With 2011 almost coming to an end, it is time for CIOs to review their plan of action based on the strategic technologies available. According to research and analyst firm, Gartner, a strategic technology is one with the potential for significant impact on the enterprise in the next three years. Factors that denote significant impact include a high potential for disruption to IT or the business, the need for a major dollar investment, or the risk of being late to adopt.

A strategic technology may be an existing technology that has matured and/or become suitable for a wider range of uses. It may also be an emerging technology that offers an opportunity for strategic business advantage for early adopters or with potential for significant market disruption in the next five years. These technologies impact the organization's long-term plans, programs and initiatives.

In its recent symposium, Gartner brought highlighted ten technologies and trends that will be strategic for most organizations in 2012. “These top 10 technologies will be strategic for most organizations, and IT leaders should use this list in their strategic planning process by reviewing the technologies and how they fit into their expected needs,” says David Cearley, Vice President and Gartner fellow.

“Organizations should start exploratory projects to look at promised candidate technology and kick off a search for combinations of information sources, including social sites and unstructured data that may be mined for insights,” said Carl Claunch, Vice President and distinguished analyst at Gartner.

Following are ten strategic technologies that will play key role in 2012: