Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo 2022 Barcelona: Day 3 Highlights

We are bringing you news and highlights from Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo, taking place this week in Barcelona, Spain. Below is a collection of the key announcements and insights coming out of the conference on Wednesday, 9th November 2022.

On Day 3 from the conference, Gartner analysts were, among other things, exploring the risks and challenges of Web3, NFT and cryptocurrency and the rise of borderless talent hiring. As in our Day 1 and Day 2 highlights, we have selected sessions that can be replayed on Gartner Conference Navigator app or Symposium portal. So if you are attending Symposium (or registered for it) and missed any of them, you can watch them on demand at your convenience.

How Web3, Blockchain and NFTs Can Benefit Your Organization

Presented by Balaji Abbabatulla, Senior Director Analyst, Gartner

Blockchain emerging technologies continue to be subject to significant hype. In particular, the Web3 and NFTs are two key innovations that have promise to deliver unique business benefits, but are in varying stages of maturity. In this session, Balaji Abbabatulla, Senior Director Analyst at Gartner, explained how these emerging technologies work and how they can benefit organizations.

Gartner analyst Balaji Abbabatulla explained how enterprises can use blockchain, NFTs and Web3 to their benefit during Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo in Barcelona, Spain.

Key Takeaways

• NFTs and cryptocurrencies represent only an early subset of the potential applications of blockchain-based tokenization. Early metaverse applications, and sustainability projects are among the emerging applications.
• Web3 is a new stack of technologies for the development of decentralized web applications that enable users to control their own identity, and data. This stack includes blockchain as a trust verification mechanism and its network infrastructure and protocols to support decentralized web applications.
• Web3 supports new business opportunities, such as the programmability and monetization of creator-owned and managed content using blockchain-based tokens.
• Blockchain technologies are maturing to support business applications even as adoption for consumer applications is increasing significantly.
• Customer perception of the business benefits of blockchain and technical, regulatory and interoperability challenges  are the key obstacles to improving adoption of business applications.

Gartner analysts shared key risks and challenges associated with blockchain emerging technologies.

Expand Your Talent Pipeline Going Borderless

Presented by Gabriela Vogel, Sr Director Analyst, Gartner

The pandemic and the current geopolitical dynamics are affecting the talent landscape across the globe, forcing CIOs to reset their technology workforce strategy. In this session, Gabriela Vogel, Sr Director Analyst Gartner at Gartner, shared the findings of a new Gartner survey on  borderless IT talent.

Gartner defines borderless workforce as talent working remotely from different countries based on an employment contract made across national borders. As this trend continues to expand, the survey also found that 27% of leaders are currently exploring hiring borderless tech employees.

“This is no surprise that the rate of hiring borderless technology staff doubled in the last three years as increasing retention and hiring has risen to the No. 3 priority for CEOs this year and 2023,” said Gabriela Vogel, Senior Director Analyst at Gartner. “The COVID-19 pandemic also accelerated borderless hiring, and what began as an exception, is no longer.”

Gabriela Vogel, Sr Director Analyst at Gartner, told CIOs: “The COVID-19 pandemic also accelerated borderless hiring, and what began as an exception, is no longer.”

Key Takeaways

• “85% of organizations report interest in working with a borderless technology workforce.”
• “Increasing retention and hiring has risen to the No. 3 priority for CEOs this year and 2023.”
• “The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated borderless hiring, and what began as an exception, is no longer.”
• “Hiring borderless staff requires business and IT leaders to make significant adjustments to their operational model, including revising their management techniques, infrastructure and technology, cybersecurity and data protection, and pay equity.”
• In terms of areas of knowledge and disciplines in technology, the top two sought-after expertise were software engineering/application development (62% of survey respondents) and application support (55% of survey respondents).
• “There are certain constraints that hinder the adoption and expansion of a borderless operation and they range from complexity of administration support, culture issues to security and legality concerns.”

“Today in the professional world, location is fluid, the market is global, and the talent competition is agnostic as we are all competing under the same flag, technology,” said Vogel. “Consequently, countries are losing talent to other countries, the public sector is losing talent to the private sector, and all the verticals are in the same situation. There are no more competition boundaries, and business and IT leaders hire borderless staff where they have the biggest competitive advantage – what we call the “borderless zone,” added Vogel.

The top two areas of expertise that CIOs and IT leaders are looking at borderless talent for are software engineering/application development (62% of survey respondents) and application support (55% of survey respondents).

How to Mitigate Energy Costs and Risks

Presented by Lauren Wheatley, Director Analyst, Gartner

Energy is a strategic boardroom issue that presents enterprises with serious financial and operational challenges for years to come. Operating models require new digital capabilities, including energy optimization, carbon management and energy trading, to be delivered at speed and scale. In this session Lauren Wheatley, Director Analyst at Gartner, explained the multifaceted role IT and digital solutions can play in addressing these risks.

Gartner Director Analyst Lauren Wheatley explained how to mitigate energy costs and risks during Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo in Barcelona, Spain.

Key Takeaways

• “Managing energy is now one of the key barriers to organizational success. Organizations must now focus on surfacing and proactively managing relevant energy risk to find competitive advantage.”
• “Digital technology is fundamental to delivering a low-cost carbon energy strategy at scale and speed.”
• “Energy strategies must account for the interdependent strategic, financial, political and social costs of energy consumption.”
• “Sustainability efforts alone are unlikely to manage your organization’s energy costs or ensure energy security effectively. You are going to need to align data and solutions to create an integrated portfolio-based approach.”
• “Energy is a multidisciplinary problem requiring coordination of the components (procurement, energy efficiency, real estate, operations teams) and alignment across the enterprise. Partner with your business - provide data and insights to help them make the right decisions or take corrective actions swiftly.”
• “While data and technology are not silver bullets for energy decarbonization, with the right planning and leadership, CIOs and digital leaders can play a transformative role in mitigating energy costs and risks.”