According to Forrester’s 2023 budget planning survey, over 84% of technology leaders expect an uptick in their technology budgets in 2024.

So, where will this additional cash be allocated?

Let’s delve into specific budget item suggestions enterprise CIOs should consider in 2024 and beyond.

5 Budget Items Enterprise CIOs Should Consider for 2024

1.      Interactive Employee Training

Most CIOs acknowledge that technology is effective when it is well-implemented and managed by people. So, continuous employee training should be high on the budget priority list in 2024 in this age of ongoing technological evolution. A Gallup survey has also indicated that over 65% of employees consider upskilling opportunities as an important factor while evaluating a job.

Conventional on-the-job training is being replaced by innovative and interactive training initiatives. This is the time to digitally transform employee training and make it immersive and impactful for employees. Many training solutions lack the interactivity approach due to which the employees do not get engaged completely. Here, a combination of the right audiovisual (AV) solutions such as projectors, audio systems, screens, and interactive whiteboards can work wonders for effective employee training. Mix in some Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR) options for super-effective training outcomes.

Learn how AV solutions can transform employee training in the year ahead.

2.      Human-Centric and AI-enabled Communications

Employee frustration is common while trying to communicate and collaborate seamlessly. They need advanced communication and collaboration approaches that create immersive opportunities to interact with customers.

Let’s explore how a human-centric approach can improve customer communication in various ways. 

• AI-based Bots – Businesses can create AI-based chatbots or virtual human as their brand ambassadors. These bots can communicate with customers, understand their concerns, promote the brand, and much more.
• Personalized Customer Communication – Over 92% of businesses are using AI-driven personalization to drive business growth. In today’s era of hyper-personalization, CIOs should consider investing in advanced communication and collaboration tools such as interactive video communication to enable personalized interactions. 
• Narrative-based Video Marketing – In a world filled with growing distractions, it is a constant struggle to capture the attention of customers. Many of them succeed with storytelling and narrative-based marketing techniques that take advantage of digital channels as well as draw customers into deeply engaging experiences delivered through specially designed experience zones. This allows enriched interactions across locations and touchpoints.

3.      Strengthen Cybersecurity

When looking toward 2024, CIOs should consider the implementation of cybersecurity principles and technologies as key investment priorities. Here, focused approaches can play an important role in gaining visibility and control across various physical and virtual infrastructure elements of the organization. Some of its capabilities include:

• Real-time Access to Information – Employees can easily access real-time information in different formats such as video, audio, and data feeds using integrated AV solutions. Besides visibility to data, it also helps in improving their situational awareness to respond to security threats or challenges promptly.
• Remote Collaboration – With audiovisual collaboration tools, businesses can easily bring together remote and in-house cybersecurity teams irrespective of location. 
• Integration of Network and Security Operations – To improve the security-related processes and accelerate the incident response, it is important to empower and enable the network operations centre (NOC) and security operations centre (SOC). AV technology helps in delivering real-time information to centralized NOCs and SOCs to monitor the critical networks and physical infrastructure and implement the best response to cybersecurity concerns across business operations.

4.      Enhance Hybrid Working Capabilities

In 2024 and beyond, CIOs need to prioritize the workplace models that suit the post-Covid era. In a remote or hybrid strategy, different people come to the office at different desks and days. Here, employees need the ability to have complete visibility of data, meetings, conferences, and advanced collaboration tools to connect seamlessly with teammates. With hybrid and remote work establishing itself as the new normal, businesses are identifying various ways to deliver a unifying employee experience, especially for meetings. Advanced tools like AV technology can supercharge high-profile meeting experiences and help deliver a compelling and uniform experience to all team members. This meeting is live-streamed for remote employees. Since there is no limit to the number of people joining the meeting, it enables greater attendance.

Learn more about the role of AV solutions in the age of hybrid work.

5.      Embrace a Cloud Computing Strategy

In 2024, CIOs should place a strong emphasis on becoming cloud-first. Moving to the cloud is no longer a convenience but a necessity to ensure the viability of business. With over 80% of CIOs planning to expand cloud service usage, cloud computing is on the rise due to its cost-saving and scalability features.

To address this priority effectively, businesses should focus on developing and implementing comprehensive strategies that encompass several aspects such as resource optimization, security, and communications.

AV will not get left behind in the cloud race. Cloud-based video communications will enable personalized interactions for various purposes, from internal employee communications, and visitor management to customer support. One such platform is Surge+ which enables businesses to engage with customers on a one-to-one basis, making every interaction quick and productive. 

Action Out Effective Strategies in 2024

Effective Budget planning for 2024 requires a strategic approach that aligns with business objectives, talent acquisition, and technology investments. While embracing the cloud, prioritizing security, and establishing IT governance are essential components of a successful IT program, the above budget item suggestions can help enterprise CIOS achieve technological success in the year ahead and beyond. 

By following these suggestions, CIOs can position their organization to navigate the complexities of 2024. With the help of end-to-end audiovisual solutions, your business can achieve better employee communication and collaboration, implement best-in-class security solutions, and improve business productivity. At Resurgent, we have successfully implemented 800+ projects across 120 global customers. If you want the complete planning budget guide for 2024, book a free consultation with us today.