According to Gartner, I&O leaders need to implement nine principles to maximize the resilience of cloud environments. The cloud is not inherently resilient, and most cloud outages are caused by software bugs rather than physical failures. In such cases, outages usually affect only some services or parts of the cloud provider's infrastructure. At the ongoing Gartner IT Infrastructure, Operations & Cloud Strategies Conference, analysts are discussing how to deal with these challenges and minimize the impact of cloud provider failures.

Eighty-three percent of B2B buyers say they prefer ordering or paying through digital commerce, according to Gartner, Inc. A Gartner survey of 725 B2B buyers from November through December 2021 found that digital commerce has rapidly become the norm and the preferred way to complete B2B purchases.

72% of data and analytics (D&A) leaders with digital initiatives are either leading or heavily involved in their organization’s digital transformation initiatives, according to Gartner, Inc.’s sixth annual Chief Data Officer (CDO) survey*. D&A strategy has a primary role in digital business strategy, affecting everything the organization does.

Despite a myriad of risks resulting from the pandemic, such as the new work environment and environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns, cybersecurity risk was singled out with notable consistency across all geographic regions and most industries, cited by 67% of respondents. The next highest cited risk, “the new working model” was cited by 43% of respondents.

A Gartner survey revealed that most millennials (62%) and Gen Z customers (75%) report they would use noncompany guidance (such as a subreddit, Google search or YouTube video) to self-resolve their issues either all or most of the time, even when they have the option of contacting customer service.

Gartner’s survey revealed 68% of employees would consider quitting their current job and working with an organization with a stronger viewpoint on the social issues that matter most to them. Employees whose employer has taken a strong stance on current societal and cultural issues are twice as likely to report high job satisfaction.

Only 23% of B2B sales reps believe they are equally effective selling virtually as they are in a live, onsite setting, according to Gartner, Inc. However, Gartner’s survey showed that 58% of sales reps also report they have dedicated coaching sessions with their sales managers on effective virtual selling.

Gartner found that 44% of consumers report that their highest expectations of companies is for them to ensure their own policies and practices align with a cause, but only 37% of CMOs report taking that action. 24% of consumers say one of brands’ top two priorities should be donating money to cause, yet 46% of CMOs report donations as a top action taken.

Major shifts in macro factors, such as customer behaviors and government regulations, and in micro factors, including organizational strategy and policy, have substantially shortened HR leaders’ time horizons when planning for the future.

Worldwide IT spending is projected to total $3.9 trillion in 2021, an increase of 6.2% from 2020, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc. Worldwide IT spending declined 3.2% in 2020 as CIOs prioritized spending on technology and services that were deemed “mission-critical” during the initial stages of the pandemic.

73% of chief marketing officers (CMOs) report they will rely on existing customers to fuel growth in 2021, rather than looking to develop new markets, shows a new survey by Gartner. 39% of CMOs plan to increase sales of existing products to existing customers, while 34% will introduce new products to existing customers in 2021.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to shift the landscape for how global CIOs manage, collaborate and respond to their stakeholders, so too does the demand for strong leadership and core emotional dexterity competencies.

To be more agile and adaptive in the year ahead, marketing leaders must prioritize four core competencies with a renewed focus that accounts for the unprecedented changes of 2020. Customer understanding, adaptive planning, data-driven decision making and strategic cost optimization are the core competencies that will help marketing to survive and thrive in 2021.

Frontline and overlay sellers have the lowest data proficiency despite their focus on sales data and buyer activity. The Gartner report revealed that sales reps are considered to have one of the worst data proficiency (43%) in the organization – significantly lower than marketing teams (49%), customer service teams (49%) and finance teams (53%).

A 2020 Gartner, Inc. survey of 1,000 employees in March revealed that they are facing a greatly increased frequency of “career moments”, resulting in increased incidences of employee misconduct and more negative perceptions of corporate integrity.

Despite the disruptive impacts of COVID-19, 47% of organizations plan to increase their investments in the Internet of Things (IoT). 35% of organizations reduced their investments in IoT while a larger number of organizations are planning to invest more in IoT implementations to reduce costs.

The coronavirus pandemic has put chief supply chain officers (CSCOs) under pressure to adapt and prepare their networks for an uncertain future, according to Gartner, Inc. Supply chain leaders must adapt their strategies, investment and leadership style to ensure long-term efficient growth.

Worldwide container management revenue will grow strongly from a small base of $465.8 million in 2020, to reach $944 million in 2024, according to a new forecast from Gartner, Inc. Among the various subsegments, public cloud container orchestration and serverless container offerings will experience the most significant growth.