Tough times often lead to creative solutions. While the pandemic has wreaked havoc with businesses in many ways, it has some bright spots, too. According to a Harris Poll conducted in mid-October through November 2020, the pandemic led 73% of U.S. manufacturers to increase their use of digital technologies. Why? Because the adoption of various digital technologies is helping to improve many aspects of business.
Leading the pack are manufacturers specifically focused on data and analytics, who are now reevaluating their use of these digital tools as a result of the pandemic. Industry experts estimate that manufacturing companies could improve productivity 30% to 40% with the help of digital analytics.
Types of Digital Strategy
The poll identified the following types of digital strategies that are making a difference for many businesses:
- Data and analytics (65%). Traditionally, the use of Excel spreadsheets by many supply chain and procurement departments has provided a reporting level of data analysis. Yet, companies that have moved to incorporate basic analytic digital tools with their data are seeing higher levels of advanced analytics, which enable greater predictive models.
- Digital productivity tools (58%). Productivity tools are applications that allow for the viewing, creating and modifying of documents (e.g., spreadsheets, memos, presentations, letters, personal database, form generation, image editing, etc.) and help employees manage tasks with digital communication, collaboration and organization tools.
- IoT sensors (57%). The internet of things, or IoT, describes the network of physical objects —things — that are embedded with sensors, software and other technologies for the purpose of connecting and exchanging data with other devices and systems over the internet.
- Public cloud platforms (51%). The public cloud is a range of computing services that are offered by platforms, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and makes them available over the internet. They are accessible to businesses that want to use and/or purchase them.
- Artificial intelligence and machine learning (48%). While machine learning is based on the idea that machines should be able to learn and adapt through experience, Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to a broader idea where machines can complete tasks smartly. AI applies machine learning and other techniques to solve actual problems.
Improving Your Business
The adoption of digital technology has accelerated because it can improve many aspects of your business relatively quickly. Consider these advantages of digital platforms:
- Provide long-term cost savings.
- Reduce the use of labor-intensive tools.
- Help employees be more efficient.
- Produce real-time governed metrics.
- Integrate information from multiple modalities and sources.
- Improve forecasting capabilities with greater visibility.
We Can Help
At Seaside Bank and Trust, we understand what a difference digital strategies can make in keeping your business running efficiently to meet your goals. You can count on us for working capital designed to help your business succeed as you embrace digital solutions. Contact your Seaside Client Advisor at 407.567.2222 or view our commercial banking solutions.
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