Digital Transformation: Building Intelligent Enterprises

PREFACE

We are living in the era of digital revolution where new products and technologies are disrupting the existing businesses while at the same time creating opportunities and paving the way for new businesses to flourish and make a mark of their own.

I am extremely thrilled and excited to present in this book the enterprise path to digital transformation and the adoption of new IT methods and tools and emerging technologies to build intelligent enterprises. Every enterprise is looking for nirvana in digital transformation but it takes a complete restructuring within the enterprise to make that change and be successful.

Through this book, I have made an attempt to discuss all the methodologies, tools, technologies, and platforms that an enterprise needs to consider and evaluate to reach the end goal. Every enterprise is unique and is at various levels of technological adoption maturity. Though the book provides a holistic view of all the emerging technologies, the enterprise needs to choose the right fit that would bring the maximum value to their business, make them stand above the competition, and help them succeed as the enterprise of tomorrow.

I hope you enjoy reading this book, as every attempt has been made to discuss all the technologies from a business perspective with industry‐specific use cases so that a business case can be established towards implementing a specific tool or technology. I have discussed the methodology and tools that the enterprise can utilize to implement emerging technologies on the correct platform with correct data sets and then integrate for exposure to the outside world.

SAP Leonardo is an innovative solution helping clients achieve digital transformation. I have reviewed the end‐to‐end offering of this product to provide an overview of the functionality and capabilities to my treasured readers.

I hope you will find reading this book a worthwhile investment of your time.

Anup Maheshwari

Dallas, TX

2019

ABOUT THIS BOOK

Who Should Read This Book

The book provides a solid theoretical and practical application for various emerging technologies that help in building intelligent enterprises. Though there are individual books available for each of the subjects covered in this book, this book provides all the topics under one roof so that the readers can gain substantial knowledge on any subject of their interest. No prior understanding of any technical coding or language is necessary to understand the content of this book.

The book is very well suited for C‐suite executives comprising CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, CDOs, and CMOs, IT leaders and executives, IT managers, project/program managers, solution architects, business leaders and executives, business managers, and all professionals who have an interest and desire to learn these new IT and next‐generation emerging technologies or have an agenda to digitize key processes within an organization to make the enterprise intelligent.

Not only does this book provide insights into the tools and technologies, but readers will have an opportunity to leverage the industry‐specific use cases and examples discussed for each of technology area and apply them at the enterprise, which will help the reader contribute to the digital goals of the enterprise and make an impact through the knowledge gained by reading this book.

This book is useful for those who are absolute novices and want to equipped themselves with the latest technological trends; it will be equally intriguing to those who are more advanced in the learning curve to gain the practical insights into the implementation and usage of the technology. The book is not for someone looking for a deep‐dive into the technical and coding aspects of the technology.

Organization Of This Book

As new technologies and business disruptions are reshaping business, such as Facebook, Airbnb, and Uber, this book explores the background, theory, and practical applications of major emerging technologies surrounding our ecosystem and provides a contextual meaning for the digitalization, what it means for the business, and how to adapt and get on board with the ever‐changing and fast journey.

This book has been structured with the following sections and topics:

Part I, Introduction, introduces the concept of digital transformation and its associated digital themes that an enterprise can adapt based on its industry to make itself intelligent.

Part I contains the following chapter:

Chapter 1: Digital Transformation

This chapter provides an overview of the digital transformation and its importance for the survival of the enterprise. It also discusses the factors, impact, value drivers, implementation methodology, and some of the emerging digital themes across business functions and industries that can be leveraged by the enterprise to innovate, create new business models, and become intelligent.

Part II, Collaborative Methods and Tools, provides an insight into the tools and methodologies that are used in the digital era to implement and collaborate with the emerging technologies. The environment and ecosystem are very different now, and everything needs to be implemented and deployed faster, with the ability to meet the ever‐changing customer preferences. These tools provide an accelerated path towards the adoption of these emerging technologies and digitization within the enterprise.

Part II contains the following chapters:

Chapter 2: Design Thinking

This chapter provides an overview of the design thinking process, which helps the enterprise to become creative and innovative to solve problems in collaboration with the users. It discusses the methodology and different tools and techniques that can be used at various stages of the process along with use cases to make the enterprise intelligent.

Chapter 3: Agile

This chapter provides an overview of the agile framework, its features, principles, and some of its benefits and challenges as applied in a project environment. It also discusses the methodology that is appropriate for the enterprise and the tools that are available to help the enterprise follow an agile strategy and become intelligent.

