Sam Higgins,

Sam Higgins

VP, Principal Analyst

Sam assists technology executives and their business counterparts in understanding the opportunities and barriers facing them and their teams from continual technology-driven transformation.

His professional engagements in the private sector, as well as state and federal government, assist him in addressing the unique IT management and delivery challenges found in diverse industries including banking, healthcare, education, transportation, and mining. At Forrester, he provides specific guidance to financial services institutions, public sector agencies, and asset-intensive firms in the energy, utilities, and resources sector.

Sam's current research focuses on business IT alignment and value creation, technology-driven innovation, business and technology leader collaboration, cloud adoption and application platform optimization, and employee experience for technology leaders as well as local and regional adoption of emerging technology for enterprise, digital, and IT transformation. Sam specializes in delivery of advisory to clients in Australia and near-shore English-speaking markets across Asia Pacific as well as public sector clients globally.

Research Coverage

Planned Research

What research can you expect from Forrester in the next 12 months? Updated biweekly, our publishing plan will keep you current with market and technology trends. Use the link below to download a list of our upcoming research.

Download Planned Research
March 20th, 2026 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM Webinar

US Tech Forecast 2026: What It Means For Government

AI is now the organizing force in US government sector tech strategy, driving decisions about data estates, operating models, and oversight while legacy complexity meets rising modernization pressure. Agencies are shifting spend from point solutions to commercial-off-the-shelf platform ecosystems that improve assurance, resilience, and mission outcomes. For the vendors and service providers who supply them, increasing procurement expectations such as supply‑chain provenance, software bill of materials transparency, domestic hosting, and the “Buy American” cry of digital sovereignty is shaping acquisition choices in 2026 across all levels of government.Key takeaways: Identify where 2026 budgets are moving from traditional enterprise software to cloud, data platforms, cybersecurity, and agentic AI. Understand why AI has become the central organizing force for government tech and what this means for unified data foundations, governance, and oversight.Learn what options exist from vendors for modernization of legacy‑heavy environments while meeting the experience expectations for customers, employees, and partners.Understand procurement guardrails influencing decisions, including supply‑chain transparency and the “Buy American” emphasis in the President’s Management Agenda.Discover practical next steps to prioritize data estate consolidation, strengthen governance using proven frameworks, and engage vendors that can demonstrate readiness for responsible AI.Target audience level: all levels