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What stands in the way of progress is not technology – it’s us. It’s our desire to stay inside our comfort zone where we happily repeat familiar behaviors. If you remember my last blog, I challenged each of us to do something digital – something outside the comfort zone of our analog upbringing. This morning I boarded a plane with an electronic boarding pass on my smartphone. A small step for a digital native, but a huge one for me!

So, the technology is a given, which means it’s all about our attitudes and willingness to accept change. We’ve talked before about the evolution of IIoT – this includes evolving not only behaviors and attitudes but also business processes. IIoT invites us, requires us – dare I say demands us – to be more agile and more entrepreneurial. It’s classic market disruption – where barriers to entry are broken down and new entrants will eat your lunch if you don’t respond quickly enough.

When it comes to IIoT I believe that often companies in our industries already have the required skills in place. What’s needed is a new approach – perhaps a “startup” mentality. But I don’t think you have to be a start up sized company to do this. A recent article on Automation.com by Editor Bill Lydon explored the use of Amazon cloud in the process industry. Amazon and “process industry” in the same sentence – who would have believed that a few years ago? And yet, it demonstrates my point – new start ups and also big players that have the discipline to command the agility needed for this evolution are heading our way.

So what to do?

First, accept that IIoT is here, and here to stay. If you don’t make best use of the technology then your competitors will, and it will not be pleasant for you. Second, break down ...