We have seen a vast number of predictions over the past 4 years about the direction that cloud technology is moving. For the ‘naysayers’ out there, who are only too happy to write-off these predictions as ‘fads’; here at ROD we have been sorting the fact from the fiction, to bring you our thoughts on the top four ‘fads’ that are here to stay. In no particular order….
1. First up we have the G-cloud or ‘government cloud’. As we seen the Cabinet Office coming under pressure to deliver more efficient systems, whilst cutting budgets and spending, so too are we seeing a sharp upturn in the g-cloud. Now entering into its second year, the g-cloud is already considered a great success by key departments, as the number one way for the public sector to procure their IT systems.
This is great news for ‘cloud technology’ and will only pave the way for those companies who need encouragement to adopt cloud systems.
2. Since this has been covered extensively over the last few months, we will only 
touch briefly on ‘gamification’. Even though we are only eight weeks into the year, we have read numerous articles, that write-off gamification as a fad, which will disappear just as quickly as it arrived. They see it as a way to trick employees into thinking mundane roles are actually exciting.
Used in the right way, there is no doubt that gamification is a great tool to motivate those individuals and teams who work harder, which can only be good news for staff retention.
3. BYOD / Cloud Devices. I have been reading the latest reviews about cloud devices, such as the Chromebook Pixel, with great interest. Our professional and personal lives rely more, now than ever, on access to ‘cloud’ applications. So it makes sense that we use devices that make accessing the cloud easier, faster and safer, which is why recently we are seeing more focus on cloud-devices. Without delving into a full blown product review, the fact that Google has released their own laptop, shows how seriously and aggressively they plan to try and corner the market on cloud access devices, to go up against the likes of Apple. This is likely to mean that cloud-devices might replace smart-devices, as the ‘BYOD’ of choice.
4. Big Data, like gamification, has been covered extensively in previous articles. But, this year as enterprises start to realise that ‘Big Data’, really means all of their data; we are likely to see some serious press coverage. So expect to see this topic dominating the headlines throughout 2013.