However, The Lack of Digital and AI Fluency Among Leaders Delays Adoption

Industry 4.0

The technological disruption, innovation, and exponential growth that most organizations will experience in Industry 4.0 are extraordinary. Industry 4.0, also referred to as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, is the period that we are in now, in which the technologies of Industry 3.0, converge with artificial intelligence systems, cloud computing, the internet of things, and other futuristic technologies that enable organizations to transform business models, operations, streamline processes, solve complex problems, scale and compete in new spaces. The majority of the transformation associated with Industry 4.0 will occur between 2020-2030. Exemplifying the level of disruption,  a recent Gartner 2019 survey reported that almost two-thirds of CEOs anticipate frequent business model change between 2020-2030, as a result of radical digital transformation.

The impact of artificial intelligence in Industry 4.0 will be so profound that Stanford Professor, Andrew Ng referred to artificial intelligence as the new electricity that will revolutionize all business sectors. Today, the vast AI ecosystem has evolved substantially, with hundreds of startups and companies providing enterprise solutions for nearly every industry, with everything from cloud services to cross-infrastructure analytics, machine learning, deep learning, business, and location intelligence to natural language processing and visualization.

Adoption Challenges

The prolific growth of automation and artificial intelligence systems aimed at streamlining back-office processes, improving efficiency,  accuracy, customer experience, and driving performance and competitive advantage extends to every functional area of the enterprise from human resources to marketing, finance, and customer service to sales and operations.  While nearly half of U.S. organizations have adopted at least one artificial intelligence platform, according to a 2019 report on artificial intelligence adoption by  McKinsey & Company, 71% of CEOs expect to increase investments in artificial intelligence systems substantially. However, the elephant in the room, so to speak that may impede adoption is that 75% of business executives believe their workforce, including functional leaders, lack the complex skills, digital acumen, and artificial intelligence fluency needed to implement AI strategies. To succeed in Industry 4.0, organizations need leaders that understand the fundamental business applications of artificial intelligence and are skilled in leveraging new technologies to solve complex business problems, innovate and scale. Therefore, the pressing imperative for CEOs is to mitigate leadership skills gaps that serve as impediments to adoption and successful implementation.

The Big Leadership Skill-Up

The technical disruption of Industry 4.0 is rewriting the rules for leadership and organizational success. As organizations flatten, condense departments, combine roles, automate processes, and use artificial intelligence systems to remove tasks, leadership roles must be reimagined to deliver higher levels of value. Moreover, the pace of change has accelerated and is driving the need for leadership rapid reskilling.   As such, it is critical to develop future-focused leaders capable of leading through volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity with competencies in cognitive flexibility, complex problem-solving, creativity, analogistic and adaptive thinking, advanced analytics, and artificial intelligence business strategies.

Thrive in Industry 4.0

Organizations that thrive in the future will develop leaders that can reimagine the future, master digital, and artificial intelligence fluency, build ecosystems for innovation, manage through radical change, and lead organizational transformation that extends deep into Industry 4.0. The question is, will CEOs pay now or pay later to be resilient, relevant, bold, and thrive in Industry 4.0?

Contributor/Written By:

Dr. Terri Horton EdD, MBA,MA, SHRM-CP, PHR, HCS, SWP

Dr. Terri Horton is a Workforce Futurist and Founder of FuturePath, LLC

Future of Work & AI Business Strategy Expert | Corporate Trainer | Consultant | Speaker

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