Future of It Updated
Future of It Updated
future of IT
Strategies to advance the IT
function in a cloud and AI-enabled era
Enter
January 2024
kpmg.com/futureofit
Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Contents
05 09 13
XaaS Data- Resilience-
champion centric focused
17 21 25
Talent Innovation Responsible
incubator at velocity operations
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Foreword
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
In the recent report, Preparing for the future of IT, we Trend number five exposed the pressure IT faces
Will IT be behind the digital revolution carried out in-depth research into the forces of change in to do more — faster and better — to support rapid
transforming organizations? While IT IT, identifying six prevailing trends: everything-as-a-service digitalization and innovation. The sixth and final
(XaaS), data, resilience, talent, innovation, and ESG. trend — the rise of ESG: IT needs to step up to support
functions are playing a central role in today’s non-financial reporting, embed ESG into systems, reduce
digital transformation, their future is uncertain. Firstly, we highlighted an exponential shift from on-
its own carbon footprint and improve its performance in
premises to IT consumed as a service (XaaS), with
terms of diversity and fair working practices.
Public cloud, everything-as-a-service (XaaS), IT supporting applications by brokering, integrating,
and orchestrating cloud-based as-a-service systems. In this paper, we discuss the impact of these six
AI and other advancements are making new Secondly, data was seen to be poised as IT’s primary trends on IT’s mission and value proposition in an
demands of IT leaders — and their teams. value proposition, which provides IT teams with an AI-enabled world. And, casting our eyes forward
KPMG believe IT can be a driving force behind opportunity to take on more of a data management a few years, we imagine how IT can enable the
role, to enable the power and advantages of advanced future digital organization by informing technology
the successful integration and application analytics and emerging AI solutions. investments, using AI and automation, and
of technology, to build innovative, resilient, harnessing the power of data. We also suggest the
The third trend identified was the ever-growing
sustainable, data-driven organizations. But a pressure of cyber threats, which demands a growing
capabilities that IT leaders and teams need to acquire
to make this future a reality.
leap in role is required, and fast. focus on resilience. Fourthly, the severe shortage
of vital IT talent calls for novel, creative solutions to The CIO’s role has never been more important.
recruit and retain people with the right skills to drive KPMG professionals believe IT leaders — and their
digital transformation. teams — should master six key priorities:
1 XaaS champion
Fostering the benefits of XaaS by
2 Data-centric
Re-wiring data architecture
3 Rfocused
esilience- 4 Tincubator
alent 5 Innovation
velocity
at 6 Roperations
esponsible
assessing the overall strategy and and expanding capabilities, Accelerating the velocity
In the second great Rethinking recruitment Driving ESG performance
operating model as well as the to progress from enabling of innovation to continue
platforming, combining and personal development across organizations to
IT business functions. Business to delivering processes. helping companies
technology and humans to to help overcome talent deliver value via growth,
transformation presents a huge Helping to obtain insights redefine how they reach
reduce cyber vulnerability gaps and foster diverse, employee retention, and
opportunity, and the future of IT and achieving data maturity customers and employees
and build a strong resiliency exciting, and fulfilling reduced regulatory and
combines technology, processes, to gain a competitive edge. and optimize supply chains.
culture. workplaces. reputational risks.
and people, to realize this potential.
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
XaaS
champion
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
the KPMG global tech report unpredictable, consumption-based pricing models and
diverse pricing strategies used by technology vendors.
they can optimize the user experience, and define best
practices and standards for delivering and supporting
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Timely support Seamless delivery that brokers and orchestrates Real time cost management
solutions
To quickly roll out enhancements and new features, In a XaaS environment that is heavily driven to maximize
future IT leaders should be skilled in harnessing Tomorrow’s IT function brokers and orchestrates operational expenses, the future IT function has extensive
release automation and establishing testing centers a complex web of solution providers and managed tooling that can monitor cloud spend and usage in real
of excellence, both of which can enable faster, more service providers (MSPs). This can enable flexibility time. Cloud financial operations (FinOps), IT financial
efficient testing cycles, and speed up the time to and speed when scaling up (or down) to meet changing management (ITFM), and IT asset management (ITAM)
market. This offers greater assurance that products are demands. As a broker, IT is aligned with the business teams can view all cloud spend, including traditional cloud
reliable and secure. to create new and exciting technology solutions, often (IaaS/PaaS) as well as SaaS. Cost remediation is no longer
proactively, by anticipating business problems. the job of one person or one team. Instead, it likely will be
User experience (UX) centricity that engages users automatically orchestrated by advanced AI that can detect
To support this rich collaboration model, IT may run when certain thresholds are met or spend policies are
User experience is at the forefront of XaaS product design an extensive portfolio of cloud-based solutions and
and development, but tomorrow’s IT developers and broken, and drive appropriate action.
