will see two growth scenarios in play — slow growth in developed economies and strong growth in the “BRIC” economies and the developing economies. Managing transportation costs and streamlining supply chains will become critical as crude oil production peaks in 2011 and the world prepares for an era of higher fuel costs.
For information technology consumers (manufacturers, retailers, logistics service providers, government), stronger revenue and profit in 2010 will mean more room in IT budgets in 2011 for long overdue modernization initiatives.
Linking and automating processes, such as quote-to-cash and procure-to-pay, will gain momentum. Companies will move from manual to electronic connectivity to synchronize supply chains.
To increase fleet utilization and lower transportation costs, enterprises will use their transportation fleets to move loads for partners and even competitors.
Enterprises will also merge domestic and international transportation management platforms to enhance compliance and better utilize assets and procured capacity.
2011 will see continued innovations from information technology suppliers. Hardware and software will be engineered to work together, driving quantum leaps in performance and lowering overall computing costs.
Cloud computing will gain momentum as enterprises outsource hosting and management of their software and increase their use of infrastructure-as-a-service to manage peak demand for computing and storage. Enterprises will be able to choose the cloud computing architecture that best fits their needs.
Future industry leaders will be companies that develop the flexible, scalable and industry standards-based IT architecture that will allow them to rapidly adapt and grow with changing market conditions.