As the supply chains are getting digitally enabled, Internet of Things presents unprecedented opportunities to Retailers and CPG companies by creating solutions combining digital and physical products and services. IoT enabled upply chains surpasses the traditional developments like functional integration of supply chain, improve collaboration with suppliers & customers, and focus on virtually synchronizing the supply chain across players into one logical enterprise. IoT is helping supply chains to further progress with dynamic response by event management, increased visibility, responsiveness and throughput with supply chain control towers.

IoT is disrupting modus operandi of Retail/CPG industries and future shoppers. Device and sensor proliferation is aiding Retailers to experiment intelligent and connected devices to innovate new business models to try new markets, offer new services and create rich & compelling customer experiences building IoT enabled digital ecosystems.

IoT adoption is supply chains accelerate with right platform implementation (commercial IoT platforms vis-a-vis indigenous development with multiple vendors), cloud ready infrastructure, building big data and advance analytics capabilities enabling faster and effective business decision making, and robust compliance and security. IoT supports the convergence of the Digital and physical supply chains and following use cases highlights how IoT driving the supply chain excellence of Retail / CPG businesses

• Improve customer experience using big data for consumer insights and store-level merchandising. Help companies mine social media trends to showcase types of products that are rising in popularity, and local weather data is compared against historical sales data to boost sales. Also I would like to quote a personal experience with RFID-enabled MagicBand wristbands at Disney that provide theme park access, entry access for guest hotel rooms, and cash and card-free payment food and merchandise. All that activity is also tracked data that potentially helps Disney build a better picture of how guests use services.
• Create new service offerings combining IoT potential with real-time view of usability statistics enabling targeted advertising based on instantaneous bidding that creates new revenue streams for retailers. Implementation of lightweight NextGen IoT platform for tracking shifting user behaviors reacting with appropriate business actions.
• Help businesses innovate new business models with connected IoT solutions. One example is connected kitchen solution creating consistent brand expanding into quick serve restaurant anywhere in the world across few thousand chains. Through remote management of kitchen appliances automate hundreds of decisions in a day for optimizing energy usage and oil consumption leading improving bottom-line.

This presents an opportunity for supply chain leaders to co-develop new information-based solutions for individual customers or markets. Infusion of IoT in the supply chain as well is creating new challenges and demands on corporate supply chains. IoT offers a great opportunity for the supply chain leaders to play a critical leadership role in defining the overall digital business strategy achieving the next-level of value chain excellence.

Recommended Reading

The Internet of Things (MIT Press Essential Knowledge series)

A guided tour through the Internet of Things, a networked world of connected devices, objects, and people that is changing the way we live and work.