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The application icons of Facebook, Twitter and Google are displayed on an iPhone next to an earphone set in this illustration photo taken in Berlin, June 17, 2013. European firms believe revelations that the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) PRISM programme secretly gathered user data from nine big U.S. Internet companies, including Microsoft and Google, will hand them a competitive advantage as they play catch-up with the dominant American players in "cloud computing". Reuters/Pawel Kopczynski

A new study reveals that IT professionals in Australia continue to prioritise investments in cloud computing amid emerging technologies like machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI). Ninety-four percent of those who participated in a survey indicate that cloud and hybrid IT are among the top five most significant technologies to their IT strategy.

Leading provider of powerful and affordable IT management software SolarWinds released on Wednesday the findings of its annual state-of-the-industry study. The study paints a picture of Australia’s current IT landscape.

SolarWinds’ report called “The IT Trends Report 2018: The Intersection of Hype and Performance” explores the spectrum of existing and up-and-coming technologies and the extent to which they are disrupting IT and optimising the performance of environments as organisations go through their digital transformation journeys. It shows that overall, Aussie IT professionals prioritises investments in cloud computing and hybrid IT more than any other technology.

While AI and machine learning are not the highest priorities for IT professionals, optimising cloud/hybrid IT environments make an important pathway to eventually deploy and capture the benefits of rising technologies. By weighed rank, AI took the lead on technologies required for digital transformation over the next three to five years, rising 20 percent. But the fast adoption of new technologies has created environments that are not optimised for peak performance.

More than half or 53 percent of respondents indicate that their environments are not optimised. Eighty-five percent of the respondents reported spending less than 50 percent of their time proactively troubleshooting and maintaining.

A number of IT professionals cite a lack of organisational strategy and insufficient investment in areas such as user training as the most common barriers to system optimisation. IT professionals need new skillsets and better strategic collaboration with business leaders to keep pace with the changing environments and obtain efficient digital transformation.

SolarWinds executive vice president Joe Kim said the narrative in today’s IT industry revolves around transformative technologies. He cited AI, machine learning, blockchain, and more.

“These technologies are unquestionably important, but the results of this year’s study reveal that IT professionals are still prioritising investments in technologies that help run day-to-day operations, and choosing initiatives that deliver more immediate value,” Kim said in a statement. He added the report shows that IT professionals are focusing in on proven technologies that deliver value today such as cloud and containers. IT professionals set their sights toward future innovations like AI.

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