The single largest line item for businesses are often labor costs. As a result, it would require an effective human capital management strategy to achieve an adequate balance of resourcing with cost controls.
New technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT) is rapidly transforming industries across the board to achieve just that. As a result, the responsibility of reducing labor costs now falls within the domain of IT managers.
Furthermore, the evolving work models of virtual freelancers, virtual corporate colleagues, and virtual coworkers are also now supported by wearable technology to enhance productivity while reducing operational costs.
IoT-based Solutions Keep Employees Safe
Ensuring workplace safety is a never-ending task, but it has become a little easier. Today, IT managers can take advantage of IoT solutions that cut down the risk of health hazards while increasing productivity and reducing costs.
This technology can also help prevent industrial accidents and reduce the number of injuries and deaths that can significantly impact the bottom line. This can be achieved by tracking the equipment and workers within the facility and conducting predictive analytics to avert disasters.
IoT helps enhance productivity
Data collection at the workplace has now evolved from low-resolution to high-resolution on an ongoing real-time basis (and isn’t limited to a timed survey). Everything from security doors to wearables, like employee badges with tracking sensors, motion sensors, GPS, and thermostats will be continuously generating valuable data.
For example, the data generated from employee badges (with embedded mics, trackers, motion sensors, and infrared sensors) can be analyzed to determine the nature of conversations (by tracking the tone and speed of someone’s voice) or where people stand when speaking to others.
According to Alex Pentland, a professor at MIT and an advisor to Waber’s group, “We’ve been able to foretell, for example, which teams will win a business plan contest, solely on the basis of data collected from team members wearing badges at a cocktail reception.” Although this type of technology can be quick to make one concerned, privacy is maintained at all times as behavioral and productivity reports never reveal the identity of the individual sensors.
According to McKinsey, increased activity monitoring and indoor sensing can increase worker productivity by an average of 10% to 12% or $19-43 billion. As a result, you can expect this technology to have a huge impact on the bottom line.
IoT Creates Real Business Value
McKinsey also estimated that IoT will create $70 to $150 billion of value in offices through worker monitoring, energy management, augmented reality (AR), organizational redesign, and building security.
However, the greatest value will be achieved by enhancing the productivity of knowledge workers such as marketers and engineers whose performance heavily depends on collaboration. What’s more, mobile or remote workers will also be empowered to improve their contribution through improved collaboration and communication. For those within the facility, indoor positioning systems supported by sensing can also encourage employees to collaborate with one another.
As a result, it’s safe to say that IoT’s impact can be felt across the entire business. It has also changed traditional roles within the organization as IT managers are now charged with improving employee productivity, enhancing worker safety, and cutting overall operational and labor costs.
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