services. The portfolio can be self-service for users
product managers are not expected to be accountable seeking quick answers, and flexible enough to tackle Policies are continuously reviewed and updated to
for designing every aspect of the visual and logical large, complex problems that may take months or years respond to the dynamic nature of cloud products and the
experience. Instead, they can rely on the skills and to resolve. Each solution would be carefully monitored expansion of the software portfolio. There is likely a clear,
investments of software vendors that have built products to ensure it is secure, utilized, compliant and cost- well documented understanding of SaaS cost drivers,
with well-designed, intuitive and delightful interfaces. effective. Software vendors should be accountable effectively negotiated by the vendor management teams.
Product teams then act as ‘experience integrators’ for the operational performance of their products and
where they harmonize modules or products to create an commit to being involved in incident and problem
engaging user experience. resolution. The major benefits from public
Architectural elegance
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Accelerating XaaS
The criteria for the XaaS champion is clear. To get here, IT leaders need to take immediate action. Here are some steps to get started:
Coordinate and collaborate between IT and its business partners and vendors
In the future, vendors are likely to own a larger share of the technology vital to an organization’s success — and even its survival. A single vendor error or dispute can
disrupt critical operations. To mitigate such risks, steps should be taken now to build stronger relationships with vendors, and improve coordination and collaboration
between IT, its business partners and vendors. The process should start with a thorough review of all mission-critical vendors to consider their performance, reliability,
customer satisfaction and future roadmap. The review could also be used to identify potential weaknesses in terms of people or processes that could prevent positive
vendor relationships, which can be resolved through broader operating model changes.
Shift financial systems and policies as IT costs move from CapEx to OpEx
As organizations transition to the cloud, IT expenditure will shift its focus from capital expenditures (CapEx) to operating expenses (OpEx). To prepare, IT should work
with its finance partners to forecast the longer-term financial implications of cloud, and liaise with the accounting function to align capitalization policies to the latest
regulatory guidance. This way, IT can help clear the path to growth and avoid potential disruptions that could stall progress.
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Data-
centric
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Further, there will be a growing pressure on IT leaders Data-centered coordination and collaboration
To progress from enabling processes to to elevate data maturity and maximize the return on
Backed by strong governance and coordination, the IT
data budgets, while innovating and managing data
delivering insights, IT leaders need to re-wire analytics with technologies such as AI. function of the future can set policies that align the data
data architecture and expand capabilities. strategy and roadmap with the technology strategy and
Already, many organizations are struggling with making business priorities. Should these fall out of sync, the IT
these changes. Nearly half (46 percent) of technology function should step in to present potential solutions to
leaders admit they are behind schedule on their data support fast, secure, data-centric product development.
and analytics strategy.4 As such, traditional, older
collaboration models remain where data engineers It will also consider wider data implications during the
Releasing data — from use cases and data scientists react to requests from business
partners. Broad data strategy and governance, too,
design and development of enterprise applications. This
should prevent product teams from sinking into ‘data
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Data literacy evangelist and champion Data-focused technology and architecture likely replace exchanging information through email or
manual downloads.
In a federated data model, expertise to build, maintain A robust, trusted technology architecture — using
and leverage data products comes from the distributed XaaS, AI and ML with data products hosted and Expanding XaaS can enhance data standardization and
data model. The organization will assign their own managed through the cloud — should underpin the quality, and make data more readily available. Technology
people to data product development teams who will new IT operating model. This provides a seamless leaders surveyed in the KPMG global tech report 2023
understand the data value chain from start to finish, customer experience with self-service-based access cite improved data management and integration as the
including the complexities of integrating data sources and scalability, and the fast exchange of information number one benefit of both XaaS technology and public
and, perhaps most importantly, the responsibility and through a central data marketplace, offered through cloud platforms.5
regulatory considerations of using AI and machine application programming interfaces (APIs). This will
learning (ML) in their models. The business will own
the data products they develop, and open new channels
of information for the rest of the organization. The
Chief Data Officer (CDO), meanwhile, should provide
a central pool of engineers and data scientists to help
tackle the most difficult problems.
