2013 was dominated by the failed implementation of the Affordable Care Act website and Eric Snowden, making us realize we are no longer the land of the free. As the world economy started to return mainly due to the technology sector, the mainstream press worked hard to slam the major players (as usual) and dub the year as lost. The following predictions are a mix of both safe and controversial:

1. IT Spending down significantly. You generally hear the opposite virtually every year to bolster goodwill and sell more advertising by the trade rags. However, the last 2 years saw the most technology capitalization than the previous 5 years.
2. IT jobs down. Unless you’re in a specialized industry, technology wages will stay flat and there will be fewer technology jobs mainly due to government increases in taxes, entitlements, and regulations.
3. Staffing fees decrease. Unknown to the general public, staffing firms dominate the technology industry and historically enjoy a 60% margin on the first year salary of a placement. LinkedIn and old standbys like Craigslist are impacting this model greatly.
4. Competency rules. The technology industry will continue to shy away from the hoodie and inept crowd by instead embracing education, certification, and experience.
5. Twitter Boostrap rules. If you haven’t converted your website to Bootstrap in 2014, you’ll likely be out of touch with customers and not easily found.
6. Apple love affair over. The new Apple TV will again not be released. Wearable iWatch will flop as most people now check the time on their phone. A larger iPad with a stand and iWork apps will seem a lot like a Microsoft Surface and Office 365. iPhone 6 will be met by no cool factor for youth and resistance by the general public to buying a new phone each year.
7. Microsoft bashing on steroids. While hysterically railing about the death of the PC, most mainstream media will gleefully send off their drivel on 40-year-old email. This irony only underscores the fact of ignorant discrimination and out-of-touch understanding of the Microsoft direction over the last 10 years.
8.  Privacy avoidance. The press won’t to talk about privacy issues. Google and Facebook won’t be challenged.
9. Censorship pending. Nearly 15 years of the mantra “content is king” has led to over 90% of the world’s data being published in the last 2 years. However, Google may see much of it as duplicate SPAM or discount link value in favor of paid advertising.
10. Social media flourishes. Vanity and the fact that social media is now the only place you can link to your own content, means it will be around for the foreseeable future.

Published by Kevin Fream

Many people don't understand their current situation and become frustrated in business and life, so I created the Delta Method and wrote the #1 Best-Seller "Change Your Game" - as featured at Harvard and NASDAQ as well as national TV news. Streamline your technology for competitive advantage using vetted IT support and take a divergent approach to personal growth. View all posts by Kevin Fream