February 03, 2020
As we are standing at the dawn of a new decade, the only thing we can now to be certain of is that everything is going to change. However, we can make predictions by looking at mega trends. Mega trends are trends that influence all companies and markets as they cannot be influenced or changed by individual companies. Here we give to you 6 mega trends that is predicted to heavily influence the coming decade.
Urbanization, demographics shifts and new powers
In the coming decade billions of citizens will be moving from rural areas to cities, hence cities are predicted to grow more quickly than suburban and rural areas. Today, over half (55%) of the world’s population lives in urban areas and this proportion is expected to rise. By 2030 two-thirds of the world population will live in cities and to 68% by 2050, with China, India and Nigeria expected to account for 35% of projected growth.
1. Urbanization
This urbanization is strongly connected to growing middle class. Today 1,8 billion people is considered middle class, in 2030, the number will be 4,9 billion.
2. Demographic shifts
We are also going to experience some other big demographic shifts; ageing population in Europe and parts of Asia, population growth in parts of the Americas, EMEA and Asia and population decline in Europe and parts of Asia. Connected to these changes in demographics, family structures will change, and we will also see a diversification of behaviour connected to different generations.
3. New Powers
The third trend touches upon power. As strength was once exhibited by a strong militia and weaponry, strength today is becoming synonymous with countries that display the greatest technological infrastructure and capabilities. Connected to this, access to information and communication technologies together with growing wealth inequalities are dramatically questioning as well as changing the status quo.
Digitization, personalization and sustainability
The next three mega trends are close to the heart of Valtech, as they all connect to what we are working with every day.
4. Digitization
Technological development is perhaps the most fundamental and influential driving force of the 21st century. Technologies and digitization create new opportunities and businesses, as well as new ways to handle existing challenges. It has also fundamentally shifted the ways in which we operate and communicate with each other, for example, mobile technology has grown exponentially in the past decade. Digitization creates data, and data enables another mega trend; personalization.
5. Personalization
We now have the possibility to get products and services tailored to our individual needs, and this area is predicted to grow during the coming decade. This is said to be connected to the aforementioned trend of the growing middle class. As a middle-class citizen has the possibility to want and acquire personalized products.
6. Sustainable solutions
Another consequence of the growing middle class is the need for sustainable solutions, products and services, as the rapid population growth on earth will require a major reshuffle of all kinds of production. As consumers’ expectations evolve, an increasing importance is placed on measuring not only a company’s profits, but its impact on people and the planet as well. This means a bigger focus on CSR as well as other commitments to society.
What does this mean for your organization?
As the first wave of Digital Transformation was about digitizing business as usual.
We are now entering the second wave where digital is not just about websites, but about truly connected experiences that offer intelligent assistance for everyone and make frictionless conversations between businesses and users possible.
At Valtech digital is our first language, and we would love to explore the new decade with you. The 2nd wave of digital transformation pushes for business transformation: new products and services with new business models. That is why our goal is to create unique and personal experiences that improve human lives and make our clients business grow. Some of our recent cases include our work a new digital service for Svensk fastighetsförmedling and our long term collaboration with SVT’s development teams.
References
- Scenarios 2030 - The future of product development, Copenhagen institute for future studies, 2017
- Beyond the noise - The Megatrends of Tomorrow’s World - Deloitte, 2017
- Destination 2030 - Global cities’ readiness for growth, World travel and tourism council
- 2030 - Global trends to 2030: Can the EU meet the challenges ahead?, ESPAS
- Future state 2030: The global megatrends shaping governments, KPMG, 2014
- Megatrends shaping the future of tourism, OECD Tourism trends and policies, 2018
- Fast moving report 2019 - Sverige 2030, WSP Advisory
- Future traveler tribes 2030 - understanding tomorrow’s traveler, Amadeus, 2015
- Future traveler tribes 2030 - building a more rewarding journey, Amadeus
- What If? - Imagining the Future of the Travel Industry, Amadeus
