With the end of the year approaching, it is always a good time to reflect on the year just gone in the business world. 2024 has been another whirlwind year, particularly when it comes to digital transformation. Every business needs to keep pace with digital tools and technologies to stay current, streamline, and improve its operations, but it is also challenging to keep pace when there are so many developments and different technologies available. Therefore, this post will explore some of the biggest digital transformation trends that have shaped 2024 and will continue to be a factor heading into the new year. 

Automation

Unquestionably, one of the biggest digital transformation trends of the year has been automation. Businesses have been looking to automate as many processes as possible to streamline operations, reduce costs, and free up time for staff to focus on other areas. Artificial intelligence, machine learning, and robotic process automation (RPA) can be used to fully or semi-automate many different processes, helping businesses achieve new levels of efficiency.

Kubernetes

Kubernetes migration has been another notable trend in 2024. Kubernetes for developers can be used to help businesses become more agile and scale their applications with the ability to automate deployment, scaling, and management of containers across multiple environments. Kubernetes can be useful for accelerating time to market, improving the user experience, and avoiding cloud vendor lock-in, as businesses can host applications on any platform. With over 75% of companies actively pursuing or maintaining distributed architectures, Kubernetes will continue to be a major trend in 2025. 

Edge Computing

2024 has been a huge year for edge computing, and this will extend into the new year (and beyond). Edge computing moves computing resources closer to the edge (data source), which can include IoT Devices. This is beneficial because it reduces latency with data being processed much closer to the source than traditional computing. With the rise of connected devices and 5G networks, edge computing is a powerful tool that can provide companies with real-time data and improve the decision-making process. 

Cybersecurity Upgrades

Cybersecurity has been an essential trend in 2024 with the proliferation of cyber attacks. Cybercriminals are using increasingly sophisticated and advanced tactics and technologies to target businesses of all sizes and in all industries, and the rise of remote work and more business activities taking place online creates vulnerabilities. This is why all companies have had to take proactive measures to strengthen their defense in 2024. A few of the main cybersecurity trends in 2024 have included:

  • Zero trust architecture
  • Biometrics
  • Security awareness training
  • AI-powered cybersecurity tools
  • Multi-factor authentication
  • PEN testing

These have been the biggest digital transformation trends of 2024. Digital transformation is an essential and ongoing process that all businesses need to go through in order to modernize, improve operations, and provide the best customer experiences. It is challenging to keep up when there are so many developments and trends, but these are the key areas that businesses should be focused on heading into the new year.