Running head: Trends in the IT Consulting Industry Trends in the Information Technology Consulting Industry
Raquel Sikyala
June 25, 2017 1 Trends in the IT Consulting Industry 2 The Information Technology consulting industry has a vast array of trends that have had
an impact on the expansion and growth of the industry. Currently trends show that companies are
seeing opportunities in companies collaborating with other companies or groups outside the
industry on projects, cloud computing, and cyber security.
As clients demand more services it is becoming more and more difficult for one company
to compete to fulfil these requirements. Shuman and Twombly (2010, p. 1) state collaboration
happens in a network, as organizations open themselves up to a variety of stakeholders and
communities. The network is dynamic and “fit for purpose,” with the agility to change the
components and how they relate to each other legally and operationally as purpose and context
evolves. Harnessing the strength of contributors, the network benefits and connects all parties in
new and innovative ways. In short, the collaborative network is the organization. They explain
the key to collaboration as a matter of following 5 principles. These principles are as follows: Principle #1 Organizations and people only actively engage in collaboration when
the benefit they derive is greater than the time and effort it takes to collaborate. (Shuman & Twombly, p.4)
Principle #2 Collaborative networks are fit for purpose. The purpose determines how the network is structured. (Shuman & Twombly, p.4)
Principle #3 Every network has a choreographer, the individual or entity that
organizes the network and is responsible for achieving the purpose of the network. (Shuman & Twombly, p. 6)
Principle #4 Governance is the system for managing the joint and individual work of the
collaboration. Governance principles have both structural and behavioral components. (Shuman & Twombly, p. 6)
Principle #5 Innovation in organization design requires innovation in
management. (Shuman & Twombly, p. 7) Trends in the IT Consulting Industry 3 Although Shuman and Twombly support the idea of collaboration as an eventual necessity, its
success is not a guarantee. Shuman and Twombly (2010, p. 4) quote Chris Huxham, Professor of
Management at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow when they state that her view is: Don’t
collaborate unless you must. Shuman and Twombly (2010, p. 4) go on to say that they agree with
Chris Huxham. However, they also believe you must collaborate, as does every CEO searching
for elusive growth. Johnson (2005, para. 2) wrote an article where he stated for the past 30 years,
companies have boosted their labor productivity by reengineering, automating, or outsourcing
production and clerical jobs. Johnson (2005, para. 10) also says that outsourcing, like the boom
in global operations and marketing, has dramatically increased the need to interact with vendors
and partners. And communications technologies such as e-mail and instant messaging have made
interaction easier and far less expensive. Although this is a trend that some It consulting
companies are implementing, it is still in an infancy state.
Another trend that is growing in popularity and has generated an enormous job market is
cloud computing. Nowadays, cloud computing mainly provides three types of services to clients:
Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure as a Service
(IaaS). At the moment, SaaS is the most popular model (Dragan, Branović, Popović, Zivković, &
Tomasević, 2014, p. 673). An example of SaaS is Microsoft Office products. You no longer need
to have the software installed on your computer to use it. It can be used over the internet from
Office 365 on Microsoft website. Cloud computing represents a set of approaches that
enable organizations to engage quickly and effectively, and free up resources in real-time
(Dragan et al., 2014, p. 674). Cloud computing has grown so rapidly in the past year.
Columbus lists a number of forecasts projecting growth trends in the various services.
Gartner predicts the worldwide public cloud services market will grow 18% in 2017 to Trends in the IT Consulting Industry 4 $246.8B, up from $209.2B in 2016. Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) is projected to grow
36.8% in 2017 and reach $34.6B. Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is expected to increase
20.1%, reaching $46.3B in 2017. Source: Gartner Says Worldwide Public Cloud Services
Market to Grow 18 Percent in 2017 (Columbus, 2017, para. 3). In the It consulting industry
the number of jobs available have grown as well. There are now opportunities to build a
career in cloud computing. You can earn a degree and or certification in cloud computing.
Another trend that is also growing rapidly in the IT consulting industry is cyber security.
Security has always been a trending issue. There are so many threats that exist and continue
to threaten the integrity, availability, and confidentiality of IT systems. No organization can
afford to not invest in securing their IT systems. Cyber security is an international epidemic
today, and getting worse (Affisco, 2017, p. 421). Therefore, it is clear that providing cyber
security is a trend that IT consulting businesses should provide as a service offering to
clients. There are already IT consulting firms providing cyber security services. There is even
a fairly mature market of security consultants who can test your business’ system for
vulnerabilities and help the company become more secure. These technical resources are
essential for dealing with the ongoing ever-more challenging technical challenge to keeping
cyber secure (Affisco, 2017, p. 422). Experts are predicting cyber security threats that various
organizations will encounter in 2017. worms of the past, such as Conficker, Nimda, and Code
Red, will return to prominence—but this time they will carry ransomware payloads capable
of infecting hundreds of machines in an incredibly short timespan. We have already seen this
start to come to fruition with the recent attack on the San Francisco Municipal Transport
Agency, where over 2,000 systems were completely locked with ransomware and likely
spread on its own as a self-propagating worm. As cybercriminals become more adept at Trends in the IT Consulting Industry 5 carrying out these tactics, there is a good chance that these attacks will become more
common (Patterson, 2016, para. 5). Technology is continuously advancing. There is always a
new technology being developed and existing technology being upgraded to provide more
capabilities. As more devices become internet-enabled and accessible and the security
measures in place continue to lag behind, the associated risks are on the rise (Patterson, 2016,
para. 6).
It is clear that cyber security must be a number one priority within organizations as well
as being a huge market for the IT consulting industry. There are is a lot of training offered at
training facilities as well as universities. IT consulting firms can offer online training to
employees interested in a career change. Cyber security is an industry that will always be a
current trend. References
Affisco, J. F. (2017). Expanding cyber security learning in the business curriculum. Proceedings
for the Northeast Region Decision Sciences Institute (NEDSI), 420-435. Trends in the IT Consulting Industry 6 Columbus, L. (2017). Roundup of cloud computing forecasts. Retrieved from
https://www.forbes.com/sites/louiscolumbus/2017/04/29/roundup-of-cloud-computingforecasts-2017/#cf00b1031e87 Dragan, M. S., Branović, I, Popović, R, Zivković, D, & Tomasević, V. (2014). A review of
Cloud Computing in business. Singidunum Journal of Applied Sciences. 673-677. doi:
10.15308/SInteZa-2014-673-677 Johnson, B. C. (2005). The next revolution in interactions. Retrieved from
http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/the-nextrevolution-in-interactions Patterson, D. (2016). Experts predict 2017's biggest cybersecurity threats. Retrieved from
http://www.techrepublic.com/article/experts-predict-2017s-biggest-cybersecurity-threats/ Shuman, J., & Twombly, J. (2010). Collaborative networks are the organization: An Innovation
in Organization Design and Management. Vikalpa: The Journal for Decision Makers,
35(1), 1-14.

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