How IoT is building the smart offices of tomorrow? Smartphones, smartwatches, smart glasses: intelligent, data-driven technology surrounds us and touches every aspect of human life. Lets look at the IoT in Workplace and the Future Smart Office Tech Solutions.
Mobile devices as a result of these trending technologies could not only interact with their human owners but also with each other via connectivity.
That is the reason why your Fitbit Flex fitness wristband can interact with your smartphone via the native app, instead of a Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connection and vice a versa. A typical example is the latest Apple Watch which can answers calls and reply texts messages.
All these latest gadgets marked the beginning of the ‘smart’ revolution and IoT mobile app development.
The basic explanation is that smart devices, homes, automobiles, their real potential, although, depends on the network of relationships between them.
When there is a connection, smart devices and their associated mobile applications represent the next big leap in interactions between things, computing devices and human beings: and the smart office.
The smart office
Everyone is carrying a portable office with them all the time? Yes, it is true. I am basically talking about that mobile device in your pocket that you use most of the time to check and reply your mails, write and/or edit documents, and access the Project Management System.
Lets be clear here that I am talking about your Android or iOS smartphone. It could be the latest iPhone X, an Android phone from any company or the classic OnePlus One.
Realistically, that’s almost what an employer or employee does at the office. However, a smart office can go far beyond that. With a smart office, you can easily navigate to your meeting’s location. For a business person, you can directly provision supply to the warehouse from your small Apple Watch tied to your wrist.
That is to say that humans already have the infrastructure to build an intelligent office. The only seen problem now is they don’t work in unison.
As a matter of fact, this is a unique opportunity for businesses to create products that span multiple devices. It can also give a platform for building custom apps that functions with existing products and services.
According to statistics available online, the smart office market is expected to be valued at USD 46.11 Billion dollar by the year 2023, at a CAGR of 12.94% between 2017 and 2023. The phenomenal growth in smart and connected products combined with IoT services results in the high growth of the smart office market. This is a report provided by Markets and Markets indicates.
Shared online intelligence
The smart office technology helps to make work easier for staffs. For example, smart technology lets an entire cooperation to simultaneously answer a client’s question or even give reactions to a proposed idea. This is the idea of collective intelligence of the smart office.
If you have purchased anything online before you will notice that different customer car representative answers you with the same information when contacted for a problem. Therefore, while using smart office with so many people giving their views on same very thing at the same time, things just can’t go wrong. It enhances a company’s accuracy and efficiency.
An online Chatter is a typical which allows a help desk officer to seek answer to a client’s question from a person in the concerned department without going through the hassle of scrolling through the documentation.
With the assistance of smart things, a staff in your office at the time of the need can link to the right personnel, at the right time, no matter where he or she is at a given point in time.
Connected environments
Smart Devices such as Google’s Nest thermostat and Philips’s hue light bulbs convert a smart office into an intelligent ecosystem.
Do you remember the time of fall when it’s neither too hot or cold to decide the optimum room temperature everybody will feel comfortable working under?
A Smart thermostat with ambient temperature sensors can easily interface with the temperature controller and iron out the issue. In the end, it also saves energy and reduces electricity cost.
If an organisation has a connected workplace, there is better transparency of work between its employee. Team Leads of any department can learn the status of a project in seconds without having to call a team meeting.
You will agree with me that this goes a long way to saves everyone’s time and can do exploits in an agile development environment.
Business intelligence
Basically, as smart devices stay to connect us humans, we are turning into a share of much more than a mere office space.
I think its now time to start thinking advantageously about how to carry your organisation and your office organized for intelligence and an unparalleled grade of superiority.
Internet of Things (IoT) can bring your business, your workplace, and your work and some personal wearables into the future, today.
Connected products
Nothing gives you a 100% productivity, therefore, the biggest problem with product installations is what if they fail to function as expected?
Keep in mind that this isn’t the case with smart devices that can monitor condition of its each component and notify a technician on his smart portable device whenever one of the components fails to function in the product.
Now the question; these products, with so much of data they fetch and report, can their data mining return unprecedented insights?
Smart bracelets now serve as visitors’ tickets and payment instruments at Disney Land, WWE Wrestling, shows at o2 arena etc. They track spectators and visitors spending habits, path, and wait times at rides.
With the help of smart IOT, Park managers control traffic and advert marketers develop targeted marketing campaigns with the same set of data.
Smart furniture
Chairs and desks in an office are a common sight in every company. Moreover, it’s prime function in the office haven’t changed for a long period of time.
However, with IoT you might see smart furniture which would include smart desks in your office.
Thanks to technology, these desks would have the capability to understand the user’s preferences and adjust to it automatically and ease work.
Truly speaking, these desks would increase the overall efficiency of an employee as the minor tasks can be completed quickly with its help.
Applications
IoT enabled workplace solution has various applications: Check the Advantages of Progressive Web Apps; Benefits & Features..
Workplace IoT security concerns
We saw the IoT smart office applications, now let’s discuss about its security concerns.
Usage of IoT devices in the office space does pose some security issues. Let’s discuss this one by one.
If you allow the usage of IoT devices in the offices, then your employees must be aware of its security features.
These devices usually consist of cameras and microphones. Often, these features are basic and can be easily hacked which raises the red flag.
It won’t be a tough job for someone to orchestrate industrial espionage through any of these devices. READ ABOUT: Cloud Security: Best Practices to Secure Your Hybrid Cloud Infrastructure.
Even in the case, someone doesn’t spy on you on purpose, would you risk discussing your big decisions such as big deals or layoffs in the presence of a device that records all the data incessantly?
Moreover, it would be a massive headache as far as the privacy of the employees is concerned. You can go ahead and get more information on Hybrid Cloud Security Risks Challenges and How to fix them.
Intelligent office: a luxury or necessity?
There’s no doubt that IoT in a workplace has a plethora of benefits. However, due to its primitive security features, the consumers have a lot of skepticism about it.
They are always in a constant dilemma of whether they should use it or not. Till now people haven’t figured whether its benefits outweigh its disadvantages or not.
Maybe a few years later, once the security features are well developed, then you would see people embracing the concept of smart office systems with no skepticism.
However, you need to know that IoT-powered offices mean way more than just temperature control or lighting via a smartphone. Meanwhile, get updates on Azure AI: Impacting Artificial Intelligence to your Online Business.
It means quick, efficient, and safe operations which results in better return of investment (ROI).
In the end, it’s always your call to decide for or against it. However, before making a final decision, you must consider that the benefits from an IoT-enabled office can have huge positive results for your business. Thats a benefit for IoT in Workplace.
Conversely, at the same time, you must also think of the fact that installing IoT devices will not cause any hinderance to your employee’s privacy and the overall office environment. Thats he beauty of it.
If you’re in favour of the smart office systems then you must focus on reducing the security risks. We have written an article which contains Healthy Ways to Guarantee Public Cloud Security: Best Practices & Guidelines.
You can do that by hiring an expert team of developers who can build an app of your requirements. But first the steps to follow before Choosing Best App Development Company in Your Region. They are all related to IoT in Workplace – Future Smart Office Tech Solutions.