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
The technology will also look and feel the same across
domains so that products under development are familiar to Integrate data into the broader technology strategy
everyone, minimizing the need for new skills or training. AI Rather than fixing data issues and responding to requests, data leaders will want to
and ML solutions can drive advanced analyses and produce actively partner with the business and IT to create a flexible technology strategy. As new
results that can be applied to other domains. Products technologies constantly emerge and new entrants fail or succeed, data leaders need to
should be exposed to genAI solutions, enabling rapid regularly revisit the data technology strategy to ensure it aligns with the broader technology
insights through simple dialogue. What might take weeks, strategy and ecosystem.
possibly months, to generate today may only take days if not
hours to produce in the future.
Create a data-centric IT operating model and roadmap
Executing the future IT vision will require appropriate technology, governance, operating
Technology leaders surveyed in models and processes. It will also call for new relationships outside of IT, and new ways
the KPMG global tech report 2023 of working and collaborating — all of which can involve years-long transformation in close
partnership with the business.
Shift to XaaS
Effective data management cannot be achieved with legacy technology. The cloud, on
the other hand, offers a breadth of new data tools and solutions that can be deployed in
weeks or even days. The large cloud providers have entire portfolios dedicated to advanced
data management and analytics, while SaaS platforms offer extensive, built-in analytics
features. With the right partner, these solutions can be integrated into data management to
swiftly unlock value. Meanwhile, SaaS solutions can capture disparate data in ready-made
databases that can be widely used.
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Resilience-
focused
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
protect profitability and performance from the harm of restore operations after any disruption. Further, to ensure
Combining technology and humans, cybersecurity breaches. the organization learns from past incidents, knowledge
supported by a strong resilient culture, can sharing should be routine and widespread — an ability that
reduce vulnerabilities to service disruption The future, resilient IT organization will be aided by rapid advancements in AI. The IT function
should also build a strong case for continued investment in
and cyber threats. resilience.
In the future, successful IT organizations will likely
be significantly more resilient. They will have greater IT needs to develop and promote a more holistic view
awareness of threats, understand their vulnerabilities of resilience to help drive the right behaviors across
IT faces an increasingly challenging cyber arms race. and be better able to recover in near real-time. To get
Many organizations have substantially increased their different business units and ensure everyone — including
here, IT organizations will need to focus on mastering the C-suite — is fully aware of their cybersecurity
cyber spend, which has been further intensified as the following features:
incidents — and their associated recovery costs — rise. roles. Vendors and other third parties also need to
While IT cannot afford to sit on the sidelines of the Resilient by design everywhere understand their cyber capabilities, while clarifying their
cyber arms race, the relentless nature of attacks has responsibilities and liabilities in the event of a cyber
shifted the focus from prevention to swift recovery. Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) will likely breach.
need to work with the entire enterprise to prioritize
This is especially important as the increasing use of cybersecurity risk management. This involves partnering Human firewalls
public cloud, XaaS vendor technologies and smart with business product teams to embed resilience into To achieve better, measurable results, future technology
products will accelerate the convergence of IT with operational and business technologies, which can help leaders should be in charge of changing organizational
operational technology (OT) systems. As this happens, build customer trust. culture. Taking on this role, they can ensure cyber defense
the attack surface increases and makes organizations and resiliency is at the forefront of operations. They can
more vulnerable to cyber attacks because they are more Customers expect 24/7 service reliability, which can
be tricky to do when multiple third parties are involved also develop awareness campaigns and holistic programs
reliant on external parties. The KPMG Cyber Trust Insights
2022 survey reports that 60 percent of respondents in delivering services. This will demand tomorrow’s
claim their supply chains are leaving them vulnerable configuration, development and integration teams
to attack.6 Moreover, the demand on IT to deliver more
technologies at a faster rate is pressuring engineers to
to embed resilience at every stage of product design
and development to promote service continuity and
60 percent of respondents to
shorten deployment cycles to avoid holding back digital
transformation, creating pressure on the team.
cybersecurity. In addition to being secure and scalable,
products and systems should have the ability to self- the KPMG Cyber Trust Insights
As technologies are re-platformed to the public cloud, third
correct, self-heal and bounce back to normal after a
disruption. Resilience will be a non-negotiable for both 2022 survey admit their
parties will likely be responsible for resilience; however,
in the eyes of the organization’s leaders, responsibility for
resilience will remain in IT. According to the KPMG global
employees and contractors, regardless of whether
systems are homegrown, vendor-developed or mixed. supply chains are leaving
tech report 2023, technology transformation is faster
when it prioritizes trust.7 In a challenging environment,
Resilience also has an operational component. By
establishing ongoing downtime assessments, recovery
them vulnerable to attack.
IT leaders should continue to invest in security to plans and monitoring capabilities, IT teams can identify
failure scenarios, and respond swiftly and decisively to
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Recovery capabilities can be boosted through testing and Build a bullet-proof case for technical resilience and identity-
drills, while roles and responsibilities should be clarified
in advance of any cyber event, so the organization can based security
mobilize quickly. By clarifying the most critical processes At a time when funding is tight, IT leaders may struggle to show the value for investing in resilience
and systems, the response team can protect what is to senior leaders and board members. However, getting this right is vital for every organization
most important to business continuity — assisted by should they want the chance to respond quickly to cyber attacks, which are a near inevitability for
appropriate metrics and reporting that tracks a return to almost any business.
normal. Some IT functions may want to keep expertise
on retainer, enabling them to access critical skills when
they most need them. Finally, plans and playbooks should Tackle the cultural obstacles that create cyber risks
be reviewed regularly to ensure they can address the Cultural barriers, such as low awareness, disinterest and limited aptitude of cyber can increase
constantly changing threat landscape. the potential for phishing and other forms of hacking. Additionally, well-meaning teams that work
Zero trust for XaaS with industrial control systems or operational technology (OT) may ignore, misapply or misinterpret
cybersecurity policy as they rush to satisfy demands from the business. Modern OT — even non-
As the XaaS ecosystem grows, zero trust architecture internet-connected systems — can expand the attack surface of the enterprise. As such, IT leaders
can help decrease vulnerabilities and ensure a seamlessly will need to expand education and protocols to build a culture of resilience by design to mitigate
secure cloud environment. Future IT leaders should cyber risks.
increase visibility over who has access to different assets
and environments, reducing the potential for bad actors
to move within their organization undetected, and quickly
Plot a cyber roadmap in anticipation of the second great
isolating threats or compromised assets. re-platforming of technology
Tomorrow’s enterprise technology will likely integrate Legacy systems that are not designed to cope with modern-day security threats can make
an array of homegrown and as-a-service technologies, it difficult to implement zero trust architecture as new XaaS solutions are added into these
making security at the API management layer more environments. In addition to these new vulnerabilities, organizations, especially those with
important. XaaS vendors are expected to provide complex application ecosystems and multiple attack surfaces, will be challenged to assess and
more and more granular access controls, monitor prioritize resiliency needs. As part of the second great re-platforming, cybersecurity should be an
individual user activities more closely, and constantly integral part of technology planning.
check that users have the right amount of access. As
XaaS solutions evolve ever faster, vendors and their
customers should maintain zero trust architecture that
keeps pace with change.
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Talent
incubator
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
be their top challenge, inhibiting successful digital for in-demand roles, such as code developers, business
Through creative approaches to recruitment transformation.12 IT may struggle to meet the demands analysts and data engineers.
and personal development, organizations of the future if they do not fundamentally rethink talent.
Unambiguous commitment to learning and
can overcome talent gaps and foster diverse, development
exciting and fulfilling workplaces. The future, talent-rich IT As IT plays an increasingly central role in the future
organization organization, learning and development strategies
should adapt to create a workforce that can meet
The war for IT talent is only likely to intensify with the Tomorrow’s successful IT organizations will be talent growing needs. This calls on organizations to reverse
long-standing shortage of IT skills becoming more incubators able to find and generate the skills needed the downward trend in IT training spend, and funnel
pronounced.8 An estimated 30 to 70 percent of data, for success, characterized by the following features: funds into a holistic talent strategy. They should also
security and development job postings continue to go set performance expectations and define career paths,
unfilled.9 Specialized architecture and data engineering Next generation recruiting investing in diverse training and focusing on developing
skills can be added to the list of those required to Leading IT functions should have a strong brand future-ready skills.
