Operational decision-making: driving change in industry
Traditional industrial companies - such as energy, extractives, engineering and construction companies - are going through an enforced revolution to survive and thrive in the fast-moving digital era. Organisations are under tremendous amounts of pressure to continuously drive greater efficiency and yet also function in a framework of ever-increasing social and public awareness of their operations.
Digitalisation is also maturing and stretching throughout their supply chains and some organisations are struggling to keep up as they remain reliant on paper and document-led operational processes. Such reliance is then often problematic and complex to manage when the unexpected occurs.
Now more than ever, companies need to mitigate serious regulatory, financial and reputational risk, all within an environment of stretching their human capital further and trying to attract new talent into the industry.
So, what are the key drivers for change and when is the right time to leap into the industrial digital era for operational decision-making?
Key drivers for change
Generational change
Large generational change is occurring within this heavy industrial market segment, which is leading to key institutional knowledge leaving organisations right as their exposure is increasing.*
Talent shortage
Heavy industry is failing to attract a new generation of talent* with graduates and the next generation looking to other industries for a career.
Industry 4.0
Digital and industry 4.0** is here and is affecting every industry worldwide and those who don’t harness the opportunities available will be left behind.
Regulation
Social and regulatory pressure is only increasing, requiring a focus on continuous improvement in operating processes and close management of this regulatory and reputational risk.
Paper-based systems
Many companies continue to operate with file and paper-based systems, which are rapidly becoming obsolete and where digitalisation in many areas has not moved past pdf.
Complex supply chains
Increasingly organisations have complex and diverse supply chains as more non-core functions are outsourced and they are often all on different platforms and operating systems.
All these factors are forcing industry – specifically the extractives, engineering and energy sectors – to re-evaluate how they operate.
Furthermore, as such companies continue to lean down and become more focused purely on core revenue-generating functions, their supplier and provider chains are becoming only ever more complex and their current systems are increasingly inadequate.
The time is now
Every operational decision has an impact on business performance, company reputation and potentially the health and wellbeing of employees, the public and the environment.
That’s why it’s time to simplify the complex ecosystem of suppliers and partners onto one digital platform.
Innovative algorithm-driven decision engines can bring together all actors in a complex supply chain onto one SaaS platform - connecting people, resources and industry to the answers and information they need, when they need it.
You can find out more about the intelligent technologies industrium are pioneering for industrial decision-making here. You can also get in touch.
References
*Accenture: “The Talent Well has Run Dry”
**Wood Mackenzie: “The Digital Imperative”