Gartner IT Infrastructure, Operations & Cloud Strategies Conference 2025 Sydney: Day 2 Highlights

We are bringing you news and highlights from the Gartner IT Infrastructure, Operations & Cloud Strategies Conference 2025, taking place this week in Sydney, Australia. Below is a collection of the key announcements and insights coming out of the conference. You can read the highlights from Day 1 here.

On Day 2 from the conference, we are highlighting sessions on the future impact of AI on next generation IT operations; the I&O leadership vision for 2025; and how to avoid the top mistakes in cloud strategies.

• Gartner Forecasts Australian Public Cloud End-User Spending to Reach $26.6 Billion in 2025
• Gartner Identifies the Top Trends Driving the Future of Cloud

Presented by Cameron Haight, VP Analyst, Gartner

AI will be a key underpinning for IT operations organizations moving forward. In this session, Cameron Haight, VP Analyst at Gartner, explored what some of these future AI-based technology evolutions might look like, their ramifications and how organizations can begin preparing now for this eventuality.

• “The future of IT operations is AI everywhere and anytime (AIEA). It will become embedded within every function or task across its various lifecycle stages or phases, from planning to content creation for analysis and automation.”

• “IT operations organizations need to focus on building out an AIEA culture that incents agile learning experimentation, while ensuring the need for collaboration with other enterprise groups to enhance their AIEA journey.”

• “A potential evolutionary, if not revolutionary, outcome for IT operations from AI is tooling. Instead of static, monolithic technology, it becomes collections of LLMs that can be tasked for specific functions and collaborate with one another to achieve desired directives.”

• “GenAI potentially has a greater value not limited to tactical outcomes. It may allow for the hiring of fewer specialists and more versatilists, providing some relief to a currently constrained I&O skills pipeline.” 

• “Continue driving towards an AI-infused future knowing there will be bumps on the road. Persevere as there’s no likely future scenario for IT operations that doesn’t have AI as a critical element in it.”

Journalists can receive additional information and/or request an interview with the Gartner expert by contacting Emma Keen at  emma.keen@gartner.com.

Presented by Mark Margevicius, VP Analyst, Gartner 

I&O leaders must work with other leaders, stakeholders and customers to understand the relative business value of the services their teams deliver today or in the future. In this session, Mark Margevicius, VP Analyst at Gartner, presented the key trends and challenges impacting I&O and what leadership actions will generate success in 2025 and beyond.

• “The three biggest trends influencing I&O leaders’ priorities this year include the arrival of business-led IT after years of digital transformation; the displacement of IT talent rapidly accelerating; and widespread diversification of technology in infrastructure.”
• “Over 200 I&O leaders told Gartner their top goals over the next 12 months are improving infrastructure resilience and quality, while reducing costs and risks.”
• “Most I&O leaders are weighed down by problematic levels of technical debt in their systems, with the rise of business-led IT making it spiral out of control. They must leverage I&O’s technology visibility to encourage those outside IT to tackle their risky technical debt.”
• “Talent and technology roadmaps need to be more closely aligned. Stop just asking what skills are needed to support technical requirements, and look beyond technology to understand shifting skill requirements and what keeps people engaged with these changes.”
•  “Avoid piling more and more demands on your workforce to keep pace with ever-shifting business and technology landscapes. Start improving the flexibility and ability of your function to meet unexpected demands."

Journalists can receive additional information and/or request an interview with the Gartner expert by contacting Emma Keen at  emma.keen@gartner.com.

Presented by Adrian Wong, Director Analyst, Gartner

Many organizations think they have a working cloud strategy or are lacking one altogether. They often consider IT needs without input from other parts of the organization. In this session, Adrian Wong, Director Analyst at Gartner, discussed the top mistakes Gartner sees most often when reviewing cloud strategy documents.

• "The most common mistake is assuming a cloud strategy concerns only IT. It’s about producing new business outcomes resulting from the availability of new services and models.”
• “Many organizations don’t believe they need an exit strategy, yet it’s vital to the success of any cloud strategy. It’s like having an insurance policy that you’ll hopefully never need to use.”
• “A cloud strategy is often confused with an implementation plan. It’s important to keep them separate so the strategy sets the foundations and direction, while the implementation plan puts that strategy into effect.”
• “Many believe it’s too late to devise a cloud strategy as they’ve been using the cloud for years. Driving adoption without it will cause resistance from those not aligned on key drivers and principles, which will slow down adoption and potentially jeopardize the entire project.”
• “Outsourcing a cloud strategy may sound attractive, but avoid doing so as outsourcers don’t know as much about your business strategy as you do.”

Journalists can receive additional information and/or request an interview with the Gartner expert by contacting Emma Keen at emma.keen@gartner.com.