The Internet of Things or industry 4.0 is a massive trend at the moment. What it means is that we now have everyday devices that are becoming smart, which means they’re connected to the internet.
And they’re collecting and transmitting data, So we’ve seen things like smartphones, smart watches, smart thermostats, smart TVs.
But soon we’ll see lots of other items becoming smart, from our office chairs, to our cars to our kettles to our washing machines, and even our shoes and the T-shirt.
And what this allows organizations to do is to rethink the way they interact with customers, it helps them to rethink how they actually run their operations.
So companies like nest, have developed smarter products and smarter services. They now have a smart thermostat that will learn how you use your house, and people will expect this kind of service.
Companies like Disney, visitors to their Disney resorts now get a magic band. This is a smart wristband that has a GPS tracker in it and some sensors.
And they allow you to open your toe room allow you to pay for goods, but it also allows Disney to track you through the park to understand how you’re using it and gives them for the first time this 360 degree views of their customers.
So any customer whether any company whether you’re producing washing machines, if they’re connected to the internet, suddenly again, you can gain an insight into Hulk how customers are actually using your product.
The other thing is, it will help you to improve your operation. So if you are a washing machine manufacturer, you can build an algorithm say okay if customers use your washing machine in this way, this is the lifespan This is the likely maintenance cycles.
So I’ve worked with a company called Coney They’re the world’s leader in lifts and escalators and then are collecting all their lifts and escalators to the internet.
And they can know predict when a lift is likely to break down. And they will then make sure that they schedule the service visit and replace parts before any lift actually ever breaks down.
So it’s really changing how businesses operate. And this is what I do in my work. I help organizations understand the implications of the Internet of Things, what it means for this industry And how organizations can actually leverage all of this for their business benefit.
Companies like McKinsey I expecting to see Internet of Things to contribute about $11 trillion to the global economy by 2025.
So now’s the time to think about your own business and what this means for you.