Matthew Smith, UK director of business solutions, Software AG

Analyst houses IDC and Gartner are of the same mind: the age of the Digital Enterprise is upon us.

In IDC’s view: “For the past several years, the IT industry’s transition to the Third Platform, built on mobile computing, cloud services, social networking and big data analytics technologies, has dominated the annual Predictions…for 2013, IDC predicts the transition to the Third Platform will shift into high gear, as the industry accelerates past the exploration phase and into full-blown, high stakes competition.”

Gartner VP and Fellow, David W Clearley, puts it this way: “These strategic technologies are emerging amidst a nexus of converging forces – social, mobile, cloud and information. Although these forces are innovative and disruptive on their own, together they are revolutionising business and society, disrupting old business models and creating new leaders.

“As such, the Nexus of …