The disruption report

The software engineering industry is experiencing unprecedented change, facing both workforce and market disruptions through emerging technologies. As the world increasingly relies on software to operate, there is rising demand to lower the costs of software development while increasing delivery speed, in order for software companies to survive and thrive in this new paradigm.

This report examines the current context and challenges software developers, and the industry are currently operating in.  Identification of the technologies and disruptions impacting this industry are examined through the analysis of use cases in a broader context and insights are then applied to software development.  The intended audience for this report is software developers and the software development industry.

The method used is a Porters Five Forces analysis with a stakeholder review overlaid, to look at the forces through each stakeholder’s lens.  Use cases are then explored through examination of the technology disruption identified in the force analysis, insights are drawn to form recommendations for the software development industry.

Key findings

• Porter’s Five Forces Analysis and stakeholder analysis reveals technologies such as remote working tools, automation and Generative AI have created an environment of intensified competitive rivalry and reduced barriers to entry. Additionally, increased supplier and buyer power through the concentration of tech companies in order to scale for cost efficiency and rising threats from substitutes like DIY low-code tools are forcing software development companies to change operating models and engage with disruptive technologies to compete.
• Remote Working enabled by cloud and remote working technologies have unlocked access to global talent and other opportunities for a talented local workforce, however considerations remain for maintaining culture, productivity and collaboration.
• Artificial Intelligence and automation through DevOps practices are moving developer roles from coding to context-setting, orchestration and quality assurance, with Agentic AI potentially removing the need for human involvement altogether in future.  
• Ethical concerns around decision making, inherent bias, identification of accountability and workforce displacement are increasingly critical to the sustainable modern software developer and industry.

The opportunity to shape the software development workforce of the future to one of orchestrator and curator, and the software development industry to one that can leverage technology disruption to innovate has never been more immediate. Software developers and their employers that can ride this wave of technology disruption will position themselves to be leading with offerings and products that customers want.  If they can combine this with transparent, ethical decision making and business practice, this will be a unique point of difference to how their tech is viewed by consumers.

This report recommends establishing frameworks that assist with leveraging disruptive technologies safely within guardrails. Further recommendations are made to rapidly upskill the workforce, embrace AI and remote working, intentionally maintaining ways of working and culture that mitigates the reduced human connection.  Finally, those businesses that place ethical and transparent business practices will differentiate themselves and position their business to be sustainable for the long term.

References

Avikshit, B., Chirag, M., Puranika, M. K., Varun, S., Srinivasa, A., & Devraj, D. (2025, July). Porter’s five forces model: A comprehensive framework for competitive strategy analysis in contemporary business environment. International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews, 6(7), 1416–1425.

Chui, M., Hazan, E., Roberts, R., Singla, A., Smaje, K., Sukharevsky, A., & Zemmel, R. (2023). The economic potential of generative AI: The next productivity frontier. McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-explainers/generative-ai-potential

DevOps Research and Assessment (DORA) Team. (2024). Accelerate state of DevOps. Google Cloud. https://cloud.google.com/devops/state-of-devops

Fred, T. (2025, March 15). Ethical considerations in AI decision-making. ResearchGate, 1–7.

Marr, B. (2024, January 23). 12 new jobs for the generative AI era. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2024/01/23/12-new-jobs-for-the-generative-ai-era/

Simonite, T. (2017, May 12). Nvidia CEO: Software is eating the world, but AI is going to eat software. MIT Technology Review. https://www.technologyreview.com/2017/05/12/151722/nvidia-ceo-software-is-eating-the-world-but-ai-is-going-to-eat-software/

Steven, M. (2025, June 6). Will artificial intelligence improve or eliminate jobs? Harvard Business School. https://www.hbs.edu/bigs/will-artificial-intelligence-improve-or-eliminate-jobs