9 Business Trends of the Future

It's certainly not new news that the current business landscape is evolving at a rapid pace for all industries.

Whilst this is down to a bunch of different reasons, which can all be quite overwhelming, it’s important to try to understand the trends of the future to set yourself up for competitive success.

As the legendary late David Bowie once said, “Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming.” - This could not be truer in today’s world.

From consumer behaviour changes to tech innovations, the business landscape for 2025 and beyond may seem daunting on the surface, but once we understand them at a deeper level, it shows a promising and exciting future!

Our expert, futurist speakers are here to not only anticipate these influencing trends but also to analyse them and inform audiences on what the future may look like, how they might affect us and what can be utilised to best benefit from the upcoming opportunities.

Trend 1: The Rise of AI and Automation's Impact on Operations:

‘Generative AI’ has been growing in search volume since ChatGPT’s launch back in late 2022, with businesses keen to find out more.

What is Generative AI? It's a type of AI that creates new content, including text, images, music, audio and videos.

Predictive AI, on the other hand, is a program that uses machine learning to identify patterns in past events and make predictions about future ones.

It’s predicted that by 2025, Generative AI will hold about 30% of the entire AI market and be worth over $60 billion; approximately $15 billion more than at current.

Those in the healthcare industry are already releasing several promising generative AI technologies; along with logistics and manufacturing.

Trend 2: E-commerce Growth and Evolution Exponential Growth

Online shopping has been on the rise for many years, but when COVID hit, consumer shopping habits completely changed.

Shopify reported that e-commerce experienced 10 years’ worth of growth in just three months during the pandemic. Whilst now, it’s slowly returning to what it once was before lockdown.

Some specific retail categories (electronics, home improvement and furnishings) have sustained their post-pandemic growth, with this rise predicted to continue upwards into 2025.

Companies are now focusing more than ever on developing and launching new Ecommerce opportunities; including featuring ‘online only’ products and investing more into their online customer services – chatbots and virtual assistants.

Trend 3: Data Collection and Privacy

With the development of 5G mobile networks, data speeds have never been faster and more reliable.

The 5G market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 65.8% through 2030, to reach a valuation of $797.8 billion. This is due to the network driving enhanced data collection and analysis for businesses, essentially allowing them to read intelligence in real time.

The combination of 5G and AI is being used by BMW in their German factory to locate cars, tools and parts within the warehouse in real-time, with the accuracy down to within one centimetre.

There have been growing concerns with data privacy, and GDPR regulations have come into play to allow consumers more security and control over what information businesses can obtain. Whilst this has resulted in an impact on business processes, it’s important to exercise ethical data use – balancing personalisation with consumer privacy.

Trend 4: Remote and Hybrid Work Models

The ease of the sophisticated technologies that allow for hybrid and remote collaboration (Zoom, Skype, Teams, Slack etc.) has transformed traditional office environments.

The number of people working from home tripled between 2019 and 2021 and since the lift of lockdown, the majority of employees are hesitant to return to the office.

The Pew Research Centre reported in 2022 that 78% of those who currently work remotely in the US want to continue with their setup in the coming years.

Over two-thirds of remote workers also reported that they’d look for a new job if their company required them to return to full-time office work, whilst more than half stated that they’d rather take a pay cut than give up their workplace flexibility.

Where does this leave the future of work? Well, many businesses are already opting for monitoring technology on workers' devices that track their movements whilst working at home. With the strong demand for hybrid work from employees and businesses' preference for office work, it’ll be interesting to see what trends occur here!

Trend 5: Sustainability and Green Business Practices

Global reports show that 85% of people have changed their purchasing habits to become more sustainable in the past five years. Businesses are having to respond to this change in consumer purchasing habits by paying more attention to their ESG processes. The early results are promising for those changing their processes, and generally, businesses are optimistic about the future.

The World Economic Forum reported that if businesses invest in reusing and recycling, there could be savings of $1 trillion per year https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/articles/companies-should-think-circular-to-cut-waste-costs-and-emissions.html

Businesses can receive a B Corp certification if they meet a set of rigorous social and environmental standards, essentially showcasing that they’re focused on being sustainable. We’re very proud of our B Corp status here at Speakers Corner!

Trend 6: The Future of Customer Experience (CX)

Businesses are constantly looking to engage customers in new ways. Immersive technologies like augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR) are making their way into everyday life.

The introduction of the Facebook Metaverse in 2019 launched VR into everyday life; now, Meta has roughly 10,000 employees working in mixed reality and Apple is catching up, with about 2000 employees developing extended reality.

In 2021 the immersive technology market was valued at nearly $28 billion, with expectations to grow immensely to over $252 billion by 2028.

This growth isn’t just coming from the business side, reports show that consumer interest in augmented reality is steadily increasing, too.

With the increase in e-commerce and a desire to keep retail alive, it will be interesting to see how augmented reality is considered in this realm.

Trend 7: The Growth of the Subscription Economy

The subscription economy has grown by 435% over the last decade and is projected to reach a market size of $1.5 trillion by 2015.

This immense growth clearly shows the importance of companies having to alter their business models to jump on this bandwagon. A great way of predicting revenue streams, there are huge benefits to corporations adopting a subscription model for customer growth and retention.

Take Disney, for example; they’ve introduced QR codes on the detail pages of shows and films that take the customer to a specific ShopDisney site where they can purchase exclusive merchandise only available to Disney+ subscribers. Exclusives like this boosted search volume for the brand by 74% since 2019 – a brilliant way to embrace and boost the subscription model!

Trend 8: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in Business

As modern businesses grow and develop, there is more focus on building inclusive cultures and diverse teams.

Businesses that adopt DEI initiatives and/or actively take action to build inclusive workplaces are provided with a wealth of different cultures and viewpoints that lead to greater innovation and creativity due to the wider range of skills provided.

Diversity and inclusion are important factors that many people look for when accepting a job offer, and it’s been reported that employees feel happier when their workplace is inclusive and diverse, which in turn leads to better productivity and customer understanding.

The future of work will be shaped through recruitment and the company’s DEI initiative. If successful, there will be higher retention rates, revenues and opportunities!

Trend 9: Globalisation and Localisation

Customers now have more purchasing options than ever, meaning that businesses need to work even harder (and smarter) to attract and retain audiences.

AI solutions have the potential to drastically increase the efficiency of customer service operations, reduce spending and boost overall satisfaction.

As the software evolves, more sophisticated and seamless cross-border solutions and opportunities will crop up for businesses willing to embrace these innovations!

As we head into 2025 and beyond, our futurist speakers can help you navigate the unknown and plan ahead, turning your uncertainty and anxiety into boundless potential for creativity and business progress.

Our friendly, expert team will find the perfect futurist for your organisation – get in touch today!