Are you approaching 2024 as an IT professional or leader?
Chances are, your workflow has been forever altered by technological innovations that don’t seem to slow down — from generative AI to remote workforces.
Zendesk wanted to know how these changes will impact the industry in 2024, so they surveyed 1,200 IT leaders to find out their top priorities for the new year.
Here are some highlights from the report:
Data privacy, customer experience, employee experience, and AI data insights are top priorities
Zendesk found these top priorities in order of popularity:
- Stronger cybersecurity and data privacy measures (63%)
- Better customer experience (CX) and employee experience (EX) (60%)
- AI data insights for better business operations (59%)
Despite the hierarchy, it’s important to note most leaders surveyed cited all three of these items as important priorities.
The rise of remote work calls for better cybersecurity
Zendesk found that nearly nine out of 10 leaders cited data privacy and cybersecurity as high investment priorities and 80% plan to increase their cybersecurity budget in 2024.
On top of adapting to remote workforces, IT leaders referenced customer and employee personalization as a driver for more cybersecurity measures. While it’s beneficial for engagement and revenue, personalization brings privacy risks with all the data collection on customers.
Solution: IT companies can align cybersecurity strategies to their business goals to avoid silos, as well as establish an audit committee to monitor threats and report incidents. An audit committee should be an on-going process, continually identifying and protecting critical data and the threats to that data, while planning ahead for possible breaches.
Customers and employees require better experiences
CX and EX are profoundly important to IT leaders, with 86% citing it as a top priority. Research shows that when employee satisfaction and retention is high, customer experiences are more positive and consistent.
However, nearly 80% of respondents say they’ve faced cybersecurity issues when working to personalize procedures for employees and customers. Meaning? Some of the risks have held companies back from making the best impression on their customers. On top of that, 79% of leaders note that their customer experience software has shown risks of cyber-threat vulnerabilities.
Solution: Prioritize an omnichannel experience and leverage AI chatbots to smooth out the customer journey. You can also leverage loyalty and reward programs to show customers you appreciate them.
AI is the common denominator for better CX, EX, and cybersecurity
Most IT companies already use AI in their workflow, but 84% of leaders reported an increase in importance for optimizing that AI use. Plus, 58% shared concerns about their companies’ ability to maintain the upskilling and software education needed to evolve as AI does.
Solution: Take a “discerning” approach to AI and only invest in software that your organization has training on. Consider skills-based hiring to fill knowledge gaps.
Read Zendesk’s news release here.
