SMEs and IoT

IoT is not a reason to invest. Your goals are.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) represent about 90% of global business and more than half of employment worldwide. They play an acutely important role in the global economy.

About 90%
of global business is made up of SMEs
Over half
of employment worldwide comes from SMEs

IoT technology can help SMEs improve their operations, increase their productivity and efficiency, or even reduce their environmental impact. But SMEs need clear goals when it comes to implementing it.

Jumping on the IoT bandwagon because it is a trend is not a good reason to invest in this technology. Instead, businesses should carefully consider how IoT can help them achieve their specific goals and improve their operations. This is where strategic thinking helps.

The method

What is strategic thinking?

Strategic thinking is a process that analyzes and evaluates a situation or problem in order to develop a plan of action that will help achieve a specific goal.

It means looking at the big picture, considering all the factors that could affect the outcome, and making decisions based on a thorough understanding of the situation.

It also requires the ability to think critically and creatively, evaluate options, and decide based on the best available information. It is a key skill for leaders and managers, because it helps them make informed decisions and develop effective plans of action.

A robotic hand holds a tablet with a glowing model of city skyscrapers rising from its screen
IoT can offer plenty of advantages to medium-sized enterprises.

Why it matters

Why is strategic thinking important for IoT?

You must understand where your business is headed and how IoT could impact your company. It is not as easy as it sounds, and it takes a lot of time. This is why working with strategic thinking is so important.

Based on the 5 whys, these are the strategies you need to define:

Corporate strategy

The what and the where. What do you want to achieve, and where is the focus you will use to develop that goal? Define your long-term vision and your corporate value.

Business strategy

The how of the equation: how are you going to achieve the goals your corporate strategy defined?

Decision-making strategy

When you have to make an important decision in your business, you need to conclude what is most beneficial for you.

Business analysis strategy

It helps you understand the root causes of the problems you will encounter, through observations, process flow analysis, interviews and the 5 whys.

What's next

You chose a strategy: what comes next?

Once you have a thinking strategy for your business and want to apply it to IoT, research what you need for your project and who the right partners are.

Partners matter because trying to make everything on your own is not going to work, unless you are a big company. Developing each of the things your project needs, at minimum the hardware and the software, takes very expensive expertise and thousands of hours.

Building it all yourself

  • Very expensive expertise for the hardware and the software
  • Few IoT specialist profiles on the market
  • A complete team of expert developers, unaffordable for most SMEs
  • Thousands of hours

Starting from an IoT platform

  • Premade features and customizable functions
  • Time and money saved compared to developing from scratch
  • Works with a variety of hardware devices
  • Expert support and guidance

The solution

IoT platforms as a solution

An IoT platform is a software solution that helps businesses implement and manage IoT technology in their operations.

IoT platforms typically provide a range of features and tools, such as device management, data storage and analysis, and integration with other systems. They allow businesses to connect, monitor and control a large number of IoT devices, and to collect and analyze the data those devices generate.

That helps businesses gain valuable insights and make more informed decisions, improving their efficiency and productivity. IoT platforms are used in a variety of industries, including manufacturing, retail, transportation and healthcare.

Thinger.io

Thinger.io is a software platform that helps businesses implement IoT technology in their operations. By using premade features and customizable functions, businesses save time and money compared to developing their own solution from scratch.

Thinger.io works with a variety of hardware devices, providing actionable insights that help businesses make informed decisions. The platform is designed to be affordable and accessible, even for students, and the team offers expert support and guidance to help businesses get the most out of their IoT projects.

Plans start with a free Cloud account for prototypes; the Small plan, a dedicated instance, is meant for developers, startups and IoT lab testing. See Pricing.

Contact an IoT expert

For more information on your IoT project, contact an IoT expert from our team or check the plans.

Talk to an IoT expertSee plans