The Internet of Office

October 3, 2016

A digital rendering of an automated office lounge

Smartphones, smartwatches, smart glasses: we are surrounded by intelligent, data-driven technology aimed at optimizing every area of our lives.
Yet a gadget is just the beginning of this expansive, sometimes complex relationship. Its real potential lies in the network of relationships that emerge among these devices. Connected, smart devices and their attendant applications represent the next big leap in human-computer interaction: the intelligent workplace.

What is the intelligent workplace?
For a moment contemplate the role of your Smartphone in your average workday. It is your portable office — you can check email, edit documents, and monitor performance from anywhere. Beyond those basic functions, a host of applications have surfaced to meet certain professional needs. Smart devices enable you to crowdsource important information in real time, get directions to your next meeting straight from your smartwatch, or receive a notification that you’ve exceeded your budget limit for the ongoing month. In effect, the infrastructure of the smart office — smartphones, wearables, and applications — is already in place. All that’s missing is the foundation to bring it all together.

It is here that businesses have a unique advantage. Companies, like salesforce.com, have started creating products that span multiple devices and provide a platform for building custom apps that integrate existing products and services.
So what will the smart office look like? Let’s take a look at four key areas.

Collective intelligence
Imagine having access to your entire organization to answer a customer question or give feedback on a new marketing idea. While two heads are better than one, 100 heads working together can change the world. Connecting people across your company enhances accuracy and productivity. If a social media manager gets a question about her product’s API, she no longer has to fumble for a documentation page; instead, she can reach out to the product team (via Chatter, in some cases) for an answer within minutes. You can connect the right person, at the right time, no matter where you are.

Connected products
In the past, the first sign of trouble came when a product broke down; today, each component of a smart device can monitor its condition and alert technicians when service is required. Connected products can also offer unprecedented insight. Disneyland is replacing traditional tickets with MagicBands, smart bracelets that serve as a visitor’s ticket and payment method while also tracking her spending habits, movement, and wait times for rides. Using this data, park managers can control traffic and develop targeted marketing campaigns.

Connected environments
Devices like Philips’s hue light bulbs and Google’s Nest thermostat turn a smart office into an intelligent ecosystem. Office managers can crowdsource the optimal workplace temperature (imagine: no more fights about whether it’s too hot or too cold!) or notify a sales rep that his next appointment has arrived. Similarly, sales reps in the field can map nearby prospects and monitor recent activity on different accounts.

Business Intelligence
A smart workplace also helps make sense of broad swaths of data, presenting only the most pertinent and actionable insights to employees. When you open your business app on your mobile, you don’t see your entire calendar, just a list of the day’s events and tasks. When you research a prospect, you see her most recent activity rather than a flood of superfluous information. Your performance analytics are carefully curated and delivered to a dashboard at your phone. Instead of a burden, your data becomes a competitive edge.

As devices continue to connect us, we are becoming part of much more than an office. It’s time to start thinking strategically about how to bring your company and your workplace together for an unprecedented degree of sophistication and intelligence.