succeed in the XaaS future. presence that resonates with younger generations — In addition to technical skills, fostering a planning
Furthermore, as technologies advance, capability one that targets diversity, equity and inclusion to mindset can enable growth. Exposure to other
demands will change, too. However, despite projected appeal to potential recruits, while widening the pool of seemingly unrelated topics, like cell biology, may also
increases in overall IT investments, the proportion candidates. Crucially, the talent search needs to begin be valuable to unlock creative thinking, encourage
spent on training is expected to decline — globally, IT early and extends beyond top universities. Instead, curiosity and accelerate innovation. People should
training and education already represents less than IT organizations will want to tap into high schools and also be coached on being open and collaborative, and
1 percent of total IT spending.10, 11 community colleges to build talent pipelines through developing the social skills that can help them better tap
early-career internships and apprenticeship programs into the skills of others.
If the decline in training continues, worker attrition will
likely increase whereas the total pool of professionals
with adequate skills could decrease.
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Working in partnership with HR, IT should share the shifts happening in its hiring pipeline and together plan ahead for timely access to emerging roles and skills. HR as well as
other business partners, like Procurement, can help IT take a strategic view of needed skills and how they can be sourced. In the KPMG paper The future of HR: From flux to
flow, this collaboration is referred to as strategic flow, anticipating needs and matching skills to tasks via talent marketplaces.13 Future IT tasks are likely to be performed by a
mix of full-time employees, vendors and technology (e.g., AI, automation) — which can be augmented by upskilling programs and increased workforce efficiency.
Many HR functions are ready and evolving to meet these developments. In the next 2 to 3 years, 60 percent of HR leaders expect to change their operating model to
find new ways to source talent to meet changing demands.14
HR teams may also lack the technology to target and engage new sources of talent in new ways. Existing HR systems, which of course operate for other functions beyond
IT, could be ill-equipped to adapt to novel approaches needed to manage IT career paths and performance requirements. But IT is uniquely positioned to adapt systems
and develop features to manage the future IT talent lifecycle. After all, one of IT’s core strengths is getting technology to match how the business wants to operate.
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Innovation
at velocity
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
IT is now well-positioned as a transformative The innovation-focused IT At the maintenance stage, teams continue to manage
products and innovate where needed, but with less
business partner, but it should accelerate
the velocity of its innovation to maintain
organization scope and intensity.
Institutionalized lean ways of working
In the future, successful IT organizations should be true
prominence. As IT organizations adopt advanced technologies, many
digital leaders delivering innovation at pace with the
business and the market. To do so, the IT leader should abandon their legacy practices for completely new ways
oversee a function with the following features: of working. However, many find their new practices are
no leaner than the ones that came before.
IT earned its place at the table in its response to the Product management excellence at scale
COVID-19 pandemic. Almost overnight IT helped their For IT to deliver more, faster and better, it will likely
organizations redefine how they reach customers and Teams working on high-profile systems tend to need to fully embrace lean thinking. Not every product
employees, and optimize supply chains — which was transition seamlessly to product management team within a portfolio needs to plan in an agile way.
detailed in KPMG’s Preparing for the future of IT.15 In excellence, due in part to the high stakes of their work. Instead, a mix of methodologies that are lean and
these early days digital leadership became table These teams have a clear understanding of how the compatible will likely be best. For example, one team
stakes, placing IT at the center of the digital technology links to business outcomes. They also might prioritize exploration and experimentation, while
transformation agenda.16 engage and collaborate closely with business partners, another may take a more controlled approach to meet
work on long-lasting teams, and have access to funds upfront requirements (e.g., in regulatory compliance
Fast forward to 2023 and a cohort of digital leaders that can scale up (or down) as needed. contexts). The key will be to know when to use iterative
has emerged. They have helped their organizations
What organizations expect from product management or recursive planning (e.g., agile), and when to opt for
transform at a faster pace and achieve better results
will likely become more sensitive to where the product linear planning (e.g., waterfall).