Chapter 4: DevOps

This chapter provides an overview of the DevOps methodology as a collaboration between the development and the operations teams. It also discusses the DevOps maturity level, enablers, and some of the typical processes across the development life cycle that are potential candidates for DevOps use cases to make the enterprise collaborative and intelligent.

Part III, Intelligent Technologies, provides an end‐to‐end storyline on how an enterprise can accelerate the digital transformation through the adoption of new technology that is relevant for the enterprise. The business functions rely on digital technologies to stay relevant, compete, and perform. Every enterprise wants to become intelligent, and these technologies provide that edge and help them navigate the journey.

Part III contains the following chapters:

Chapter 5: Robotic Process Automation

This chapter provides an overview of robotic process automation and its ability to automate business processes to reduce costs and have limited dependency on IT resources. It also discusses the implementation methodology and some of the typical processes across business functions and industries that are potential candidates for automation to make the enterprise efficient and intelligent.

Chapter 6: Internet of Things

This chapter provides an understanding of Internet of Things technology, explaining how the data from the connected world is harnessed, transmitted, stored, and analyzed. It also discusses the IoT architecture, implementation methodology, and some of the typical applications and use cases across industries with future day‐in‐life scenarios that can make the enterprise connected and intelligent.

Chapter 7: Artificial Intelligence

This chapter provides an understanding of artificial intelligence technology and what is causing enterprises to move towards it. It also discusses the various technologies and services offered by AI solutions, the implementation methodology, and some of the typical processes within functional areas and industries that are potential candidates for deploying AI to bring operational efficiency and make the enterprise intelligent.

Chapter 8: Machine Learning

This chapter provides an understanding of machine learning technology, the mechanics and challenges, and the rationale for enterprises to move towards it. It also discusses the key steps that should be taken to build a machine learning model, the implementation methodology, and some of the typical industry solutions and use cases for deploying machine learning to predict future outcomes and make the enterprise intelligent.

Chapter 9: Blockchain

This chapter provides an overview of blockchain as a distributed ledger technology along with its benefits to the enterprise and a detailed understanding of the architecture supporting it. It also discusses the implementation methodology and some of the typical applications and use cases for deploying blockchain to securely transfer information with trust and make the enterprise intelligent.

Chapter 10: Drones

This chapter provides an overview of the drones technology, various types of drones, and its ability to capture visual data for further processing. It also discusses the risks imposed by this technology, its application, and some of the typical use cases across business processes and industries where drones have the potential and ability to make the enterprise intelligent.

Chapter 11: Virtual Reality

This chapter provides an overview of the virtual and augmented reality technology and its ability to create a computer‐generated immersive experience for a user or augment new layers of information in the real world. It also discusses the architecture and technology components required, commonly used platforms, and some of the typical processes across industries that are potential candidates for AR/VR use cases to make the enterprise intelligent.

Chapter 12: 3D Printing

This chapter provides an overview of the 3D printing technology, the steps required to execute the printing process, some of the benefits and challenges around the technology, and the application areas. It also discusses the methodology for adoption and some of the typical use cases across industries to make the enterprise intelligent.

Chapter 13: Big Data

This chapter provides an overview of the big data technology, its ability to enable agile business decisions based on information visibility, and analytics capabilities. It also discusses the technology components and the architecture involved along with the use cases and opportunities across industries to make the enterprise intelligent with data‐driven insight.

Chapter 14: Analytics

This chapter provides an overview of analytics, the various categories such as descriptive and predictive capabilities, and the components that can be leveraged. It also discusses the methodology and various tools and techniques that can be used along with the use cases and opportunities across industries to provide meaningful insights and make the enterprise intelligent.

Part IV, Digital Infrastructure, highlights the importance of infrastructure services such as networking, computational power, and cloud functions that are required to support innovation and facilitate the delivery of intelligent technologies. It also provides a perspective on the integration and collaboration tools that an enterprise can leverage to communicate and connect the applications with each other and with the outside world.

Part IV contains the following chapters:

Chapter 15: Cloud Computing

This chapter provides an overview of the cloud deployment models, cloud computing attributes and benefits, the cloud transformation and migration framework, the enterprise's roadmap and strategy to move to cloud‐based applications, and some of the typical use cases that trigger an enterprise to take the transformation journey to the cloud and make the enterprise intelligent.

