The Internet of Things or abbreviated as IoT, represents all equipment and systems that can be assigned an IP address and can exchange data over a network.
Although this term is mostly used in our time, connected objects are far from being a novelty. The first home automation device: the connected toaster was invented as early as 1989!
What is rather new however is the awareness of all the opportunities and possibilities that IoT offers, especially in the professional field. In this article, we explain what the IoT is and why it is essential to simplify your organization and optimize the collaboration between your employees and your teams.
What is the Internet of Things (IoT)?
The Internet of Things is composed of different types of devices connected to the Internet. These devices can be very diverse. They include tablets, watches, smartphones, cars and even traffic lights in “smart cities”.
When these devices are combined with automated systems, artificial intelligence or cloud computing, it becomes possible to collect, analyze and use the data they transmit.
However, IoT solutions are not just about connected accessories and devices.
What is the difference between connected objects and the Internet of Things?
Physical connected objects make up the bulk of IoT, but IoT covers a much broader reality. Indeed, to take full advantage of the IoT environment, you need more than just objects and devices.
The key to truly harnessing the benefits of IoT-based tools is to connect these physical devices to communication and collaboration solutions through APIs. Then, software and applications will be able to collect and analyze data crucial to the evolution of a business
Why is the Internet of Things IoT so important?
In a way, the Internet of Things allows to bring networks closer together, by allowing several devices to exchange and communicate together. This definition already reveals one of their assets for the professional field.
By facilitating interactions and sharing, connected objects offer employees the possibility to work more efficiently and improve their productivity.
How does the Internet of Things work?
The IoT works mainly through sensor systems placed on physical equipment and which transmit, via the Internet, data on the state of the latter. This information will then be transmitted via the network to IoT platforms and applications where it will be analyzed, classified and enriched.
With artificial intelligence and machine learning, data processing can also go much further with, for example, the anticipation of problems and incidents or even the creation of predictive algorithms.
Exchanges between the various software and physical equipment are made through the IoT system.
How is an IoT system structure?
An IoT system is composed of:
- a network of connected objects
- gateways and wireless communication networks (Wifi and Bluetooth in particular)
- network protocols (Sigfox and LoRa)
- APIs and platforms to collect and process data
- Hosting or cloud computing providers to store the information;
- software and applications to visualize, sort and display data more easily
- Edge computing to move data processing and analysis closer to the end user as needed to reduce latency.
How does IoT work within a company?
To understand how the IoT network can interact with business processes, let’s take a concrete example. In industrial and manufacturing processes, “smart meters” (equipped with IoT sensors) can alert appropriate personnel to a malfunction on a machine before the incident impacts the production line.
With the information collected by the sensors, teams can develop a strategy to restore the system. With video, SMS, and various mobile devices, they are also able to communicate about the origins of the incident and the actions to be taken in other departments.
Finally, they can share this information and the implemented solution so that other teams can react even faster if the malfunction recurs.
This is just one of hundreds of examples of how companies are quickly realizing the value of implementing connected objects across all industries.
This has even led to the emergence of specific concepts such as Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT or Industrial IOT) and Enterprise IoT. In the fields of industry, energy or large-scale manufacturing, IoT is also associated with M2M for machine To machine (direct communication between hardware devices).
What are the benefits of the Internet of Things?
The previous example of how IoT works already illustrates its potential to transform industrial processes. Regardless of the industry or business domain, if connectivity is used with the right combination of technology and middleware, the IoT offers many benefits.
The Internet of Things enables more efficient, seamless and collaborative work through:
Better access to data
Data is certainly the most valuable resource an organization needs to develop strategy and make informed decisions. With IoT projects, more data can be collected faster than ever before.
With these sensors, business leaders can, for example, know instantly:
- where their products and orders are located thanks to geolocation ;
- what the status of their machines is;
- on which project their employees are working remotely;
- what is the activity of their contact center.
This digital transformation allows managers and directors to make effective business decisions more easily. It also gives all employees, even those working remotely, access to the information they need.
Improved efficiency
The more data companies can collect, the better they know their market, their environment and their customers. But this big data also allows them to know more about their internal functioning, including their strengths and weaknesses.
For example, sensors connected to a thermostat can alert of an impending accident so that a human intervention can take place immediately on site, thus avoiding major problems.
This can even lead to predictive maintenance, capable of sending alerts before failures occur.
Increased automation
The Internet of Things opens the door to many opportunities for companies to automate repetitive and routine tasks. For example, cloud-connected IoT systems and AI algorithms can manage robots and machines to automate and optimize their operation.
This gives employees the ability to focus on their core business, on higher value-added tasks or even create new services and products.
Improved productivity
IoT systems are generally able to produce and manage data much faster than humans. Companies that invest in an IoT project can also operate continuously, as the machines don’t need breaks.
The rise of Internet of Things solutions can even help today’s businesses innovate and deliver better customer service experiences. For example, the data you collect will allow you to see how customers use products and services. Updates and fixes can then be made based on information from actual usage and the general public.
Better collaboration
Fostering collaboration is probably the major advantage of IoT in business. Indeed, the IoT allows exchanges between equipment, software and all human resources of the company. All employees can access data from connected objects, exploit them and if necessary transfer them to their colleagues anywhere in the world.
Collaboration can be optimized for all levels and all departments with for example :
- Organizing online workshops to visualize and adopt new strategies based on customer data feedback
- Real-time analysis between technical teams of data collected on machines to optimize their operation
- Remote troubleshooting if maintenance teams are not on site
- Improved after-sales follow-up with the possibility of retrieving information on the use of a product or service to identify the origin of a malfunction
- Video conferencing to present key business statistics and establish strategic directions.
Conversely, collaboration is also a way to leverage other benefits of the IoT, for start-ups, SMEs and large corporations with global infrastructure.
Harnessing the benefits of the Internet of Things through collaboration
The IoT allows to collect, visualize and process almost automatically large amounts of data.
However, in order for this data to be truly useful to the company, it is necessary to know exactly what it can be used for and what expectations it meets.
IT teams must therefore think, upstream, about which data will be transmitted for which use cases. They will also sometimes have to design or implement software solutions to help employees find their way through all this incoming information. These solutions will need to be tailored to each department so that the IoT meets all of the company’s needs.
New challenges, such as personal data management and cybersecurity, are developing with the integration of IoT systems into enterprises. Customers also now expect faster responses and an individualized customer experience.
The key to getting the most out of the Internet of Things is therefore going to be to have efficient systems, but also teams trained in good security practices and able to organize and work together.
The convergence between IoT devices and unified communications systems is thus becoming increasingly important in the modern landscape. Internal and external communication strategies must now include an IoT strategy.