than the global average. They did this with greater
innovation, higher employee productivity and enhanced is in its lifecycle. At the creation stage, IT teams are Lean principles should also be used across IT operations
customer engagement — the very characteristics of the ideating and innovating. As the technology begins to to allow swift changes in priorities and funding, as
future of IT. produce a steady stream of value, the focus turns to circumstances dictate. By institutionalizing lean ways of
continue to deliver value faster for highly engaged working across development and operations teams, IT
Business strategy is now inseparable from technology stakeholders. At this stage, innovation is likely less leaders can gain greater transparency and control over
strategy. This requires IT to remain a vital innovation intense than it was during the creation phase. what gets done, and speed up the scale of innovation.
partner to the business, helping them navigate a
dynamic environment. However, IT spend is likely to
outpace GDP growth, putting pressure on IT to do more,
both faster and better, as a partner to the business. As What organizations expect from product management will likely
a result, digital leadership should be highly tuned to
the business, while letting market signals guide their IT
organizations appropriately.
become more sensitive to where the product is in its lifecycle.
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Accelerating innovation
With a clear case for digital leadership, now is the time get started. Here are some steps that IT leaders can begin to take to accelerate innovation:
Many current operating models are not set up for working with automation, and employees and business partners also need to be brought up to speed. Building
up this foundation will take time and could lead to some resistance. Employees worry the technology could take over jobs, while organizations have concerns over
upskilling workers, and integrating AI with existing tools and systems. However, rapidly changing AI tools and capabilities call for an immediate reassessment of how to
implement and scale automation effectively.
Break down the collaboration and coordination challenges that frustrate digital transformation
Businesses often lack an understanding of how to operate products. Many are also unaware of how critical it is to have a standard product taxonomy across the
enterprise. Before organizations can scale a product, they first need to agree to a clear product definition and value proposition. Then, strong product teams should
innovate at pace and scale swiftly and adeptly to continually generate new value for the enterprise. Throughout this process, teams should maintain visibility, and
practice consistent governance and reporting. To do so, business and IT organizations should align their capabilities onto one team to optimize technology, quickly
adapt to new structures and ways of working and incentivizes a high degree of collaboration.
Acquire capabilities — and the job architecture — to attract, retain and develop the right people
Innovation at speed can only happen with the right capabilities. Faced with significant leadership and skills gaps, and challenged with continually shifting DevSecOps
and product-centric development, IT organizations require new roles, skillsets and career paths. They need to make new hires in a competitive marketplace, and adopt
highly integrated and automated toolchains so new employees can rapidly deliver value in a product model. It is equally important for the workforce to adjust to this
new environment, being open to operating within new structures and learning new ways of working.
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Responsible
operations
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Talent diversity is also important, which impacts IT as adapting to disruption and climate change. These
IT is uniquely positioned to help drive ESG recruiting and talent management, as well as vendor measures help secure nearshore and friendshore (i.e.,
performance across organizations. selection. sourcing with geopolitical allies) alternatives for critical
goods and services. Monitoring tools can help keep
Then there is AI, including genAI, which brings
a close eye on the supply chain to spot and react to
questions over responsible use of this emerging
conflicts and irresponsible practices.
technology. AI is coming under the regulatory
ESG represents a new and dynamic source of value for microscope with a raft of new laws governing AI and IT may also shift from multiple, large data centers to a
organizations, both immediate (e.g., cost savings, lower data use, which will impact data and technology teams lower emission (or offset-emission), cloud-first hosting
cost of capital) and longer term, such as market share considering these solutions. approach, which can promote high flexibility and
growth, employee retention, and reduced regulatory responsiveness to move fast as lower-carbon options
and reputational risks.
The responsible IT organization become available. A green device strategy can also help
organizations apply circular principles to its hardware
Investors are eager to buy into green companies, practices. Phones, laptops and other hardware are
The IT function of tomorrow is set to play a central role
accounting for the continual rise in ESG assets purchased or leased from manufacturers with strong
in embedding and operationalizing ESG objectives
under management in financial markets. Debtors are ESG credentials and, in addition to consuming less
into their companies. As such, technology leaders
offering loans with favorable terms to fund sustainable energy, are easily recycled after use. Sustainability and
should think beyond simply supplying data and
activities. Customers also want sustainably produced energy management software can also be used to gather
technology for corporate reporting. They will have to
products, and a recent KPMG survey found that almost and analyze ESG-related data on energy, circularity,
evolve their operations to embrace ESG as a source of
one in two (46 percent) workers want their employer to diversity and other areas to identify opportunities to
value and help achieve aggressive targets that meet
demonstrate a commitment to ESG.20 reduce energy consumption, cut or offset emissions, and
the expectations of boards, investors, regulators,
The rise of ESG has driven investment in reporting customers and employees. improve performance across the organization.