Chapter 16: APIs

This chapter provides an overview of the APIs that act as building blocks to allow enterprises to leverage the data and services in the digital ecosystem. It also discusses the architecture, business strategy, roadmap, and API development life cycle to help the enterprise integrate and become intelligent.

Part V, Product Review, provides an overview of SAP Leonardo – a path towards digital transformation and making intelligent enterprises. With the onset and launch of SAP Leonardo, SAP provides the platform for any capability of digital transformation the such as robotic process automation, artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data, and Internet of Things, using the SAP Cloud Platform. The enterprise needs to understand each or any of these capabilities and prepare a business case that is relevant for its business, and this section of the book will enable them to understand the product.

Part V contains the following chapter:

Chapter 17: SAP Leonardo

This chapter provides an overview of the SAP Leonardo framework that connects the enterprise's business processes with emerging technologies, people, and things. It also discusses the architecture, application, and some of the typical use cases across business processes and industries where SAP Leonardo uses a combination of intelligent technologies, digital platform, and an intelligent suite of applications to deliver an intelligent enterprise.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my parents, who have always supported me in my decisions and helped me achieve my goals in life. My upbringing has been instrumental in all walks of my life and helped me to accomplish the things that I have achieved in life today. I respectfully dedicate this book to them.

I would like to convey my heartfelt thanks to my wife, Rajni, and my children, Rishab and Arush, for all their love and support, which made it possible for me to complete this book on time along with my full‐time consulting career with a hectic travel schedule every week. There have been several occasions and weekends during which I wasn't able to provide time to my family and friends because of my engagement and perseverance to accomplish this feat. Without their patience and tolerance, I wouldn't have been able to write and complete this book. A special thanks to the team at Wiley, who provided me with this opportunity and have been very supportive throughout the writing of this book.

I would also like to extend my gratitude to all my readers who took an immense interest in purchasing this book.

Emerging technologies are still evolving and some of them are quite new, for which I have taken a lot of time and effort to ensure that the quality of the book remains high and meets your expectations. My goal is to provide the readers with the right level of wisdom on any of the subjects discussed in this book to become confident and take the conversation to the next level.

PART I

Introduction

CHAPTER 1

Digital Transformation

This chapter provides an overview of the digital transformation and its importance for the survival of the enterprise. It also discusses the factors, impact, value drivers, implementation methodology, and some of the emerging digital themes across business functions and industries that can be leveraged by the enterprise to innovate, create new business models, and become intelligent.

Digital Transformation

Innovation and emerging IT technologies are changing at a very fast pace; the question is – are the enterprises ready to keep up with the pace, jump into the race to digital transformation, and become intelligent in the process?

Before we proceed, let's understand the term digital as used in the context here. It refers to the power of collective information that is generated in the ecosystem and the technology that keeps the customers connected with the business resources. Digital transformation involves the usage of new technologies to drive significant improvements in all business segments. This includes capitalizing on new opportunities as well as effectively transforming existing businesses and technology that enable them. Digital transformation is the state of how promptly an enterprise can cater to the changing customer demands and turn the technology into business outcomes and value.

New IT is about reinventing the enterprise's business by leveraging the exponential power of digital to drive new levels of operational efficiency, innovate new products and services, build new sources of growth and revenue models, be agile in the workplace, and provide personalized customer experience.

The typical barriers for an enterprise to unlock the power of digital transformation include complex business processes, highly customized solutions, stringent policies and practices, business units working in silos within the enterprise, lack of proper infrastructure, the gap in skill sets, and multiple and disparate architectures in the ecosystem.

To overcome these barriers, the digital transformation needs to be driven by the people in conjunction with the business strategy and technology providing the requisite support. Some of the key questions that the enterprise needs to ask and get answers for before proceeding with the transformation are as follows:

How shall I adapt to new digital trends?

How shall I identify new opportunities and business scenarios?

How shall I get started?

How shall I attract new talent from the market?

How shall I incorporate change management?

How shall I convince the stakeholders to approve the idea?

How shall I internally fund and govern digital transformation projects?

How shall I help the employees and business partners get connected through digital means?

Digital transformation enabled by cloud‐based applications and supported by emerging technologies will become the central nervous system of the intelligent enterprise of the twenty‐first century.

