Dubai: Data streaming is now the backbone for the most critical areas of a business—from personalized customer experiences to real-time business operations. The Confluent, Inc. (NASDAQ: CFLT) 2023 Data Streaming Report: Moving Up the Maturity Curve dives into data streaming’s rise as a requirement for business success. Based on a survey of 2,250 IT leaders using data streaming from across seven countries and representing midsize to large enterprises across all major industries, the report makes clear that the technology is a must-have for running a more efficient, responsive, and ultimately more competitive business in this digital-first era.  “In today’s economic climate, IT leaders face a new level of pressure to prove each technology buying decision is worth the cost,” said Chad Verbowski, CTO, Confluent. “Findings from the Data Streaming Report show that data streaming delivers outsized returns and greater efficiencies for most organizations. So it’s clear to see how it cemented its spot as one of the most important IT investments of 2023.”Key Findings from the 2023 Data Streaming ReportToday’s most successful organizations are those that are the fastest at turning data into action. Data streaming platforms provide the quickest, most reliable access to continuous streams of data that are updated in real time. And, according to the report, data streaming is pervasive within businesses, powering a wide array of use cases that keep top-performing companies secure, agile, and ahead of customer expectations.The report is centered around the Data Streaming Maturity Curve, which maps out organizations' adoption journey—from pre-production activity happening at Level 1 to data streaming as a strategic enabler for all areas of an enterprise at Level 5. The survey data found that the more a company invests in data streaming, the more benefits and returns they realize.However, as with many disruptive technologies, companies face common challenges when scaling implementations, including a persistent skills gap and silos across teams. The report identifies the most common challenges alongside expert advice on how to overcome these hurdles no matter where an organization is on its data streaming journey. Key findings include: Data Streaming Drives Business Value and Strong ROI64% of organizations in Level 2 of the Data Streaming Maturity Curve are achieving or anticipating 2x-5x returns, and this increases to 78% with Level 3 companies.73% of IT leaders report their organizations are seeing significant or emerging benefits from data streaming when it comes to increased product or service profitability. Data Streaming Is a Top Priority for IT Investments89% of respondents say investments in data streaming are important, with 44% citing it as a top strategic priority for IT investments overall. 72% of IT leaders say they are using data streaming to power critical applications—and 60% cite that five or more of their organization’s critical systems are reliant on the technology. Data Streaming’s Biggest Challenges: Silos and Skill Gaps74% of IT leaders cite that fragmented projects and uncoordinated teams and budgets can be a challenge or a major hurdle to advancing data streaming. 87% of respondents say training and recruitment to bolster skills is a high or medium priority as they continue to invest in data streaming over the next 12 months. MethodologyThe report is based on a survey designed by Freeform Dynamics and conducted by Radma Research from February to March 2023. Responses from 2,250 IT leaders were collected across Australia, France, Germany, India, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Qualifying respondents are from organizations using data streaming that have more than 500 employees. 

Riyadh: The information technology sector is experiencing a surge of growth in Saudi Arabia, especially in the areas of cybersecurity and digital transformation. According to a report by Gulf Business, the IT job market in Saudi Arabia was expected to grow by 9% in 2022, driven by demand for cybersecurity and digital transformation specialists. The Saudi Arabian government's investment in digital transformation initiatives and smart city projects, coupled with the shift towards remote work and digital services, are driving the growth in demand for IT professionals.Qrator Labs, a DDoS mitigation service provider and an expert in the continuous availability of Internet resources, made a study on the job market rom 2022 to 2023 in Saudi Arabia. The report shows that the top three IT vacancies people are searching for in Saudi Arabia include DevOps engineer and Cybersecurity analyst. These positions have seen significant growth in search queries, with DevOps engineers growing by 100% and network engineers growing by 133.3%. At the same time, MCSE Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer has as well 100% growth in searches in Google in Saudi Arabia.The report also highlights the growing demand for cybersecurity professionals in Saudi Arabia. Cybersecurity work-related search queries jumped by 353% from 2022 to 2023. This trend is expected to continue in Saudi Arabia, as the government invests in cybersecurity initiatives and organizations focus on protecting their digital assets from cyber threats.The report also notes the growing interest in remote work opportunities in Saudi Arabia, as the country continues to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The shift towards remote work is creating new opportunities for IT professionals who can support digital transformation initiatives and remote work infrastructure.The IT job market in Saudi Arabia is booming, driven by the demand for cybersecurity and digital transformation professionals. As organizations continue to invest in digital initiatives and the government supports smart city projects, the demand for IT professionals is expected to continue growing.

A new survey of more than 500 senior IT leaders reveals that a majority (67%) are prioritizing generative AI for their business within the next 18 months, with one-third (33%) naming it as a top priority.Despite the interest, most IT leaders have technical and ethical concerns with the technology that could impact its adoption in the coming year.The data highlights the potential of generative AI, and shows what IT leaders will need to prime their tech infrastructure, data strategy, security and ethical guidelines, and employee skills necessary for the massive opportunities ahead.Many senior IT leaders see generative AI as a ‘game changer’ and a tool to better serve customersThe majority of senior IT leaders (57%) believe generative AI is a ‘game changer.’ They believe the technology has the potential to help them better serve their customers, take advantage of data, and operate more efficiently. This outlook is echoed even among the skeptics — 80% of those who say the technology is ‘over-hyped’ agree that generative AI will help them better serve their customers.Ethical, operational concerns draw skepticism Thirty-three percent of those surveyed feel that generative AI is ‘over-hyped,’ with concerns that the technology brings the potential for security risks (79%) and bias (73%).Concerns extend beyond just those who feel the technology is ‘over-hyped’ — a majority of the 515 IT leaders surveyed are skeptical about the ethical implications of generative AI. Almost six in 10 (59%) believe generative AI outputs are inaccurate and almost two-thirds (63%) agree there is bias in generative AI outputs (e.g. misinformation and hate speech). In addition, 71% agree generative AI would increase their carbon footprint through increased IT energy use.Security risks, integration, and siloed data are top barriers to generative AI implementationBusinesses aren’t yet prepared for successful implementation: 65% of senior IT leaders can’t justify the implementation of generative AI at the moment. Surveyed leaders report major barriers to using generative AI successfully within their organization, and security barriers are particularly top of mind among those currently using the technology.Because of these barriers, nearly all respondents (99%) believe their business must take measures to equip themselves to successfully leverage the technology.Collaboration can address generative AI’s technical and ethical concernsEthical use must underpin the use of generative AI. But despite raising ethical and security concerns, leaders aren’t yet sure how to put ethics into practice — about one-third (30%) of businesses believe they must have ethical use guidelines to successfully implement generative AI within their business.The responsibility is on businesses to work together and knowledge-share to make generative AI a reality across the enterprise. Leaders see collaboration as a key tool to ensure the technology is functional and used in an ethical way.The majority (81%) of senior IT leaders believe generative AI should combine public and private data sources.Most (82%) senior IT leaders think businesses should work together to improve the functionality of generative AI technology.Over 8 in 10 (83%) senior IT leaders think businesses must work together to ensure generative AI is used ethically.“Generative AI represents a step change in how organizations across industries will analyze data, automate processes, and empower sales, service, marketing, and commerce professionals to grow customer relationships — but it comes with new risks and challenges,” said Clara Shih, CEO of Service Cloud, Salesforce.