Industries Needing Software Innovation in 2024

Software is rapidly transforming how every industry operates. But some sectors have much more urgent needs for technology modernisation and innovation than others as we look ahead to 2024. Certain categories still struggle with deeply entrenched legacy processes and ways of working that new software solutions could dramatically improve through automation, digitisation, and enhanced data-driven decision-making.

Gaining insight into these priority segments provides helpful guidance for any software development company in US, the UK or further afield looking to target these areas with maximum potential impact for their emerging products and services.

Healthcare

Healthcare tops the list of industries most desperately requiring major leaps in software innovation and technology integration. The sprawling healthcare system today continues to grapple with massive inefficiency, poor use and siloing of data, skyrocketing costs, and complex bureaucratic administration processes across hospitals, clinics, insurance providers, and public health agencies.

Thoughtful and strategic software modernisation initiatives could help alleviate many of these systemic issues plaguing healthcare and driving rising costs. Some of the most impactful software innovation opportunities include:

• Optimising medical appointment scheduling, resource coordination, and capacity planning by connecting today’s disparate systems and siloed datasets for whole-system visibility. This allows for streamlining scheduling, improving asset utilisation rates, and reducing patient wait times
• Automating repetitive administrative and claims management processes to reduce overhead costs and free up staff to focus on higher-value patient care activities. Handling forms, coding, billing, and other rote tasks can be modernised through software automation
• Applying artificial intelligence technologies for improved accuracy in patient diagnosis, personalised treatment plans, robotic surgical assistance, and optimised medical research to enhance patient outcomes. AI promises major healthcare advances still in the early stages
• Securely digitising and centralising patient records using blockchain-based identity and access management to grant patients control over their data while enabling seamless record sharing between authorised practitioners. This connectivity plugs gaps between today’s fragmented systems
• Building integrated healthtech platforms to connect today’s disjointed array of systems from medical records to insurance and beyond into a more holistic landscape, breaking down data and process siloes

The overall opportunity remains massive for both emerging healthtech startups and more established software innovators to modernise this frequently fragmented industry plagued by wasted time and lack of connectivity. Done effectively, software systems can amplify accessibility, significantly lower costs, and elevate the quality of care and patient outcomes across the board.

Financial Services

Despite its reputation for employing cutting-edge technology, the financial services industry still relies heavily on aging legacy systems and processes that pose increasing barriers to innovation and agility. In particular, established banks and insurance providers suffer from disjointed, poorly integrated systems, fragmented siloed data, and slow-moving bureaucracy, all of which open major opportunities for software-driven modernisation and process enhancement. Some of the most impactful areas for potential software innovation in financial services include:

• Helping modernise core back-end banking systems by beginning to migrate them to cloud-based infrastructure, enabling far greater flexibility, efficiency, and rapid deployments of new features. Legacy systems hinder agility
• Applying advanced analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning capabilities for more personalised and proactive customer marketing, customer service interactions, and customer relationship management. This allows for tailoring financial products better
• Streamlining lending decisions, credit risk analysis, and loan default predictions by feeding transactional data into automated decisioning algorithms. This amplifies risk analysis accuracy
• Simplifying processes for customer onboarding, account openings, loan applications, payments, deposits, withdrawals, and other frequent transactions through slick digital experience design, automation, and ubiquitous self-service access
• Enabling omnichannel customer support capabilities that allow customers to seamlessly transition between channels like automated chatbots, human chat, voice calls, video, email, and in-person interactions while maintaining context. This delivers an integrated experience

The market of financial services application software was estimated to be worth USD 114.2 billion in 2022, and during the forecast period (2023–2030), it is anticipated to rise at a robust compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 8.1%.

Disrupting the offerings of large established financial enterprises will always prove challenging. However, small innovative fintech upstarts have massive greenfield opportunities to inject new categories of software capabilities into financial services. The demand for improved agility and customer experiences will only grow.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing has generally adopted software automation at a slower pace compared to other business functions like sales, marketing, and customer service interactions.

However, contemporary technologies like industrial Internet of Things sensors, advanced robotics, and artificial intelligence now present game-changing potential to revolutionise manufacturing through thoughtfully designed software. Some high-potential areas include:

• Extensive real-time monitoring of all manufacturing equipment, products, and environments using Internet of Things sensors. This enables rapidly detecting inconsistencies, optimises performance, and prevents catastrophic failures
• Applying predictive maintenance capabilities by analysing sensor data to drastically reduce downtime and machine failures through proactive precautions and repairs before breakdowns occur
• Automating repetitive and dangerous manual assembly line tasks through next-generation precise, flexible, programmable robotics that complement human workers by handling rote activities. This amplifies output quality and workplace safety
• Leveraging supply chain, logistics, inventory, and operations data analytics through machine learning algorithms to optimise workflows, supply chains, inventory levels, and overall lean, efficient manufacturing operations
• Constructing rich digital twins mirroring the real physical manufacturing environments, machines, and products to run simulations for designing optimal future states. Digital twins enable rapid virtual prototyping

Forward-looking manufacturers have a tremendous opportunity to gain a competitive advantage and revitalise innovation in their industry by being early adopters of cutting-edge software automation tailored to their unique needs.