What Causes Business Disruption

In today's world, smartphones have become a commodity used by almost everyone. This is a perfect example of disruption, as this device has disrupted thousands of businesses and enterprises. Before the invention of the smartphone, there were cameras to take pictures, alarm clocks for wake‐up, navigation systems in cars for guidance on the road, and video recorders to shoot recordings. Now, all these functionalities and more have been combined in one device and millions of enterprises that manufactured or traded these products as part of their business got disrupted. They either went out of business or changed their line of business.

Smartphones enabled various applications and empowered the consumer to order a taxi, book airline tickets, check the menu of a restaurant, or make a doctor's appointment just by sitting at home, as smartphones have the capability to connect with people and systems all around the world. This innovation has led businesses to become increasingly complex as the individual consumers have now become exponentially powerful with the tools at their disposal. A consumer in today's digital and connected economy can perform tasks that only large enterprise could do some years ago.

If enterprises want to outpace the disruption that is ongoing in the entire world, they need to equip themselves with technology that will help them adapt to the change quickly.

Factors That Influence Digital Transformation

An enterprise would need the cloud computing platform to run a successful digital transformation, as the cloud provides a scalable, flexible, elastic, easily accessible, and cost‐efficient platform to run the business. Without the cloud layer, the enterprise would not be able to achieve the required automation and orchestration for the next layer, known as the data layer, that comprises big data and analytics.

Both structured and unstructured data from the internal ecosystem and the external environment is getting streamed into the enterprise's database, which might be a rational database, a relational database, or nonrelational data sets. This data needs to be transformed into essential business insights so that it can be consumed by the sales, marketing, customer service, R&D, and various product divisions to make informed and smart decisions. In order to get the information, the user needs to access it through the devices layer known as mobility.

In the post–personal computers era, users have the flexibility to work on several devices such as mobile or tablets simultaneously from any location, and this is further intensified with wearable devices such as smart watches, smart tags, and smart glasses from augmented reality. In order to connect these devices and collect the data, the enterprise needs the network layer supported by the Internet of Things (IoT).

Through the use of sensors and other devices, this layer creates a vibrant marketplace by connecting the employees, partners, suppliers, vendors, customers, and the general public with the enterprise business processes. It has been designed for internal and external collaboration to optimize the business processes and create new business opportunity.

All the key elements of digital transformation such as cloud, mobile, data, networks, and connectivity act as building blocks that aid digital transformation for all businesses. The technology is available for the enterprise to adopt and enable new insights, new innovations, and new ways to interact within and beyond the business. The CIO needs to embrace and adopt these changes quickly within the enterprise to stay relevant in the business; otherwise, the professional gets transferred to a purely nonstrategic operations role.

Methods

The enterprise needs to follow one or more of the following methods and practices to rotate to the new IT revolution:

Design Thinking

Agile Approach

DevOps

Lean Practices

Quality Engineering

Automation

Behavioral Development

Data‐driven Innovation

Technologies

The enterprise needs to adopt one or more of the following technologies and architectures to execute the digital transformation:

Robotic Process Automation

Internet of Things

Artificial Intelligence

Machine Learning

Blockchain

Big Data

Cloud Computing

Augmented Reality

Wearables

Analytics

Natural Language Processing

Deep Learning

Microservices/APIs

User Interface

SaaS, IaaS, PaaS

S/4HANA

Quantum Computing

Bioengineering

Cyber Defense

3D Printing

Identity Management

The enterprise needs to recruit the right talent or train the existing resources to use the methods, tools, and technology to successfully deploy digital transformation. Not to mention, the change management and cultural shift that will happen in parallel during the transition. Some of the key drivers that an enterprise should leverage during in its digital transformation journey are depicted in Figure 1.1.

Figure 1.1 Digital transformation key drivers.

Digital Transformation Impact

The digital transformation mapping is the first step where the enterprise needs to identify and prioritize digital opportunities and then plan to execute the initiatives that will address the current needs. This requires creating a business case for change and assessing the impacts of digitalization on the business to ensure that correct decisions and actions are taken towards the long‐term goals of the enterprise.

Digital transformation mapping helps enterprises to create a roadmap for transforming themselves into intelligent enterprises by identifying which digital technology components are a perfect fit within the ecosystem. The following impacts of digitization are evaluated thoroughly, and serve as an input towards determining the transformation mapping.

Enterprise Capabilities

The enterprise needs to evaluate its existing capabilities and the new digital competencies required for transformation.

