ANZ Businesses Ahead of International Peers Designing IoT Programs That Deliver Incremental Revenue, Says New Forbes Study

SYDNEY – January 18, 2018 – The internet of things (IoT) is heralded as a foundational technology for breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, robotics and other potentially broadly applicable advances. But for frontline decision makers – the executives charged with implementing IoT in their company – it can sometimes feel impossible to separate facts from hype. It can be even more daunting to discern the practical steps required to get started with IoT in their business.

To better understand the current state of IoT, Forbes Insights partnered with Hitachi Vantara to survey more than 500 senior executives around the world, including 220 in Asia Pacific who are leading IoT initiatives within their companies. A new report, “The Internet of Things: From Theory to Reality – How Companies Are Leveraging IoT to Move Their Businesses Forward,” sponsored by Hitachi Vantara, highlights the key findings from this research and addresses the following issues:

• Is IoT still an aspiration or is it becoming an operational reality?

• How is IoT being used within companies?

• What does IoT implementation look like at this early stage?

• Are there companies that are more advanced with using these technologies?

• What are some of the implementation lessons learned?

• What are the practical steps companies can take as they begin their own IoT journey?

“Across the Asia Pacific region, it is clear that executives see the value in IoT initiatives,” said Bruce Rogers, chief insights officer at Forbes Media. “With 70% stating that they see IoT as either important or very important to their business, it is fast becoming a competitive differentiator that will affect almost every industry.”

“The results of the survey demonstrate the clear impact that IoT is having on businesses in our part of the world. ANZ enterprises are more likely to design programs that generate incremental revenue and positively affect the bottom line,” adds Nathan McGregor, vice president and general manager, Hitachi Vantara, Australia and New Zealand. “The Forbes study also showed that to fully reap the rewards of the technical advances in IoT, enterprises need to address real and perceived challenges around IoT security and skills.”

Key findings for Australia and New Zealand:

• 87% of ANZ respondents operate IoT programs designed to generate incremental revenue, as opposed to cost savings or creating operational efficiencies (compared to 60% globally).

• 53% of ANZ respondents ranked artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning as an important technology initiative in their company (compared to a 44% global average). 67% (42% globally) also placed these among the top priorities for the next five years.

• The most important objectives of IoT efforts in Australia and New Zealand to-date include: enhancing the customer experience (17% vs. 13% globally), increasing productivity (17% vs. 15% globally) and cost reduction (13% vs. 6% globally).

• 70% of ANZ respondents stated that their IoT strategy involved learning from small projects before moving on to larger scale deployments (65% globally).

Challenges for local enterprises: IoT security and skills

• Concerns about keeping IoT secure were nominated as the greatest challenge their company faced in building out its IoT capabilities (ANZ 53% vs. 32% globally)

• 67% believe the consequences of a data breach in IoT presents greater consequences than other technology initiatives (44% globally).

• 43% of ANZ respondents said they do not have the right personnel to manage the data generated by IoT programs (29% globally).

“The findings of Forbes’ executive survey aligns with what we at Hitachi are also hearing from our customers: IoT is increasingly becoming a strategic imperative to effectively compete in the digital economy – and IoT is hard,” said Asim Zaheer, chief marketing officer at Hitachi Vantara. “It is imperative to ensure you have well-defined goals, outcomes and top-down support for your initiative at the outset, and a strong partner to help you drive your desired outcomes.”

About this research

The data in this report is derived from a 2017 Forbes Insights survey of 502 executives who identified themselves as responsible for, or familiar with, the IoT activities of their companies. Respondents were based in Europe, the Americas and Asia Pacific, and represented a range of industries, with not one comprising more than 25% of the total. All respondents were director or above, and came from companies with 500 employees or more. Forbes Insights also conducted interviews with several senior executives to add context to the findings.

About Forbes Insights

Forbes Insights is the strategic research and thought leadership practice of Forbes Media, a global media, branding and technology company whose combined platforms reach nearly 94 million business decision makers worldwide on a monthly basis. By leveraging proprietary databases of senior-level executives in the Forbes community, Forbes Insights conducts research on a wide range of topics to position brands as thought leaders and drive stakeholder engagement. Research findings are delivered through a variety of digital, print and live executions, and amplified across Forbes' social and media platforms.

About Hitachi Vantara

Hitachi Vantara, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., helps data-driven leaders find and use the value in their data to innovate intelligently and reach outcomes that matter for business and society. We combine technology, intellectual property and industry knowledge to deliver data-managing solutions that help enterprises improve their customers' experiences, develop new revenue streams, and lower the costs of business. Only Hitachi Vantara elevates your innovation advantage by combining deep information technology (IT), operational technology (OT) and domain expertise. We work with organisations everywhere to drive data to meaningful outcomes. Visit us at www.HitachiVantara.com.