How to make the fourth industrial revolution work for you
Managers need to optimally implement digital solutions
The topic of discussion for top global business and political leaders at this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, has been the “fourth industrial revolution”.
The premise is that during the first industrial revolution industry discovered the power of water and steam to mechanise production; during the second industrial revolution electric power was put to good use. During the third one businesses learned to rely more upon electronics and information technology to automate production. Now, the fourth revolution hinges on the power of digital.
The industrial revolution is ultimately driven by businesses and entrepreneurs rather than states. So it is key for corporate executives to understand the power of digital. Most executives recognise that leveraging digital solutions is an effective, efficient way to streamline business.
But what many management teams are just beginning to comprehend is the extent to which they should be thinking outside of the box about how to make digital work for them. Combining your own industry expertise with another industry can be extremely powerful. In Asia we see that with the way, for example, Alibaba and Tencent have moved beyond being internet companies to groups with interests ranging from financial services to media.
You need to be thinking about how you can help your company grow by working together with other industries and leveraging digital solutions
These leading companies have already begun using technology to transform themselves into digital businesses and are now focusing on combining their industry expertise with the power of digital to reshape their markets. They see great potential to make a difference – and a profit – by operating as ecosystems, not just as individual corporate entities, and driving the emergence of what we have been calling the “We Economy”.