Companies such as Microsoft and Pact Group are driving the 'digital economy' forward as the Australian government rolls out its strategy for growth.
'The digital economy' is no longer a sideline, futuristic trend, separate to 'the traditional economy'.
Industry 4.0 is already impacting all industries and business types, and influencing the way consumers interact with brands.
In September this year, the Australian government announced it would develop a national Digital Economy Strategy which involved the release of a the Digital Economy Consultation Paper which outlined its current digital agenda.
The government will launch the strategy in the first half of 2018 following “an open conversation” with governments, businesses and the community.
Microsoft is one company seeking to lead the way in the digital era.
During a preview of the Microsoft Summit in Sydney, which began this week and ends tomorrow, the company encouraged companies to take a firm digital leadership position.
Among Microsoft's customer base is Pact Group, which is stepping up to Industry 4.0 by using Microsoft's Azure – a cloud computing service for building, testing, deploying, and managing applications and services through a global network of Microsoft-managed data centres.
Pact's chief information officer Michael Ross says Azure offers a robust foundation for Pact’s future transformation plans, which may include using autonomous drones to support stocktaking activities.
Ross also plans to use Skype chatbots as the initial interface to IT services before rolling out the technology more broadly.
“The ultimate goal is to empower people to use chatbots to self-serve back-office tasks and interrogate data, and drive processes, should they prefer, rather than interacting via email, phone or web forms," he said.
He is hopeful that in the next 12 months, as much as 40 per cent of all back-office interactions will be responded to and supported by bots, with as many as half of those being resolved using artificial intelligence.
Microsoft and Pact Group have also collaborated on a proof-of-concept solution to enhance workplace safety.
Using Microsoft Cognitive Services Computer Vision for facial and objection recognition, the Workroom Kiosk Demo can identify individual employees in a workshop environment, detect if the correct safety equipment is being worn, and monitor workplace behaviour based on an understanding of the tasks and tools the individual is authorised to perform.
The leadership element
With digital innovation tipped to be worth up to $250 billion to the Australian economy over the next eight years, Microsoft outlined opportunities for local organisations while cautioning that strong leadership was required if all Australians are to benefit from the digital era.
At the summit preview, Microsoft Australia MD Steven Worrall said Australia had reached an important “inflexion point” and needed digital leadership for the nation to continue its strong economic track record.
“While Australia has enjoyed 26 years of growth – it has now slipped to 21st in the world competitiveness rankings and ranks 27th in terms of business efficiency,” he said.
“At the same time the Productivity Commission has warned that sectoral transformation and innovation means that without careful corporate stewardship, existing workers may find their skills displaced and themselves vulnerable to unemployment.”
He pointed to the commission’s acknowledgment that the “critical x-factor” in strong long-run economic growth came from the application of new knowledge and technologies.
“There is a real opportunity here for enterprise leaders to accelerate digital transformation by leveraging rich technology ecosystems and upskilling staff to meet changing customer and society expectations,” Worrall said.
Microsoft listed five strategies for digital success:
1. Begin with the end in mind: With a clear vision of where you want to go, you can create a compelling plan for change.
2. Going digital has to start at the top: Grassroots efforts and skunkworks projects are great, but the company has to know digital is a priority for senior leadership. The modern CIO partners closely with business leaders.
3. Data matters most: Intelligent action is critical to the digital business – but the system can only be as intelligent as the data available. Get the data foundations right.
4. Create a digital culture: Change can be daunting, especially for large, established companies. Foster a growth mindset, give employees the right tools to collaborate, and unlock creativity.
5. Start now or risk getting left behind: We are in an era where first-to-market matters more than ever. Identify where you can begin quickly and grow digital capabilities from there, potentially building on existing systems or infrastructure.
