So what has changed – a technology “Perfect Storm”

Last time I talked about how Operations departments are typically working without the tools they need to efficiently do what they need to do. In fact, it actually hasn’t been technically or economically feasible until recently for anyone other than the largest, most heavily funded Operations groups to have the kind of tools they need. To expand on the “Impossible until now” idea we must identify that not one but rather a series of technical trends are coming together to provide organizations with incredible tools to get their jobs done more effectively.  Indeed, an interesting set of technologies and trends have coalesced into the perfect storm to produce technology, business and market conditions poised to bring the rise of the Operations Visibility Platform. As these technologies continue to intersect with each other, and as savvy technology providers begin forging these technologies into solutions, we will see more and more industries adopt an OVP to greatly improve the way they do business. What are these trends? Let us share with you:

1. The advent of low cost communications everywhere (catalyzed by wireless technologies and services…you’ve seen the AT&T Wireless commercials where they’re at the fountain of youth and “Found the Internet”).
2. The continued influx in the market of a wide variety of new cost-effective and very smart hardware devices and gadgets that help identify, track, locate, monitor and even control physical assets within an organization. (Think wireless sensors, RFID tags, cellular enable GPS devices – even phones with GPS, low-cost networking devices, etc.)
3. The acceptance of the Internet and the World Wide Web as a legitimate communications platform for business.  (Everybody uses the internet now for almost anything from shopping to making a phone call to wiring funds, to watching TV, reading the news…did we mention emails?)
4. The acceptance of the Software-as-a-Service solution delivery models.  What do we mean…delivering enterprise business software through your internet browser for a monthly fee.  Think Salesforce.com, Google, Ebay, Amazon and many others.

As these technologies and trends advance and continue to intersect, they can be brought together to provide industry with solutions that help them “Know Now” and do so cost-effectively.  Operations teams will be able to really “Do more with Less” because they will be able to optimize their resources to respond to real-time events, real-time inventory events, logistic events, equipment and maintenance events, facilities events, and personnel events.  They will be able to finally do this with one system or One Tool that encompasses their entire operations instead of many tools that don’t talk to each other.  We are one company that provides an “Operations Visibility Platform” or OVP. Industry will eventually see many others enter the market as well. I’m sure of it. 

Next, we will be back to discuss the kinds of specific business problems that “Operations Visibility Platforms” can help solve.