Technology

The enterprise needs to evaluate its existing technology and infrastructure landscape and see if it is ready to respond to the disruption created by the new technology.

Innovation

The enterprise needs to evaluate its current business model and see if the digital innovation brings in a new revenue stream.

Operational Efficiency

The enterprise needs to evaluate the areas of operational efficiency and improvement through the use of digital technology and then prioritize and focus on those areas.

Growth

The enterprise needs to evaluate if there are any new business opportunities or growth to an existing business that can result through the digitization.

Customer

The enterprise needs to evaluate if there will be any effect on how the enterprise runs its business with its customers after incorporating digital technology.

Competition

The enterprise needs to evaluate its competitors in the same industry on how they are incorporating the digital trend and what the response strategy of the enterprise should be. Any new player entering and disrupting the market with the aid of digitization needs to be considered as well.

Value Drivers

Here are some digital transformation activities that an enterprise needs to undertake driven by value drivers and potential opportunities.

Time to Market

This helps the enterprise to get incremental sales by reducing the time to launch its product in the market. Some of the transformational activities to achieve this feat are listed below.

Adopt agile project implementation methodology to accelerate the delivery of the product.

Improve the predictability of the development life cycle.

Implement standardized DevOps processes for better team cohesion.

Improve the performance of release planning.

Innovation

This helps the enterprise to get incremental sales by innovating and adding new products in the portfolio. Some of the transformational activities to achieve this are listed below:

Draw a visionary product roadmap.

Transform the role of the product owner.

Continuously adjust to the customer's new requirements and feedback.

Aim to improve customer satisfaction for product success.

Establish DevOps culture within the enterprise.

Enhance DevOps communication and alignment within multiple cross‐functional teams.

Increase forecast accuracy of delivery to end users.

Increase timeline planning accuracy for future upgrades and releases.

Quality

This helps the enterprise to get incremental sales by providing quality products and deliverables, leading to higher customer satisfaction, fewer rejection rates, and repeat purchases. Some of the transformational activities to achieve this are listed below:

Enhance quality effectiveness.

Establish, standardize, and enforce code guidelines.

Remove code that does not comply with the standards.

Systematically conduct code guidelines.

Drive developers towards self‐quality management.

Reduce the sprint timeline with less rework and waste.

Automate the test efforts to minimize human errors.

Improve the testing quality.

Operational Efficiency

This helps the enterprise to reduce operational and research and development expenses. Some of the transformational activities to achieve this are listed below:

Adopt agile practices and prioritize using business value.

Monitor and measure the output per resource.

Enhance value delivered by the IT team to automate the operational processes.

Digital Implementation Methodology

The digital transformation involves strategic decision‐making capabilities, innovation platform, technological capabilities, organizational capabilities, project management, and stakeholder engagement from the enterprise. Below is the methodology with implementation phases that has been proven at multiple enterprises for their digital transformation enablement.

Opportunity Assessment

The enterprise should conduct the following activities during this phase:

Identify the enterprise's strategic objectives.

Assess the enterprise's industry trend.

Assess the enterprise's competitors and entry barriers.

Assess the customer's demands.

Brainstorm innovation ideas as applicable within the enterprise.

Conduct innovation and new business opportunity workshops.

Evaluate the data requirements.

Evaluate the enterprise ecosystem.

Evaluate the technology and application landscape requirements for the digital transformation.

Assess the current organizational structure and operating model of the enterprise.

Identify the stakeholders supporting the transformation.

To‐Be Enterprise Model

The enterprise should conduct the following activities during this phase:

Identify the new IT business model that would support the digital transformation for the enterprise.

Identify the strategy and governance model for the transformed enterprise.

Assess the target technology requirements.

Conduct the change impact analysis.

Identify the vendor and products with the selection criteria.

Create the to‐be organization structure and operating model for the enterprise.

Create the transformation roadmap and get it validated by the stakeholders.

Mobilization

The enterprise should conduct the following activities during this phase:

Develop a business case supporting the transformation.

Map the current business processes, operations, and systems with the target structure.

Prepare the pilot program for the new IT implementation.

Identify all the security requirements around the new technology.

Assess the knowledge and skills required for the program.

Ensure stakeholder engagement and two‐way communication channels.

Set up the PMO office and mobilize the project team.

Design

The enterprise should conduct the following activities during this phase:

Design innovative products using digital tools and technologies.

Develop the key performance indicator metrics and scorecard.

Refine the prototype model to achieve the implementation objectives and timeline.

