It is somewhat inspiring to consider how we made it from the Model-A to today's smart cars. Would Henry Ford ever have envisioned the transportation industry we have today? It is not that we have made a self-driving vehicle. It is more akin to how interactive technologies increase capabilities. Those capabilities include how people interact, grow, and even learn. The technology behind all this touches design, manufacturing, distribution, and service. In this re-imagine work blog, we look at how we transform the fundamental process into a digital tool.
Change is empowering — Embrace it
Thanks to technology, the days of doing it "the way we always have" are gone. Automotive industry standards upgrade with changes in technology. Automobiles and customers connect through digital customer engagement. In fact, the entire automotive manufacturing process evolves thanks to technology.
For the first time in a long while, the younger generation has the upper hand. The old guard is lagging behind in what is now a technology driven industry. Who do we turn to when we need to figure out our smartphone? It is our children. the younger generation, which lives and breathes technology, is adept at using new tech. The benefit is that automation removes the boring and standardized task and heritage.org/creates opportunities. Through those changes, employees find their jobs more fulfilling. Why? Because technology helps them work on real problems and in real-time.
The key to real-time is access to current information. The fact that employees now have access to instant analytics drives responsible decision making. A good example of how real-time information works is to consider fire exit routes. If there is a fire, and you can see all the routes, which way do you go? Without that information, you can only guess the safest route. Real-time data shows you exactly which route to take and eliminated the guess work. This example translates into real-world scenarios.
Access to real-time data allows workers to use current data to make informed decisions. Those decisions come from data, not policy. So customized decisions support changes that drive customer satisfaction and improves efficiency. The digital process empowers energy.gov/rule-based management, and that improves human performance. The rewards go to customers, employees, and businesses. One question is how can your business use digital processes?
Real-Time — It means Right Now
What if you could see your entire workforce in motion. What if you could see how inventory, progress, and efficiency functioned? What if you could see where manual system slow efficiency when those slow-downs happened? Would that not give you the power to make changes? That is what a digital automotive network does. It gives you the tools to see. What you see enables you to do. In fact, it gives your entire team the ability to see. That empowerment is the basis of rule-based management. You act based on what you see in the data. Because the data is in real-time, you remove the cogs that slow down production. Increases in efficiency and quality are the rewards. Would your business benefit with increases in efficiency and quality?
Software that Reads Your Mind and Teaches Itself
The idea behind real-time analytics is not about data entry. It is about software that is predictive — Predictive software evaluates situations and creates data. It is also about self-learning software. The program learns from its successes and failures. What if software just got better the longer you used it? It can. That is what self-learning software does. It gets better as it knows your system and equipment. If you touch a hot pan and burn you hand, you learn not to touch things that are hot. Predictive software has a human element. It learns by measuring success and failure. That process drives efficiency and quality improvements.
Predictive software creates data that enables you to see everything as it happens. It empowers you to make the correct decision. Such software is powerful. Top management decides who has access to what data points. Data is accessible even on mobile devices. That ability improves the entire automotive industry, including automotive supplier relations. It is beneficial for the Original Equipment Manufacturer and for automotive quality management. It even improves automotive industry standards for aftermarket Parts suppliers.
The Digital Automotive Network
A core benefit of the digital automotive network is that data is available. Another benefit is that digitalgov.gov/predictive software gets to know people and their actions. Interactive technologies understand worker's roles. Interactive means that workers move from transaction to exception. Their quality improves. Their job satisfaction improves because they become stimulated through the creative process.
Puzzles are intriguing. Stimulated and creativity are two forces that drive humanity. Can your business benefit if employees became motivated and creative? Where does your company derive new product ideas? How do problems find solutions that benefit your company? Even with automation, people continue to play a vital role. That role evolves, but the value that they add remains the same.
Focus on the Connection
Business is nothing without relationships. The automotive industry is gigantic and within that sphere are mechanical and digital assets. Your company fits into that sphere in some capacity. How do relationships impact your business?
The transformation of the auto industry from manual to digital also created new relationships. The interaction between B2B and B2C became clearer. That clarity allows customer complaints to change manufacturing today rather than tomorrow. That move bolsters quality improvement. Product improvement is constant. Innovation becomes an instant and gratifying tool.
What improves is the relationship between customer and products, and between employees and management. Also, is the increase in job satisfaction. Product development and improvement becomes easier thanks to the digital automotive network. Digital moves products, business, and market position forward. That success is due to the empowerment of people by data.
