It's important to prepare for future changes in any sector, but these can often be difficult to predict. As a result, predictions often fall to research organisations like the International Data Corporation (IDC), which are constantly looking ahead.

In fact, the IDC has recently announced that it's is going to be hosting two web conferences in December designed to assess the future of Big Data and Analytics as well as security.

The results of these two conferences should prove useful for a substantial number of businesses.

This article will take a look at the two upcoming IDC conferences, what they're going to be discussing and what the predictions will mean for businesses. 

The IDC predictions

Two FutureScape conferences will be held this month, Worldwide Big Data and Analytics 2015 Predictions and Worldwide Security 2015 Predictions.

Worldwide Big Data and Analytics 2015 Predictions

Data is now an invaluable tool for companies of all sizes, especially when large quantities can be put to use to uncover useful insights into customer spending trends and similar areas.

This conference and the IDC reports published after will help IT professionals when it comes to strategic IT planning – certainly essential.

"Faster access to more relevant data and constant experimentation is creating a further gap between leaders and the rest of the organisations," said Dan Vesset, a program vice president at the IDC.

"It is also creating new challenges for IT and business leaders tasked with their organisation's big data and analytics strategy and execution."

Worldwide Security 2015 Predictions

The second conference is focused on security and is perhaps the one that applies to the largest number of businesses, especially given its importance.

IT security can no longer be a secondary consideration, as the danger from cyberattackers shows no sign of slowing.

"Over the years security trends have remained relatively static. It was always about threats and finding the appropriate product to stop attackers," said Charles Kolodgy, another program vice president.

"Enterprises are [now] looking for solutions that are closely aligned to the applications they protect."

How do these shifting areas affect companies?

IT is constantly changing and it's important for businesses to understand how the changes can affect operations.

For example, evolving security threats mean companies need to be cautious when approaching new technologies. Failure to implement a new cloud platform securely could lead to reputation damage, for example.

Likewise, a Big Data project could see rising costs without effective management from a dedicated or IT team.

Of course, methodologies can also be utilised across a range of projects.

Preparing for change

One of the most effective ways to deal with change in any sector is through the use of an established methodology, one specific to the area at hand.

ITIL is the best possible option for dealing with the IT changes outlined above. This framework is designed to help organisations undergo transformation and change while using IT, without any undue risk.

One of the best things about capable frameworks is that they're adaptable across a number of different projects and they're useful over the long term.

For example, ITIL can continue to be utilised year after year for the evolving IT sector, helping businesses to deal with changes both small and large.

Organisations need to understand that IT is a constantly evolving sector, and it's certainly showing no sign of slowing down in the near future.

By understanding changes coming in the short term, these companies should find it easier to manage their ever-evolving IT requirements.

Failing to move with the industry changes could mean competitors move ahead, gaining a clear advantage.

Get in touch with ALC Training today if you'd like to learn more about how the ITIL framework can help your organisation.