Industrial Automation Magazine India

Opportunity for digitisation is technology driven, but its engine is intelligence

Published on : Saturday 26-10-2019

Digitalisation is imperative but enterprises are still struggling with implementation. How can begin the process?
For any effort, leave alone digitalisation, there is a need for maturity. This maturity is a precise understanding of the Status Quo (where one is) and Desired State (where one needs to be). This is a journey and not a discrete event. And as the question suggests, this is a process in continuum. Enterprises have mostly jumped into this digitalisation as they have done with other initiatives in the past; just wade into it without preparation and then wing through it. This will not work for digitalisation as it demands to lean into the future from the present; completely disconnecting from the past. Enterprises therefore have Clarity of their digitalisation, dealing with the duality of a digital presence, understand the economic significance, start building an ecosystem and create a risk assured approach.

For many organisations, the stumbling block is the silos, which ironically, digitalisation seeks to break. Is this a classic chicken and egg story?
This opportunity for digitisation is a technology driven one but its engine is Intelligence that cannot be developed or worked in siloes. This is the fundamental shift that enterprises must realise is the departure from the past. The anchor has to be removed from the past and cast into the future and the siloes will have to disappear not just within the four boundaries of a conventional enterprise, but rather the entire ecosystem. From this will emerge the data and roles that will drive engine the enterprises of the future.

Is joining one of the digital platforms the only way for an average enterprise?
Platforms are nothing but utilities. Either you create them and be on top of the food chain or be a niche player in someone else's food chain. The new architecture is divided into four parts: Platform, Product, Process and Project (Service). One merges into the other from the detail to the abstract. It depends upon the Strategic intent of an enterprise where it would want to position. This clarity is absolutely essential to even begin the process of digitisation.

Often, companies get bogged down in discussing technologies rather than outcomes. How should an effective CTO deal with this?
First and foremost one needs to understand the distinction between Outcomes and Results. Then the difference between Innovation and Competition. In both the cases, the former is a Continuum while the latter is a discrete event. It is not just the CTO but rather the entire CXO of an enterprise that needs to realise that unless they connect the 4Cs – Concept, Culture, Capabilities and Configuration to the new relevance of  a new enterprise model, they will not be able to visualise outcomes.

Finally, is multiplicity of vendors creating conflict in the process?
Not really. It is bringing more variety and like all natural things in life, when there is a certain maturity, the process of Convergence and Stabilisation will begin. These are extremely exciting times for experimentation. Jeff Bezos of Amazon says they start one or more experimentations every day. That is the truth for the new enterprise.

Subbu Iyer is Agilist Industry 4.0 Leader driven by Design Thinking, Digital Transformation & Innovation at Hreemm. The enterprise of Hreemm is to promote Transformative Growth in Individuals, Enterprises and Society. To enable Innovation that connects Conceptualisation through Commercialisation as a Continuum for startups as well as established ventures. In the process, build an ecosystem that cares for sustenance and Quality of Life. Hreemm is focused on creating capabilities in you to transform and grow enterprises and society.