If your company recently adopted IoT solutions to improve the capability and functionality of its products, you’re likely already thinking ahead to the next steps: determining the value of these solutions and gauging their success.
Here, Claire Cavanaugh – an IoT specialist at PTC, outlines three metrics that will help you best interpret achievement and progress with smart, connected products, in order to maximise the return on your IoT investments.
1. Determine how IoT supports today’s and tomorrow’s initiatives
First and foremost, examine the impact IoT solutions will have across your business. Making this investment and introducing such a substantial solution will inevitably affect not only the direction of your products, but also your day-to-day operations.
As these effects trickle down to your employees, and eventually your customers, it’s crucial to consider their true value in each area. How do IoT solutions support your current initiatives?
Beyond analysing current value, it’s important to look forward as well. Will your investment carry forth into your company’s continued growth and success?
As you prepare for future projects and endeavours, will IoT solutions support your company’s impending campaigns, your employees’ upcoming ambitions, and your customers’ forthcoming needs?
With all this in mind, considering whether IoT solutions are scalable to your future initiatives is necessary as you determine their ROI.
2. Learn how IoT addresses multiple challenges
Next, check the interconnectivity of IoT solutions in your organisation. In other words, ensure your investment pushes results across multiple facets of the company, establishing what PTC calls ‘the network effect’.
Do your smart connected products address a number of challenges – whether current or anticipated? Multipurpose IoT solutions are a critical determining factor of ROI maximisation.
When implementing new solutions to improve your products, the means to apply one solution to several problems, such as preventing extra expenses for your business, eliminating additional time and effort for your employees, and promoting higher quality results for your customers, is sure to improve your ROI.
Considering how IoT solutions address multiple challenges across your business is of utmost importance when determining their value and revenue generation.
3. Ensure IoT helps you to think ahead
Through the process of measuring the ROI of IoT solutions in your organisation, you will also need to consider advanced methods of determining the upcoming needs of your customers as your company progresses with new initiatives.
When realising the measurability of your IoT investments, metrics should address business growth, promote improved value, and facilitate open communication with your customers.
These customer-based metrics will help you consider the broad measurability of IoT solutions for your company, your employees, and your customers. Does your investment help you to think ahead to more significant metrics? If so, you’ll be poised to prioritise their use more effectively going forward.
Make the most of your investment today
Colfax is a leading, diversified industrial technology company that provides products and services to organisations across a wide range of industries through two business platforms: Howden, a manufacturer of precision air and gas handling equipment, and ESAB, a producer of welding and cutting equipment and consumables.
Building upon more than 100 years of manufacturing expertise, Colfax recognises the need to continually evolve its businesses to stay relevant and achieve results in today’s increasingly competitive marketplace.
To do so, the company has embarked on the path of digital transformation with a focus on IoT. However, when digitally-enabling its various product lines, Colfax experienced many of the typical roadblocks that impede transformation efforts, limiting both scope and impact.
Click here to read how Colfax overcame these hurdles and is now better prepared for the smart, connected world of tomorrow.
