What technologies are you eyeing over the next few years? According to new research from Gartner, IT leaders should be watching several for deployment in their organizations in two to five years.

The report, “Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies 2008,” identifies 27 emerging technologies. Of those, there are about eight you need to worry about in the next decade because of the potential they have to transform business.

If you’re not already working with Web 2.0, you will be soon. The technology has huge cultural implications. Cloud computing and service-oriented architecture are also on the horizon of delivering value, said Jackie Fenn, vice president and Gartner fellow.

Technologies expected to plateau in two to five years include the following:

* Green IT: IT will be improving the greenness of its own activities and contribute to corporate environmental initiatives.

* Cloud computing: Interest in consuming IT services such as computational power, storage or business applications from the cloud rather than on—site is growing. However, confusion will continue for at least another year until the market shakes out.

* Social computing: Success of consumer sites is driving interest in enterprise-grade equivalents for collaboration environments. Virtual worlds will represent an important means for building communities of interest, and some are giving microblogging a look.

* Video telepresence: Advanced videoconferencing systems with high-definition displays provide a strong sense of in-room presence for participants, though such systems also carry high-end price tags.

Fenn notes these technologies are making their mark in consumer computing before they hit the enterprise. Other technologies that are beginning to appeal to businesses include 3-D printing, surface computing, augmented reality and mobile robots.

Amy Schurr is the former managing features editor of Network World.