Construction

The sprawling construction industry remains extremely project-driven, fragmented, paperwork-heavy, and remarkably manual compared to most other large-scale industries today.

Complex construction projects frequently lack cohesion and alignment between the many stakeholders involved and suffer from limited transparency and oversight in real-time progress. New software solutions offer extensive potential to promote massive gains in efficiency, quality, and safety through thoughtfully designed digitisation and automation, including:

• Centralised software platforms to coordinate activities, schedules, issues, and communications between general contractors, architects, engineers, sub-contractors, suppliers, inspectors, and other construction stakeholders on a project. Minimises miscommunications that delay projects and drive overruns
• Extensive use of augmented reality and virtual reality technology to radically advance architectural planning, accelerate design revisions, provide immersive 3D previews of buildings, and train workers through simulations. VR/AR makes designs tangible
• Automating repetitive, dangerous equipment operation and materials handling tasks on job sites with next-generation programmable construction robotics tailored to the environment. This improves worker safety and precision
• AI-powered analysis of construction plans and schedules to optimise steps for project timelines, maximise efficiencies, meet deadlines, and reduce costly delays. Machine intelligence can enhance human-driven planning
• Internet of Things sensors on equipment, materials, personal safety gear, and environmental conditions to track assets, prevent failures, ensure compliance, and analyse causes of issues. IoT yields real-time visibility

Construction is long overdue for extensive software modernisation and digitisation tailored to its unique operational dynamics. When thoughtfully applied, software, robotics, AI, and sensors can ultimately help transform this domain from one of the world’s most hands-on industries into one of the most high-tech-enhanced sectors.

Government

At all levels from local municipalities to state and federal agencies, government organisations suffer notoriously from systematic lack of software innovation and technical modernisation. But thoughtfully conceived and delivered software solutions focused on citizens’ needs could enhance government services dramatically through:

• Modernising convoluted paper-based processes into streamlined digital workflows with extensive use of software automation to eliminate bottlenecks, accelerate request processing, and reduce frustrations for civil servants and citizens alike
• Applying chatbots and other AI technologies to improve 24/7 citizen access to common government services, information requests, and eligibility assessments for programs. This amplifies accessibility
• Creating open data platforms to radically increase government transparency on spending, performance metrics, legislation under consideration, officials’ financial interests, and other data to combat fraud and restore public trust
• Digitising frequently accessed public records to enable rapid online access while balancing appropriate redaction for privacy. Automated indexing and search make finding information faster
• Implementing the latest cybersecurity measures, threat monitoring, encryption, and access controls across public-sector technology infrastructure to secure critical systems against rising threats

Though government organisations deal naturally with complexity given their public mission and regulatory oversight, thoughtfully conceived and well-executed software innovations promise to greatly amplify public value. Prioritising citizens’ needs first allows for modernising even the most bureaucratic agencies.

According to a survey released by Verified Market Reports, the global government software market is projected to be valued at USD 33.78 billion by 2027. Between 2020 and 2027, the market is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 8.9%. The utilisation of software solutions has become essential for government organisations worldwide as the demand for effective and efficient government operations grows.

Agriculture

Farming and wider food cultivation remain extremely labor-intensive with unpredictable crop yields and livestock health issues. However, emerging agricultural technology or “agritech” software innovation shows immense potential to help address systemic farm and ranch challenges:

• Extensive wireless Internet of Things sensor networks deployed across farms to monitor crop and livestock health and detect problems early before they escalate and cause major losses. Sensors add data-driven precision
• Predictive analytics dashboards powered by artificial intelligence algorithms crunching farm sensor data and external weather data to recommend highly optimised actions to owners for irrigation, fertiliser use, harvesting, planting, and disease prevention. This amplifies yield
• Partially autonomous tractors, harvesters, planters, and other agricultural equipment outfitted with sensors and software allowing for more efficient precision and automation of repetitive field preparation tasks. This reduces manual workload
• Blockchain platforms for transparent end-to-end supply chain management and immediate tracing of contaminated food sources when health hazards occur to limit the scale of outbreaks. Blockchain builds secure transparency
• Automated drones surveying and collecting aerial data on the condition, temperatures, and soil quality of farmland to detect problems not visible from the ground. Drone data enhances insights

Innovative agritech software tailored to the unique needs of farmers and the food supply chain shows incredible promise to help address systemic challenges like environmental sustainability, food waste, and production uncertainty that have perpetually plagued agricultural businesses.

While every industry has ample room for software automation and digital transformation tailored to modernizing legacy processes, the business categories above face especially deep-rooted challenges that next-generation applications of technology stand poised to help disrupt in a transformative way.

Look for innovative software startups, agile small companies, and intrepid enterprises to drive major software and technology advancements across healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, construction, government, education, agriculture, and more in the coming years. With proper funding and executive buy-in, profound software revolutions await.