tools and a shift to the cloud. To capture value from
Operational ESG
ESG requires the entire organization, including IT,
to operationalize ESG. The IT value proposition will
depend, in part, on its ability to contribute to their
IT is expected to play a critical role in reducing the
enterprise’s carbon footprint by creating a circular business
KPMG survey found that
company’s ESG performance. model, and evolving ESG measurement and reporting
to comply with emerging regulations. Responding
almost one in two
IT and ESG are intertwined
IT can significantly contribute to organizations’
to regulatory changes will require close collaboration
between the business and IT engineers and analysts to (46 percent) workers
emissions by managing power consumption of data
centers, as well as the manufacturing and supply chains
of hardware and end-user devices. With IT vulnerable
source the latest information, and deliver relevant data on
emissions, supply chain, diversity, governance and other
important topics to the appropriate stakeholders.
want their employer
to supply shortages, supply chain disruption places
pressure on procurement teams to source critical
In parallel, IT leaders can address tactical issues like to demonstrate a
components from inclusive and environmentally
responsible suppliers.
procurement. IT leaders can help companies practice
responsible sourcing, vetting suppliers for exploitative
labor practices, diversity and inclusiveness, as well
commitment to ESG.
© 2024 Copyright owned by one or more of the KPMG International entities. KPMG International entities provide no services to clients. All rights reserved. The future of IT 26
Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Ethical champions
Ethics is the new frontier in technology, and companies
will increasingly be judged on how they manage privacy,
Accelerating ESG in IT
security and bias. Rather than simply allowing their
collaborators to dictate where and how AI and ML models The following are steps IT leaders can take today to begin moving toward an ESG-
and tech products are deployed, IT leaders of tomorrow centered function:
will be active partners who make responsible decisions
each time.
Understand IT’s contribution to the company’s ESG
They will establish guiding principles of fairness, integrity,
explainability and resiliency, and align product managers, strategy and ratings
analysts, developers, data engineers, data scientists and ESG has become a widely accepted term in business, but unpacking exactly what it
others to them so they can act as champions. They can means to an organization and how to execute against it can be challenging. IT leaders
place responsibility at the center of product development should work with ESG leaders to clarify the organization’s ESG strategy and determine
and redefine value to include integrity. Further downstream, how IT can drive value. For example, they might do this by satisfying external ratings
developers and engineers should question whether features
agencies to improve investor sentiment, or identifying customer segments most
and functions stay within accepted boundaries to ensure
interested in ESG. IT leaders should then focus their teams on areas where IT can make
products remain responsible. Responsibility is expected to
meaningful impacts on ESG goals.
remain front of mind for architectural decisions around data
access and visibility.
Empathetic, human-centered leadership Consider E, S and G
IT leaders should recognize that a diverse culture is not Much of the thinking and discussions on ESG has centered around reducing carbon
about ticking boxes. It is about widening the talent base, emissions, but IT has a major role to play in other environmental issues like plastic pollution
and bringing in new ways of thinking and working that and a circular, low-waste economy. Social and governance are also greatly important aspects
enhances IT’s performance as a function. This approach of ESG, and IT leaders should review how the function and its value chain participants
should make IT organizations more attractive to a new manage human rights, diversity, inclusion, communities, corruption and reporting.
generation of workers. Identifying and communicating these imperatives is vital to ensure that everyone in IT
understands their role in contributing to the ESG agenda.
Recruitment will likely pay close attention to diversity,
equity and inclusion, and talent leaders in IT will need
to address changing needs of employees in terms Capture value from ESG
of flexibility, learning and career opportunities. In the
coming years, IT should offer a nurturing, flexible working Managers within IT may not be fully aware of how their decisions impact ESG and contribute
environment with multiple opportunities to learn and grow to value. By incorporating ESG value capture into operational and development decision-
through training, secondments and job rotation. At the making, leaders can embed ESG into every activity and foster an ESG mindset. Training can
same time, cultivating an individual’s sense of their values, spread awareness. ESG imperatives should be part of strategic budget meetings, backlog
and encouraging them to act on them to help the enterprise and commitment ceremonies, and operations meetings.
make a positive difference in the world.
