2014 – WashingtonExec Annual Market Outlook Series
As we turn the page on 2013, we look forward to a new year and new opportunities for innovation and growth in the government contracting community. This past year we experienced budget sequestration, a 16-day-long government shutdown, and a perpetually increasing focus on cyber security and healthcare IT.
WashingtonExec reached out to those most knowledgeable and experienced individuals in the federal contracting space. We asked executives in and around the beltway for insight regarding where they see the government contracting community headed in 2014. Topics discussed include M&A activity, cloud computing, healthcare IT, defense, mobility, and more.
Annette Rippert is the Managing Director and Cloud and Mobility business Lead for Accenture Federal Services. She told us the new year will herald increasing budgetary pressures, cloud infrastructure growth, and an expansion in the theme of shared services:
“I believe that budgetary pressures will continue into 2014. This pressure will drive strategic investments to programs that will bring new levels of government efficiency. I believe the pressure will also serve as an important catalyst for the adoption of new technologies and programs that will have material impact on the cost to serve and will begin to transform the way agencies deliver on their mission.
I predict that the current pace of adoption of cloud services will continue, particularly for private cloud solutions. In 2014, public cloud services will begin to come to the fore as well – for both infrastructure and software-as-a-service solutions. As cloud infrastructures grow, so too will demand for products and services to support provisioning, operations, security and governance.
These investments in cloud, along with progress in mobile device and mobile application management (MDM/MAM) programs will provide a basis for the growth of key mobility initiatives. These applications will be used to improve workforce productivity, provide access to key data and improve decision making.
Perhaps most visible to the nation will be a focus will be on technologies enabling citizen-centric services and collaboration. Digital efforts will be key to how agencies will innovate with citizen-centric portals and personalized interaction.
Lastly, I predict that the focus on shared services will increase, as more opportunities are identified to leverage more cost effective models. While cost-cutting may be the initial rationale for moving to shared services, many of the shared service offerings provide advanced capabilities to improve an agency’s ability to deliver on their mission. The theme of shared services will continue to gain traction over the coming year.”
We spoke to Rippert last year about mobility convergence, big data misconceptions and the federal mobile market. Please click here to access the interview.