VIDEO TRANSCRIPTION
I'm running out of ideas, believe me… I’m coming back with this videoblog, part of the series I’ve called "Industry 4.0 - Everything I wanted to know". And finally what I would like here today is to finish with a recommendation, a kind of reflection after a deep analysis of Industry 4.0 topic.
Today I would like to answer a not at all simple question. What would be the things or the subjects in which Industry should be focused on to avoid lose competitiveness and stay out of the market? Because as we’ve seen in the previous posts, there’s a savage competition out there. And it’s very easy nowadays that new companies, with less experience, acquire a product quality level or customer approach good enough to get you out of the market, or at least, make things difficult for you to survive.
Thus, there are few but unquestionable truth, 6 specifically, I’ve learned along the path that I would like to share with you here and contribute with my two cents.
Unified strategy
The first is a basic but very important issue. It has to have a unified strategy understood as having to put focus in what we’re doing to be able to go all one, in the same direction. We must look for the path we need to be carried out because, as we’ve seen, there are different technological pillars to deal with. There’s a lot of research and work to do in front of us, and it’s important to have a unified and consistent strategy. No place for doubts. And no place for internal fights or inflated egos.
Smart technology usage
The second point, very related to this first, tells us that there’s so much to do and many things to play with. So, it’s important to do a smart usage and application of technology. Not anything is worthy. And not everything can be placed in any way. At the moment you decide to apply a specific technology, such as Augmented Reality or Robotics, you have to take into account What is need for? What is the need we’re covering? And the problem we’re solving? How should it be done? There’re many cases in which people have made use of technology and applied it to “improve” their products just because it was available. That does not make any sense.
Job nature transformation
The third point I would like to share with you, and I believe I’ve talked loud and clear about it in one of the previous posts, is job nature transformation and our workers key competences improvement. We’re facing huge changes. And we’re feeling enormous fears. We must begin to assume that our workers, whom we have traditionally identified as our best company asset, must equally change, starting with their training. They must acquire new competencies at the same time and according to same 4.0 strategy we need to embrace.
Customer centric
The next point is also very basic. It is the customer era. We have to understand very well who our customer is, who is going to consume, enjoy and recommend our products. Above all, we should know them because, sooner or later, they will come asking for a more customized product or service to be delivered in less time. And for sure they will ask also for environmental sustainability or social responsibility. Our customer is going to demand all about how we made our products. Transparency is the new law, not only for governments. We need to learn to convince them and, moreover, to make them recommend us. And that’s crucial because if you focus entirely on your production process, you will only be able to know how to make a product very well. Great. But you will never know if it’s the one that your customer or market is waiting. Or something worst. If you will be able to sell it to nobody.
Add value services
The next point, closely related to the previous ones, is to be oriented to new added value services generation. It’s time here to remember what was commented at the beginning of this exciting and fascinating videoblog. There are many technologies and many things that can be done. We must realize that it’s much easier to start up new production processes and diversify in the Industry 4.0 than never before. Keep in mind what we’re talking about in previous posts: Let’s move from smart product to a system of systems. Now it’s feasible and easier than before. What we can consider as a threat by possible competition at first sight, could be seen as a new opportunity now. A new opportunity to cover new spaces on the market that we suspected but never were explored.
Cybersecurity
And finally, the top recommendation. Maybe the one I’ve focused the most during my previous videos: Cybersecurity. My recommendation here is: we must be very cautious. We’re living in a world where today 21 billion devices are connected. We’re living in the customer era. We need data. We need inputs. No matter where comes from. We should to connect everything to be alive. So, it’ quite important that if we do that without control, without any kind of sense, we will be exposed and vulnerable to anyone who wanted to play “War Games” again. Everybody is going to exposed, people, industries and governments. The risk at this point is very high. In my opinion, this is the most important truth. For two simple reasons. Because of huge risk that lies behind and the apparent calm where the Industry is installed nowadays. We believe that having our antivirus up to date is just enough. And that’s not true.
Well these are the 6 truths. My recommendations in which I guess Industry should focus in case they would like to leverage this third industrial revolution.
I hope all these four short videos help you a lot. I’ve had a great time preparing and recording them. Really. Feel free to comment, criticize or whatever you want. You can do it freely. I’ll be happy to have a talk with any of you to learn from each other and, of course, save the world.
Thanks for give me your valuable time
