Podcast: Possible vs practical — Balancing ambition and realism on your digital transformation journey

Jeff Winter has nearly 20 years of experience in the manufacturing industry, with a focus on automation, safety, controls, and OT and IT systems. Jeff became a thought leader in the fields of Industry 4.0 and digital transformation, and has actively participated in industry associations, academic groups, advisory boards, and industry research teams.

Jeff has teamed up with Scott Achelpohl, managing editor of Smart Industry, to create (R)Evolutionizing Manufacturing, a monthly series of chats about how industrials of all sizes and budgets can embrace technology. The two experts plan to cover a range of topics, including digital twins, predictive maintenance, cybersecurity, IT and OT convergence, automation, and much more. This episode examines the differences between the art of the practical and the art of the possible and why both are essential to a successful digital transformation.

Below is an excerpt from the podcast:

SI: At the core of every goal in your personal life or business is being happy with choices, about having the right goal and being satisfied once it's reached. From a manufacturer's perspective, take an example like predictive maintenance, which gathers a ton of data, but is all that data useful and sortable? Set a goal and tailor your data-gathering methods to make sure that the system that you put in place returns the correct ROI. That's a simple goal, but it's an example of a focused vision that means a useful outcome. Imagining your world where the technological advance of PM is used to its fullest. Jeff, tell us more about boundary pushing and defining what's achievable and being inspired by, as you said in your post, the transformative potential of the current industry 4.0 era.

JW: Absolutely, Scott. And when we talk about the art of the possible, we're not just focused on simple upgrades or tweaks to current systems. We're looking at what could be accomplished if we truly embraced everything today's technology has to offer. So, it's about envisioning not only modernization but total transformation. Imagine leveraging Industry 4.0 tools and technologies in ways that will redefine entire processes, and even the way your company creates and delivers value. I mean, we're talking about everything from integrated systems that deliver actionable insights, right to the way that they're needed to use predictive analytics to focus more on completely future seeing stuff in our decision making across all aspects of the business. One thing I like to start out with when I go over this conversation is a powerful tool for guiding companies on this journey. It’s called the Smart Industry Readiness Index, or SIRI for short. And this SIRI, it's an assessment, and it evaluates an organization's Industry 4.0 maturity across 16 different dimensions, each rated from zero to five, where five represents the art of the possible, achieving the absolute cutting edge with today's technologies. So you're aware, right now, the global average hovers around 1.5, which speaks volumes in and of itself, which means we're early in on this journey. But do companies even understand what is possible? From my personal experience working with companies, many don't aim for a five simply because they're unfamiliar with what a five looks like, which results in unintentionally capping their own vision and their own progress. We want to help businesses dream bigger, to understand what a five looks like in all of those categories, rather than being constrained by what's familiar to them.

And that's where the World Economic Forum Global Lighthouse Network comes in. And this network, it spotlights the top 172 manufacturing lighthouses. That's the number as of October of this year. And these are the shining examples of digital transformation for manufacturing. The companies that are doing Industry 4.0. They represent the best of the best. They're living examples of what digital success in pushing boundaries really looks like, and companies that have achieved real and measurable results. Now, one thing you'll learn real quick if you start to look at these lighthouses is they're very dispersed in their use cases. In fact, I believe there is something like over 700 identified use cases with over 200 of them incorporating AI, and there are 17 major categories of KPIs, let alone all the subcategories. What this means is basically very few if any of these lighthouses, remember, they're the best of the best, have submitted the same use case with the same KPIs for improvement. This shows you that every industry is different, every company is different, and every journey is different. So, I see these lighthouse factories as somewhere in between the art of the possible and the art of the practical because they're not unobtainable dreams. I mean, they're real use cases proving value that can be done when a bold vision meets practical implementation. But because there's only 172 right now in the world, they’re still the rare exception, not the norm.

Now it's important to remember that the five on that series scale across all these dimensions, it’s not realistic or even necessary, nor should it be the goal of all organizations. And that's where the art of the practical means focusing on what's right for your company, not chasing perfection in every area just for the sake of it. I mean, true transformation isn't about maxing out a checklist but aligning digital initiatives with your unique business objectives and your unique business situations. The art of the practical is all about prioritizing based on purpose by taking stock of current capabilities and defining a clear vision of what transformation will look like and where it will make tangible differences. Because companies can implement changes that not only enhance efficiency but also deliver measurable ROI. So it's not about striving to be a lighthouse just to be a lighthouse. It's about setting realistic goals, achieving them with intention, and continuously evolving in ways that make sense for your business.

SI: We talked before the program about how best to frame the art of the possible and the art of the practical. And we kind of boiled it down to basics by asking ourselves two very, very essential and elemental questions. Do me a favor and tee these up for us like a three wood on the back nine at Pebble Beach. What does good look like, and what is holding people back and companies back?

JW: This is a good question. And to answer the question ‘what does good look like?’ it's essential to recognize that there isn't a one-size-fits-all answer in Industry 4.0. I get asked this question all the time, and you have to remember that every organization's journey and their goals are unique. So there's no single model for good that applies universally. I mean, if you look at those World Economic Forum Global Lighthouses, which represent some of the most advanced factories in the world, we even see that among those 172 leading facilities, like I mentioned earlier, there's a huge variety in what they do and how they do it. So these lighthouses, like I said, over 700 proven use cases in 172 lighthouses. That means that some of them have even done more than one use case in each one. So, this is a way of showing that diversity reinforces that good isn't about replicating what someone else has done. Every industry, every company, and even every facility may require a different approach.

So instead of trying to copy and paste from other companies, we need to focus on, you're going to hear me keep saying this, your unique business objectives, your operating environment, and even your competitive landscape. Good should be defined by the impact digital transformation has on what matters most to your organization. Whether that's improving efficiency, whether it's enhancing customer experience or reducing downtime, or creating entirely new revenue streams. Ultimately, the journey to good is about identifying the right use cases and the associated right KPIs that align to your company's vision and continually adapting as needs evolve, and you learn more through going through this transformation. It's about crafting a road map that reflects both the art of the possible and the art of the practical, and balancing both bold aspirations with achievable measurable steps forward. Unfortunately, it's never the answer that people want. They want a very specific answer for this is exactly what good looks like. But I can give you hundreds of examples of what it could look like and none of them may be the right match for your company.

About the Podcast
Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast offers news and information for the people who make, store and move things and those who manage and maintain the facilities where that work gets done. Manufacturers from chemical producers to automakers to machine shops can listen for critical insights into the technologies, economic conditions and best practices that can influence how to best run facilities to reach operational excellence.