We’ve been hearing about the Internet of Things for what feels like forever, and so it’s easy to start tuning it out.
Yes, we know everything will have a sensor and be connected to the Internet. And yes, we know the Internet will mostly be machines talking to machines. And yes, the numbers of connected gadgets are massive. Yada, yada, yada.
But it’s time to snap out of the stupor and tune back in. IoT is starting to match all the hype. That means there’s a data tidal wave gathering force, and it’s about to hit us all.
IDC, the marketing research firm, recently issued two IoT reports that point to the accelerated pace of adoption. In one survey of corporate decision makers, IDC found that “73% of respondents have already deployed IoT solutions or plan to deploy in the next 12 months.”
That puts this way beyond critical mass.
And the people driving these deployments don’t simply believe they are jumping on some bandwagon. IDC, in a second report, found that 58% considered IoT to be a “strategic initiative,” and 24% felt it would be “transformative.”
Optimism is particularly high among those in manufacturing and healthcare, IDC notes. “The Internet of Things is enabling organizations to reinvent how they engage with their customers, helping them to accelerate the speed at which they deliver their products and services, and effectively reinventing industry processes,” said Carrie MacGillivray, Vice President, Internet of Things & Mobile at IDC, in the report.
A separate survey of U.S. and U.K. business leaders from Aeris Communications also found that IoT is already having a big impact on businesses.
For instance, 74% in the Aeris survey felt that IoT “provides the opportunity to meet key business objectives” and 70% said IoT will “help them achieve a competitive edge.”
Now, for the cautionary note: Aeris found that 72% “find it difficult to analyze sensor and connectivity data to obtain useful insights.” Really, that’s the same challenge for everyone.
It doesn’t matter how big the data pile is. What matters is making it meaningful.
In my recent blog post, I shared findings from “What’s the Big Deal With Data?” published by Software Alliance. This quote was especially poignant and reinforces the promise and challenge of data being spawned from IoT:
“Our challenge is to harness data and put it to work, using our ingenuity to make sense of the valuable learnings locked within it. It is this ability to process data and transform observations into insights, and insights into answers, which enables us to achieve meaningful solutions to today’s significant challenges.”
This data challenge reality means that IoT deployments are just a first step. The reason to embrace IoT is that it can generate new sources of information about customers, partners and your business.
In the end, all the cool sensors and gadgets won’t matter unless your business finds a way to translate this new data into insights.
As IoT accelerates and unleashes this unprecedented wave of data, a data management strategy isn’t just important, it’s imperative. It is the only way you can shape and share a meaningful source of truth across your organization.
That’s what helps you get to your end game – solving your most pressing challenges, delivering the best customer experience, and planning for the brightest future in our IoT world.
Indeed, demonstrating that there is still a human behind the wheel, that someone has thought through the consequences, could go a long way to ensuring folks that the potential benefits of AI and Big Data will far outweigh the risks.