Create the technology blueprint and architecture document.

Create the implementation project plan.

Define the organizational structure and critical business processes.

Create a detailed transformation roadmap for the development activities.

Implementation

The enterprise should conduct the following activities during this phase:

Streamline activities using digital solutions such as cloud, mobile, analytics, automation, etc.

Plan to continuously improve the prototype and implementation.

Develop the coding.

Conduct the unit and integration testing of the new technology.

Ensure it passed the user acceptance test.

Ensure any changes to the code are approved by the change control board.

Ensure that the expectations of the stakeholders are met.

Ensure on‐time project delivery maintaining the quality standards.

Customer Engagement

The enterprise should conduct the following activities during this phase:

Test the product with the customers and take feedback for improvisation.

Engage the customers through a digital medium such as social media or a personalized message on mobile.

Make the products available online and at stores to cater to the full supply chain spectrum.

Address the queries of the customers using digital tools such as chatbots and self‐service payment options.

Transition

The enterprise should conduct the following activities during this phase:

Assess the digital infrastructure status for the entire ecosystem of the enterprise.

Transition the service to the shared services or the IT team depending on the enterprise organization structure.

Launch the technology for the transformation.

Implement change management with the transition of organizational roles and responsibilities to support the new IT.

Deploy the training courses for the business and IT users.

Improve operational efficiency and effectiveness through the deployment of a digital platform and supporting tools.

Emerging Technology Heatmap

In order to become intelligent, the enterprise needs to evaluate all the emerging technologies against industry trends, business relevance, technical feasibility, and the overall ecosystem. The enterprise should then identify and classify those emerging technologies into the following:

Immediate Deployment

Those that have the highest priority and biggest impact and should be implemented right now. Based on the current situation, some of these emerging tools, technologies, and methods include the following:

Artificial Intelligence

Big Data Analytics

Internet of Things

Smart Sensors

Robotic Process Automation

Cybersecurity

Chatbots

Agile Development

Cloud Computing

Short‐term Deployment

Those that have broad application and should be on the horizon to be implemented in the next one to three years. Based on the current situation, some of these emerging tools, technologies, and methods include the following:

Predictive Analytics

Fraud Detection

Machine Learning

Natural Language Processing

Identity Management

Industry‐Specific APIs

Blockchain

3D Printing

Industrial Robots

Simulation Modeling

Connected Home

Design Thinking

Edge Computing

User Experience

Long‐term Deployment

Those that should be considered as part of the enterprise's long‐term technology strategy and roadmap to be implemented in the next three to five years. Based on the current situation, some of these emerging tools, technologies, and methods include the following:

Activity Streams

API Orchestration

Behavioral Analytics

Bioinformatics

Content Analytics

Equipment Telematics

Smart Contracts

Solar Power Generation

Augmented Reality

Autonomous Vehicles

Intelligent Process Automation

On‐Demand Business and Technology Services

On‐Demand Scalability

Virtual Reality

Drones

Emerging Digital Themes by Industry

Every enterprise within a specific industry needs to define its emerging digital themes that they would like to implement as part of the digital roadmap for the future. This would require understanding the business trends within the enterprise's industry, current technology trends, product or service innovations, IT architecture with its integration into the enterprise's ecosystem, organizational strategy towards industry disruptors, and the roadmap towards a successful implementation. Some of the key emerging digital themes by industry are listed below:

Consumer Packaged Goods

There will be a need for the consumer packaged goods companies to drive growth and profit simultaneously by managing the volatility in the market caused by potential disruptors through digitalization. Consumers are rapidly changing their expectations towards products and services, and the enterprise needs to cater to their demands for survival in this competitive market.

The enterprise needs to identify which emerging technologies should be considered as enablers for them to become intelligent. Some of the key digital themes that are emerging from the consumer packaged goods industry and technology trends are listed below for the enterprise to leverage and ride on the digital innovation journey:

Engage the Digital Consumer

The enterprise should be able to understand, connect, and engage with the consumer in new ways. It should develop competencies to understand consumer needs and create its target customers. It should build the infrastructure to manage the increasing communication channels through social media more effectively. The enterprise should aim to provide personal experiences and not just personalized products to maintain long‐term customer loyalty.

Data‐driven Insights to Action

As the number of sources generating the data continues to multiply with the Internet of Things, the amount of data generated from the environment continues to increase exponentially. The enterprise needs to develop an