IoT is Not Just for Tech Companies

Many Technology companies are spending significant money and the attention of high level managers. There are so many conferences and symposiums that one could make attending them a full time job. The need to stay current on developments is not limited to high tech companies. This article addresses one aspect of the Innovator's dilemma for companies that are not in the forefront of innovation.

The need to be aware of the developments in IoT is much greater than many companies realize. If part of your company makes garden variety electrical products, such as doorbells, you may wake up to the fact that companies, such as Ring, are making devices that let the homeowner see who is at the door on their smart phone, wherever they are. While these devices may be pricey now, it is the way things are going.

Many people remember when Kodak was almost the only name most people knew regarding taking family photographs. Of course, Polaroid was the name if one wanted the print almost immediately. Many young people do not even recognize these companies' names now. Business classes will probably study these cases and have opinions whether the companies could have adapted to the changing times better than they did.

Are sump pump manufacturers watching for the best time to have links to smart phones? What if your company has never considered having your sump pump send a text to the homeowner when the backup battery is low or about to fail? By the time you start developing a product to match your competition, they may have already made significant inroads to your market share.

There is no precise definition of IoT. Many consider it to include devices which may not actually be connected to the web. Self-driving cars and trucks are examples. The large manufacturers of cars and trucks seem to be closely attuned to technology advances but even that is not clear. Detroit was caught off guard when Japanese cars started to eat their market share. It will not be that long before self-driving cars are commonplace. One wonders if the changes in technology are really being tracked by all the supporting companies that supply both OEM companies and after-market companies. Today there are cars that can parallel park themselves. Which companies will lose market share when they are behind in making the electronics and software to let you summon your car from the parking lot to the mall entrance? It is not hard to imagine using Uber to get a ride and find that the car you summoned does not have a driver. If your company makes after-market parts for cars, you must keep up with the trends in retrofitting or have your competition steal your customers.

With the rate of change itself accelerating, companies that might even remotely be touched by IoT must be aware of developments. By the time a company should take action, it will likely be too late to start to develop plans. Any company who thinks IoT will not affect them, takes this position at their own risk.