Industry 4.0: How to guide organizational change

Industry 4.0 is one of those concepts that is on the rise today.

Quite complex, it is often confused with various interpretations, so that often business leaders cannot visualize its applicability.

That’s exactly what we want to discuss in this text.

Keep reading to understand what Industry 4.0 is, the importance of preparing your business for it; and see tips on how to do this with the maximum degree of success!

Industry 4.0: Automating your business is the only way out

Also called the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Industry 4.0 refers to the phenomenon of adopting innovative tools, resources and technological services to optimize the management of the most varied industrial aspects. This includes everything from design to manufacturing process automation; Throughout the supply chain and among other aspects of operational and administrative daily life.

Four major forces push the “fourth industrial revolution,” according to several experts:

• Surprising growth in data volume (Big Data);
• Emergence of tools, resources and methods for data analysis;
• The innovative possibilities of human-machine interaction;
• And the enhancements of the transfer of digital instructions to the physical world.

Please note, therefore, that it is not simply about implementing tools to automate business processes. It’s something much deeper and superior to automation.

Industry 4.0: a cultural transformation

The phenomenon of Industry 4.0 announces a series of social, political, cultural and economic upheavals that will unfold in the 21st century.

Based on the wide availability of digital technologies that were the result of the Digital Revolution, the Fourth Industrial Revolution is driven largely by the convergence of digital, biological and physical innovations.

This movement involves a systemic change in many sectors and aspects of human life: the cross-cutting impacts of emerging technologies are even more importance than the resources they represent.

Our ability to edit the building blocks of life has been massively expanded by low-cost genetic sequencing. Artificial Intelligence is increasing processes and skills in all sectors; neurotechnology is taking unprecedented steps in how we can use and influence the brain as the last frontier of human biology; automation is disrupting secular paradigms in transportation and manufacturing; and technologies such as Blockchain and smart materials are redefining and undoing the boundaries between the digital and physical worlds.

The result of all this is a global cultural transformation.

By affecting the incentives, rules and norms of economic life, Industry 4.0 transforms the way we communicate, learn, entertain and relate to each other, as well as how we understand ourselves as human beings.

The feeling that new technologies are being developed and implemented at an increasingly rapid pace has an impact on human identities, communities and political structures.

As a result, our responsibilities to others, our opportunities for self-realization, and our ability to positively impact the world are intrinsically linked and shaped by the way we engage with technologies. This revolution is not only happening to us —we are not its victims—but we have the opportunity and even the responsibility to give it structure and purpose.

Industry 4.0: how to guide this change in your company

You may be wondering: how do I prepare my business for the Fourth Industrial Revolution?

Know that somehow this transformation is already underway in your business. The question is the degree to which you are aware of it. The goal now is to understand how this transition is governed in the purposes and strategies of your business.

Check out some tips below on how to guide organizational change towards Industry 4.0 in a proactive and result-oriented way.

Assess your company’s needs

Do you need to manufacture more products in less time? Is your company being slowed down by the need to communicate between each stage of its production cycle?

Identifying areas of improvement is the first step in accessing the benefits of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Identify how Industry 4.0 can better meet these needs

If you’re part of an SME, you probably feel that Industry 4.0 can’t meet your organization’s needs. But before rejecting the future, consider the benefits of the fourth industrial revolution:

• responsive shipping and manufacturing driven by real-time cloud data;
• real-time information about all stages of product development provided by the Internet of Things;
• Predictive optimization of business operations through machine learning etc.

If you’ve ever had to put your business on hold while waiting for a vital shipment, or if you want advice tailored to your daily operations, you should consider integrating with Industry 4.0.

Create a medium-term plan to adopt disruptive technologies

Starting from 2020, many of the main industrialized nations will have adapted the mass market to Industry 4.0 technologies. Emerging countries such as Brazil, a leader in the adoption of new technologies in Latin America, are also in this movement.

Therefore, it is important to start formulating plans to integrate these new solutions. In doing so, be sure to stay aware of developments related to international standards in relation to Industry 4.0 technology — to comply with the European GDPR  and the Brazilian LGPD, for example.

A good tip is to invest in modular technological solutions to remain open to new developments during this period of innovation.

Start working with an Industry 4.0 mindset in your business

For each integration phase, ensure that your organization’s employees are instructed in the operation of new technologies. This will ensure a smooth transition, reducing the anxiety and luddism that accompanies every new era of industry.

This can only be anchored by a new mindset, a mindset geared towards Industry 4.0. That is, people need to gradually stop thinking about traditional models of technology use, management and business analysis and start thinking from this new perspective. In short, industry 4.0 must be in the company’s DNA.

What did you think, are you prepared to take your business toward Industry 4.0? Did you like the reflections we brought in this article? Talk to us!

Also check out our ebook: Business Analytics – The Data Age has already started.