© 2024 Copyright owned by one or more of the KPMG International entities. KPMG International entities provide no services to clients. All rights reserved. The future of IT 27
Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Conclusion
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Key takeaways
The future of IT is exciting. IT leaders and
teams can help organizations navigate Leverage the rich potential of XaaS Incubate talent
Are you prepared to run an extensive XaaS Are you building a dynamic partnership with
digitization and the second great re-platforming suite, with appropriate internal and external HR? How effectively are you evolving HR
to become Connected, Powered and Trusted governance over partners and vendors? Are processes and job and career architecture to
enterprises. your financial systems and policies adjusting to create an exciting workplace?
the shift from CapEx to OpEx?
In this paper we have outlined a future with
IT very much at the center of this work by
highlighting the required capabilities as well as Create a data-centric function Innovate at speed
the steps to acquire them. Have you considered the shape of the future, Are you driving collaboration and coordination
data mature IT function that has progressed to accelerate digital transformation? Have you
KPMG professionals work with IT teams every from use cases to data management excellence? set out a coherent AI strategy and underlying
day to help them address these challenges and What steps are you taking to integrate data into technical architecture?
broader technology strategy?
drive successful digital competitive advantage
for their organizations.
Calling on KPMG professionals’ experience Focus on cyber resilience Take the lead on ESG
and the topics raised in this paper, here are a Are you building your awareness of threats How well do you understand IT’s contribution
few considerations for IT leaders to accelerate and vulnerabilities with a focus on real-time to the company’s ESG strategy and
recovery and longer-term resilience? Do you ratings? How are you embedding ESG and
their path to the desired future state: have a cyber roadmap to cope with the second operationalizing its objectives?
great re-platforming?
© 2024 Copyright owned by one or more of the KPMG International entities. KPMG International entities provide no services to clients. All rights reserved. The future of IT 29
Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
© 2024 Copyright owned by one or more of the KPMG International entities. KPMG International entities provide no services to clients. All rights reserved. The future of IT 30
Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Contacts
To learn how KPMG can help you accelerate the transformation of your IT function, click here or contact us:
© 2024 Copyright owned by one or more of the KPMG International entities. KPMG International entities provide no services to clients. All rights reserved. The future of IT 31
Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Selim Assouad Sam Ganga Will Marshall Scott Raff With special thanks to
Danielle Beringer Anne Gosal Beth McKinney Dave Ryan
Rob Breakiron Gernot Gutjahr Marcus Murph Rich Schulte Barry Brunsman
Lavin Chainani David Harrison Aidan Muruve Matt Sweeney Adam Schmidt
Michael Cheong Harry Huang Bassa Nerogeni David Tarabocchia Alex Glenn
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Foreword XaaS champion Data-centric Resilience-focused Talent incubator Innovation at velocity Responsible operations Conclusion
Endnotes
1 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2023/09/ 9 KPMG Analysis of IT Labor Market Data from 16 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2022/09/
kpmg-global-tech-report-2023.html Lightcast™ (2023): https:// lightcast.io/resources/ kpmg-global-tech-report-2022.html
blog/jolts-jobs-recap-03-2023
2 Ibid. 17 Ibid.
10 IDC, State of Global Skills, Doc #US49747822,
3 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2022/09/ October 2022 18 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2023/09/
kpmg-global-tech-report-2022.html kpmg-global-tech-report-2023.html
11 Ibid.
4 Ibid. 19 Ibid.
12 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2022/09/
5 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2023/09/ kpmg-global-tech-report-2022.html 20 https://kpmg.com/uk/en/home/media/press-
kpmg-global-tech-report-2023.html releases/2023/01/climate-quitting-younger-
13 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2022/11/ workers-voting-esg.html
6 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2022/09/ the-future-of-hr-from-flux-to-flow.html
cyber-trust-insights-2022.html
14 Ibid.
7 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2022/09/
kpmg-global-tech-report-2022.html 15 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2023/07/
preparing-for-the-future-of-it.html
8 https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2023/07/
preparing-for-the-future-of-it.html
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Publication name: The future of IT | Publication number: 139051-G | Publication date: January 2024