Unlocking Growth Opportunities for Tech and Telecom Leaders Amid Market Shifts and Changing Buyer Behavior

Interest rates are falling. Employment and GDP are beating expectations. Trade deals are accelerating. And in January 2026, the “Big Beautiful Bill” activates, unlocking incentives across infrastructure, digital modernization, broadband, data-centers, and domestic innovation.

For tech and telecom companies, this isn’t just good macro-noise. It’s a rare, time-sensitive opportunity to win market share, shape enterprise spend, and lock in high-value contracts before the flood of competitive deals in Q2 2026.

This blog outlines:

1. What the latest research says about 2026 revenue growth for tech & telecom

2. How GTM leaders should run December 2025 as a 30-day offensive sprint to build momentum for Q1 2026

3. How the new buyer behavioral shifts (from 6sense) and the “working backwards” insight (from Polaris I/O) change your GTM playbook

1. What the Forecasts Say About 2026 Tech & Telecom Growth

Tech & Telecom Will Outperform the Broader Economy

While IMF and OECD forecasts peg global GDP at ~3% in 2026, tech & telecom spend patterns will significantly outpace that baseline.

• Gartner projects ~10% IT spend growth worldwide in 2026, crossing the $6 T mark, driven by cloud, AI infrastructure, security, and network modernization.

  
  

• Telecom is entering a once-in-a-decade enterprise investment cycle: edge compute, fiber densification, private wireless, data-center interconnect, AI-at-the-edge.

  
  

• Across sectors, enterprise investment remains robust even under macro uncertainty—but the bar for justification is higher and decision cycles are accelerating.

The implications:

• Tech & telecom vendors are positioned for growth not just “steady.”

  
  

• But growth demands shorter time-to-value, risk mitigation, outcome-oriented business cases.

  
  

• The 2026 bill will fuel spend in broadband/fiber, data-centers, edge, AI-governance & compliance, and automation—all directly relevant to tech & telecom GTM.

2. What the Latest Buyer Behavior Research Reveals

Insights from 6sense (2025 Buyer Experience Report)

• The classic “70/30” buying-journey split (≈70% independent research, 30% seller engagement) is shifting to ~60/40. Buyers are engaging sellers earlier.

  
  

• Buyers still arrive with a strong favorite vendor before seller contact. The vendor contacted first wins ~80% of deals.

  
  

• 94% of buyers now use LLMs (AI tools) in their research, but that hasn’t reduced vendor interactions (average ~16 interactions per person with the winning vendor) — LLMs are tools, not replacements.

  
  

• The need to evaluate vendor AI capabilities (embedded AI in the solution) is a major driver of earlier seller contact (58% of buyers said this).

  
  

• Economic uncertainty is also compressing buying cycles: ~49% said conditions made them move faster; ~62% engaged vendors earlier because of uncertainty.

  
  

• The practical takeaway: You must win the vendor shortlist before the first live seller conversation. Self-serve content, reputation, brand, and early signals matter more than ever.

Insights from Polaris I/O (“Working Backwards from Customer”)

• The white-paper promotes a shift from inside-out (product-centric) to outside-in (customer-centric): start from customer outcomes, buying centers, stakeholder ecosystems.

  
  

• Its key message: the fastest path to account growth is working backwards from the customer’s challenges, objectives, buying committee dynamics, rather than pushing product features.

  
  

• For key accounts, particularly in tech & telecom, that means understanding cross-functional buy-in (CFO + CIO + CISO + Ops), mapping the buying network, aligning your GTM playbook to stakeholder priorities and buyer journey behavior early.

3. How Tech & Telecom GTM Leaders Should Run December 2025 as an Offensive Sprint

A. Create Your 2026 “Winnable Markets” Thesis

GTM leaders should identify target segments that align with:

• Infrastructure/modernization tailwinds (fiber/5G, data-centers, edge, AI readiness)

• Enterprise buyers under productivity/labor pressure

• Organizations with domestic supply-chain or regulation exposure

• Buyers showing urgency (in sectors where the bill or modernization push hits early)

Focus December on micro-targeted ICP clusters, not broad campaigns.

B. Run a December “Q1 Impact” Campaign

Every conversation should answer:

“If we start now, what business impact will you see by March 31, 2026?”

In tech/telecom terms:

• Reduced network latency / improved resilience

• Faster AI deployment or edge roll-out

• Cost-avoidance from legacy systems

• Accelerated data or compute performance

• Infrastructure readiness tied to incentives

Equip sellers with a 3-slide kit:

1. Macro tailwinds (rates, bill, productivity mandate)

2. Business case (ROI, cost, payback)

3. 90-day roadmap (Dec commitment → Jan deployment → Mar impact)

C. Offer “Commit in ‘25, Deploy in ’26” Commercial Structures

Because buyers expect change fast and are under scrutiny:

• Lock 2025 pricing now, deploy in Feb/March 2026

• Multi-year pricing locks or outcome-based ramps

• Milestone structures tied to AI/edge/fiber/infrastructure rollout

• Co-investment or shared-risk models

Tie pricing incentives to the bill-driven tailwinds.

D. Make December the Month of Economic-Buyer Engagement

For tech & telecom deals, the buying committee typically includes CFO, CIO, CISO, Ops, Procurement.

December goal:

• Map the buying network and role dynamics now

• Pre-wire stakeholders with the economic narrative

• Run architectural/security due-diligence early

• Remove "first-contact" friction so sellers are engaging after decision alignment

E. Re-qualify Pipeline With a Modern JOLT Lens (Adapted)

J – Justify Change: Frame around macro tailwinds (rates down, bill coming, productivity pressure) + buyer research.

O – Offer The Recommendation: Be prescriptive: “Here is our outcome-plan for Q1” not “choose from our menu.”

L – Limit the Exploration: Buyers are more experienced than ever (8-9 previous purchases on average) and decisions are largely pre-determined. Focus on influencing the Selection Phase.

T – Take Risk Off the Table: Guarantees, SLAs, pilot clauses, outcome-based pricing. Tech/telecom buyers under economic scrutiny want less risk.

Deals that don’t clear this bar get moved to a 2026 nurture path.

Summary: Your December 2025 Mandate for Tech & Telecom GTM

• Lock strategic commitments before competitive noise rises in 2026.

• Run an executive-heavy Q1-outcome-first campaign now.

• Shorten Q1 cycles by doing the heavy lifting in December.

• Shape agendas rather than react to them.

• Use buyer behavior insights: the deal is largely set before seller contact, be the vendor on the day-one shortlist.

• Use outside-in GTM: map customer challenges, buying networks, outcomes, not just product specs. Polaris I/O is a must follow

Tech & telecom are entering a rare convergence: macro tailwinds + policy stimulus + accelerated buyer behaviors. The winners will be the companies who manufacture their own tailwinds in December rather than waiting for 2026 to “just happen.”

www.LucrumPartners.co