The continued pandemic and evolving work environments have contributed to changing trends in 2021.
Two trends, data security and SaaS BI, have been gaining traction for years but will become even more important this year and into the future.
SaaS BI
Remote work is becoming the norm since the pandemic and thus the need for cloud-based solutions continues to grow. SaaS BI is short for Software as a Service business intelligence and refers to software applications providing cloud based BI solutions.
Rather than owning a software that is housed on the company server, installed on company networked computers, and accessible only on-site, these tasks are outsourced and another organization develops, maintains, and runs the software. The flexibility is the most attractive attribute. Users can access the software nearly anywhere on nearly any device. Oftentimes the format is subscription based, which is more cost effective than having to expand licensing and more time effective than constantly running updates for the software. Given the current situation, this growing trend comes as no surprise.
Data Security
Without a doubt, 2020 brought challenges to the business world. With so many people working remotely, data security has been at the top of most IT department’s budget spending.
Data storage and security was much easier when dealing with a secure in-house server. However, the pandemic moved nearly everyone to cloud storage and sent IT departments into overdrive to effectively protect their data.
In 2021, we will see organizations continue to diligently work to protect and secure data and the data of their customers. News of data breaches are all too common and consumers are growing frustrated with frequent data breaches. This displeasure is resulting in loss of customers for businesses in which the data has been compromised. To soothe consumer worries, investing in a quality business intelligence platform is worthwhile for nearly all businesses.