EDITOR’S QUESTION
HOW CAN
ENTERPRISES
DEPLOY DATA FROM
IOT DEVICES TO
PURSUE NEW GROWTH
OPPORTUNITIES?
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Enterprises are benefiting
from the deployment of
IoT devices to pursue new
growth opportunities.
Nathan Clevenger,
Director of Intelligent
Edge Solutions, Zebra
Technologies, says
customer experience
remains the central driving
factor behind IoT adoption
in the retail space.
R
etail buzzwords like ‘personalisation’
and ‘omnichannel’ are no longer just
concepts and strategies that companies
are working toward. Today, more retailers
are actively deploying new technologies and
migrating to an intelligent environment to
reclaim their relevance in the on-demand
economy. The results from Zebra Technologies’
second annual Intelligent Enterprise Index
reveal that organisations have become
more receptive and proactive when it comes
to adopting and leveraging Internet of
Things (IoT) solutions across the enterprise,
translating into new growth opportunities.
In assessing the extent to which companies
are meeting the criteria that define today’s
Intelligent Enterprise, several key findings
30
INTELLIGENTCIO
point to the retail sector’s commitment to
this transformation process.
Empowering workers at the edge of
the enterprise
When it comes to expanding the scope and
scale of IoT solutions across the enterprise,
nearly 60% of retailers expect to reach
company-wide IoT deployment, while 30%
are currently deploying at this level.
According to the survey, 42% of retailers
currently provide information from their
IoT solutions to employees in real time. By
equipping store associates with real-time
guidance about both shoppers and inventory,
front-line workers have more freedom to
engage with consumers in-person while
offering faster, more efficient service. Enhancing the shopper journey
For brick-and-mortars struggling to keep
up with changing consumer expectations,
deploying these IoT solutions ensures
that workers are empowered to provide a
seamless, in-store shopping experience. These
deployments also provide deeper insights
that can guide new strategies for incentivising
online shoppers to visit physical storefronts. Reaching new levels of deployment In relying on customer expectations to guide
business decisions, retailers are also focused
on addressing topics that are top of mind
for shoppers. One of these is the utilisation
of their personal information. According
to the survey, retailers are proactively
addressing consumers’ security concerns,
with 54% reporting that they are constantly
monitoring data to ensure privacy, as
opposed to routinely monitoring.
As retailers begin to see the value
of operating in these data-powered
environments, the investment in IoT
solutions will significantly increase over
time. Of the respondents surveyed, 74%
of retailers expect their company’s IoT
investment to increase over the next
12 to 24 months, while 58% anticipate
their organisation’s IoT plans to be fully
implemented within the next year. For today’s retailers, operating as a truly
‘intelligent enterprise’ means investing
in new technologies and leveraging
the data from these solutions to better
serve customers at every stage of the
shopping journey. By committing to these
criteria, retailers can ultimately build a
stronger foundation that will help them
remain relevant in today’s competitive
ecommerce landscape.
The customer experience remains the central
driving factor behind IoT adoption in the
retail space, with nearly three-quarters of
respondents currently using data generated
from their IoT solutions to improve the
shopper journey.
www.intelligentcio.com