What will the software industry look like in 3, 5, even 10 years from now? And what customer demands and business trends will drive changes in software products, how they’re developed, and the industry that provides them?
Given the dynamics of innovation and ever-changing user landscape, in many ways it’s difficult to predict what the software industry will look like in 3 years let alone 5 or 10 years. With this said, however, here are some thoughts for consideration.
Long-term predictions on the future of Software: It is said that at any point, if someone gets a brilliant idea, two other people in the world get the same idea at the same time. Ideas will become cheaper and more readily available. Software will continue to help abstract much of the thinking behind and completion of processes that are necessary to perform tasks more efficiently. Emphasis will continue to be placed on improving user experience, where application user interfaces will become more intuitive and replace the need for online help and other forms of user documentation. Software will also continue to incorporate collaborative elements such as crowd sourcing and will evolve in response to the trend of information sharing.
Intellectual Property: An interesting aspect of the future of software is the question, “What types of devices and products will evolve to a point where software drives their use?” For instance, our vehicle can tell us where we are through global positioning or let us know when our vehicle’s tires are low on air, with software potentially being a key component to how this technology evolves. Recently, vehicles are being equipped with software technology to avoid collisions and change handling capabilities depending on driving conditions. Who’s to say in the next several decades our vehicles won’t be performing most of the driving for us, and if so, using software as a service (SaaS) via the cloud, will this mean our vehicles will require security software to protect against viruses???
For more information, visit SaaShr.com. See part 1 and part 2.
About the author:Bill Loss is co-founder and CEO of SaaShr.com, established in 2002 with a group of senior software architects; SaaShr.com specializes in delivering workforce management applications as a service over the Internet. Bill is responsible for strategic vision of the company and ensuring all internal controls and growth forecasts are met.
Prior to founding SaaShr.com, Bill played a key role for more than five years with an international trading conglomerate and co-founded an online advertising firm that later was acquired by a public company. In addition to holding a seat on the Software Division Board of the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), Bill is actively involved with the mid-market special interest group of the Human Resources Outsourcing Association (HROA).
Bill resides in New Jersey with his wife Myra and two daughters.