As the industrial internet becomes more commonplace and a necessity solution, it is time for industrial decision-makers to spend a moment with strategic consideration.
The production industry is moving to the era of management by knowledge. The period of experimental IoT platform services is coming to an end. This transfer means strategic selections for industrial decision-makers. It is a transfer from pocket money to investments. What does the industrial decision-maker need to know about the habits of the IT sector when selecting partners for the industrial revolution?
Over the decades, business based on the utilisation of information technology has been divided into two schools: those relying on closed ecosystems and those invoking open ecosystems. Both have their benefits. It is obvious that each closed ecosystem tries to whitewash their exteriors to seem as open as possible. How can you estimate the openness of an ecosystem (hardware, software, services)?
- Can an OEM system be adapted and modified without permission or charge? This is a question that may easily remain unweighed when making a selection, and yet it significantly affects the ability of the partners in the ecosystem to produce flexible services.
- Can a system be easily connected to other systems? The standard answer is that “interfaces are available”. In many scenarios, however, connecting an original system via an interface may “pollute” the system connected in the access rights. Such hidden mechanisms can cause immeasurable costs granting unlimited power to the king of the closed ecosystem during negotiations.
- Does the ecosystem have a single king, possibly blocking everything? Can the system licences and flexibility in changing situations depend on product development owned by one party?
- We may also ask whether the ecosystem was originally built upon flexibility, differentiation, innovations and competition? Is the development thus determined by customer needs, evolution or controlled continuity of the principal’s business benefit?
As the industrial internet becomes more commonplace and a necessity solution, it is time for industrial decision-makers to spend a moment with strategic consideration. Sometimes, a seemingly simple and efficient model can turn out to be a deceitful trap. Even closed systems are not inevitably bad as partial solutions, as long as we know how to limit their efficacy with strategically right selections.
