In the first part of this series we shared some of the top business technology trends for the next year, as projected by Verizon Business. Here are the additional trends that round out the top ten picks: Outsourcing/Out-tasking. While outsourcing is not new, strong adoption is and will continue to be in 2008. What will become even more compelling is out-tasking -- the process by which a company decides which functions to keep in house and which to hand off to a third party. Flexibility, scalability and the ability to achieve higher performance, increased reliability and stronger security will make out-tasking the preferred model. This trend is the result of the growing complexity of managing today's extended network as well as applications such as VoIP and the need for strong mobility and portability capabilities for end users. With out-tasking, companies can focus on what they do best and leave the rest of the IT work to someone else. Smartphones and Managed Mobility. Professionals will call on their smartphones to work harder in 2008, relying more and more on mobile e-mail, integrated calendars and contacts lists while away from the office. As a result, businesses will spend more on mobile devices and will need to manage and secure numerous devices as part of an overall global enterprise mobility solution. Managed Mobility will become the next frontier, helping businesses track, monitor, secure and manage the mobile devices accessing their corporate networks. Unified Communications. The complexity of managing multiple communications devices will ease dramatically as more companies adopt unified communications to enhance workforce collaboration both in and away from the office. With the increasing prevalence of voice over IP in the workplace has come the ability to streamline communications while enhancing capabilities. These include a single number that reaches you on any device and "rich presence" -- enabling individuals to view who is on the network and how best to reach them whether by phone, instant message or e-mail. Soft phones -- IP-based phones that can plug into any IP network -- can control costs, particularly in this era of globalization where workers may need to connect from home with their colleagues in other regions of the world. Work-Life Balance. The steady growth of communications technology in our lives has created a "love-hate" relationship with the smart phones and wireless laptops that increasingly blur the lines between the workplace and our personal lives. In 2008, professionals will continue to grapple with achieving a work-life balance. Telecommuting is one useful option. Meanwhile, businesses face the challenge of securing their data in a mobile work environment while also providing the collaboration and mobility tools their workforce needs to get the job done virtually anywhere. Secure Socket Layer (SSL)-based remote access solutions will help businesses meet this challenge. The CIO as Business Strategist. CIOs will take on an even more pivotal role in determining how to invest capital most effectively to help their companies reduce costs, increase productivity and achieve a wide range of corporate objectives. CIOs also will be responsible for making supply-chain management decisions and environmental improvements. Today's successful organization is reaching new heights through the tight integration of business and technology. By presenting a strategic point of view from the technology side, CIOs have become today's top business strategists, and with this comes a change in the boardroom. | 
