IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Small and Medium-Sized Business 2024 Predictions

IDC FutureScape Figure

• Figure: IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Small and Medium-Sized Business 2024 Top 10 Predictions

Executive Summary

IDC FutureScape Predictions

• Summary of External Drivers

• Predictions: Impact on Technology Buyers

• Prediction 1: By 2025, Half of Medium-Sized Businesses Will Be Using GenAI-Based Applications to Automate and Optimize Marketing and Sales Processes

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

• Prediction 2: By 2028, 60% of SMBs Will Use Services from Vendors That Leverage GenAI in an Effort to Capitalize on the Benefits of the Technology More Easily

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

• Prediction 3: To Meet Their Goals for Energy Efficiency and Sustainability, More than Half of Medium-Sized Businesses Will Consider Investing in Sustainability Technology Solutions by 2026

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

• Prediction 4: By 2025, 40% of SMBs Will Use Data Analytics to Evaluate Investments in Cloud and to More Closely Monitor DevOps Spending

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

• Prediction 5: By 2025, Cyberattacks Targeting SMBs Will Become Much More Prevalent, Leading to at Least 40% of These Companies Taking Proactive Measures to Mitigate Risks and Work on Addressing Major Skills Gaps

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

• Prediction 6: To Become More Agile and Resilient, Investments in Public Cloud Technologies at SMBs Across the Globe Will Increase by 20% in 2024, with SaaS Applications Expected to Take the Lion's Share

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

• Prediction 7: 65% of Medium-Sized Businesses Will Increase Their Investments in Analytics by 2027 as They Seek to Make Sense of the Consumer Data They Collect and Use It to Improve Business Outcomes

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

• Prediction 8: By 2026, 35% of New Small Businesses Created Worldwide Will Rely on 5G and Fixed Wireless Access for Critical Business Connectivity

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

• Prediction 9: 25% of SMBs Will Account for More than 50% of SMB Technology Spend by 2025 as Technology Intensity, Spending Capacity, and Digital Business Models Become Leading Indicators of SMB Spending Propensity

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

• Prediction 10: During 2024, 80% of SMBs Will Require Case Studies, Clear ROI Evidence, and Assurance of Spending Guardrails to Unlock Their Investment in GenAI Technologies for Generic Productivity Use Cases

• Associated Drivers

• IT Impact

• Guidance

Advice for Technology Buyers

External Drivers: Detail

• AI Everywhere — Generative AI Takes the Spotlight

• The Drive to Automate — Maximizing Efficiency and New Opportunities

• Economic Uncertainty — IT Malaise and Market Volatility

• Cybersecurity and Risk — Building Resilience Against Multiplying Threats

• The Digital Business Imperative — Competitiveness and Outcomes

• Everything as a Service Intensifies — Transforming Models to Drive Change

• Operationalization of ESG — Measuring and Implementing Sustainability

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• Related Research