Carlos M. Meléndez is the COO and cofounder of Wovenware, a Maxar Company, offering AI and software development services.
Any good agile software development team understands that a major final step in a sprint is an agile retrospective, a time for reflecting on the project, noting what worked and what didn’t and identifying ways to improve upon it in the future.
One approach to conducting a retrospective, developed by Mary Gorman and Ellen Gottesdiener for scrum masters and their teams, breaks down the process into the “4 Ls,” representing what was liked, learned, lacked, and longed for.
Since every year at about this time, companies everywhere either predict the trends that will shape the new year in technology or take stock of the year closing out, it seems fitting that doing a retrospective of the year can help inform the new one.
With this in mind, I’ve created my own retrospective of the year in technology 2023, focused on the 4 Ls mentioned above.
What I Liked: The GenAI Craze
Virtually every other technology development of 2023 paled in comparison to the hype surrounding the advent of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI). According to Forrester, “Visionary tech execs will seize this opportunity with GenAI to strategically realign IT resources to unlock the immense creative potential within their teams—not just among developers but across all IT roles.”
Prior to 2023, only the most progressive companies were deploying GenAI, and most firms were kicking the AI tires, working to find out exactly how to secure the IT budgets to initiate such a novel technology. Today, adopting AI at some level is becoming a business necessity, similar to what we experienced with the advent of the PC.
While much of the tech industry was facing the consequences of an economic downturn and putting off many IT initiatives, GenAI was the bright star, reinvigorating the industry and pulling it out of its doldrums.
What I Liked: Appreciation For UX
In addition to GenAI, stiffer competition for fewer customers with tighter budgets in 2023 forced software firms to pay close attention to improving the user experience (UX) and listening to the customer. According to a PwC UK study, 90% of CEOs believe customers have the greatest impact on their business. In 2023, customers had more power in informing the design and capabilities of the technologies they use daily than at any other time. These customers also include end-users and employees interacting with technology who expect the same seamless and enjoyable digital experience in the office as in their daily lives.
What I Learned: There’s No One Place Where Tech Innovation Can Shine
In October 2023, the Biden-Harris administration designated 32 Tech Hubs in regions across the country, including places such as New Hampshire, Colorado, Virginia, Illinois and Puerto Rico. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, “The program invests directly in burgeoning, high-potential U.S. regions and aims to transform them into globally competitive innovation centers.”
It was refreshing to see that tech innovation is being recognized and supported beyond the confines of Silicon Valley.
What I Learned: Work Can Happen Remotely, But It’s Good To Be Back In The Office
During the pandemic, businesses made extreme efforts to enable work from home, investing in new systems, cloud migration and networking capabilities, which helped the tech industry experience record growth. In 2023, many organizations began hybrid working models and a gradual return to the office, and it’s expected that this trend will continue in 2024. In fact, According to Resume Builder, 90% of companies say they’ll return to the office by the end of 2024.
While there are mixed feelings on the subject, there’s no question that the return to normalcy following the pandemic is a very good thing. Since my company is still in a hybrid mode, with most of the staff back in the office for the majority of the work week, I find in-person collaboration and being together with peers to be a great boost for innovation, empathy and team building.
What We Lacked: Regulatory Oversight Of AI
Artificial intelligence took the world by storm in 2023, yet regulatory oversight was hardly able to keep pace. The U.S. government, as well as governments around the world, spent much of 2023 scrambling to understand AI, as well as the dangers it can cause. Considering that AI can be used to create deep fakes, spread false information, hack into mission-critical computer systems or cause any number of bad things when in the hands of bad actors.
This viewpoint was shared by industry leaders. In fact, in early 2023, more than 350 tech executives and scientists signed a joint statement to express their concerns and warn of the dangers of AI, going so far as to say it poses an “extinction risk,” on par with pandemics and nuclear war. Throughout 2023, the U.S. government met regularly with industry leaders to establish a regulatory blueprint, but to date, nothing concrete has passed. We can expect to see regulation occur in the new year to ensure transparency, privacy and equity when it comes to AI.
What We Longed For: An End To Economic Uncertainty
What the tech industry was hoping for in 2023 was an end to high interest rates, economic instability and unemployment concerns. The IT buying frenzy of the pandemic gave way in 2023 to tighter reins on spend and many tech firms were impacted. IT spend required more proof of return on investment (ROI), had longer sales cycles needed to demonstrate its necessity and ability to boost productivity and enable greater efficiency.
Every agile sprint requires four key steps: planning, execution, review and retrospection. As the year 2023 races to the finish line and the retrospective stage, we can see that there were many lessons learned, opportunities to be gained and challenges that were overcome across the tech landscape. Yet, while looking back on the past helps to inform the future, there’s no time like the present to take action to set it on a successful course.
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