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The Industry 4.0 paradox: Overcoming disconnects on the path to digital transformation

Preparing for digital transformation? Deloitte’s latest survey reveals five key states of play.

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As organizations embark on a digital transformation journey, they should consider multiple questions to help narrow their choices: what to transform; where to invest; and which technologies can be a best-fit for their strategic needs. Industry 4.0 expands the digital transformation opportunities and drives more flexible, responsive, and interconnected enterprises capable of making further informed decisions.

To understand how companies are investing in Industry 4.0, Deloitte conducted a global survey that focused on manufacturing, power, oil & gas, and mining companies. It examined how and where they are investing—or planning to invest; the key challenges they face in making such investments; and how they are forming their technical and organizational strategy around digital transformation.

The survey revealed that while the will for digital transformation remains strong, organizations are still finding a path that balances improving current operations with the opportunities afforded by Industry 4.0 technologies for innovation and business model transformation.

Explore the five key paradoxes that Deloitte's study discloses:

Click the image to view the full Industry 4.0 Paradox report

The strategy paradox
While 94 percent of respondents agree that digital transformation is a strategic priority, only 68 percent of total respondents and only 50 percent of CEOs view it as a critical to profitability.
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The strategy paradox
The supply chain paradox
While supply chain is identified as a top priority area for current and prospective digital transformation investments, supply chain executives don’t have a control on investment decisions.
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The supply chain paradox
The talent paradox
85 percent of respondents agree that their organization has “exactly the workforce and skillset it needs to support digital transformation.” Yet finding, training, and retaining the right talent is cited as the number one operational challenge.
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The talent paradox
The innovation paradox
When it comes to digital transformation, respondents report that their companies are driven largely by improving their current processes, rather than innovation.
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The innovation paradox
Around the physical-digital-physical loop
The growing need to achieve measurable social outcomes
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Around the physical-digital-physical loop

Recent insights from leadership

In these blog posts, Vincent Rutgers, Global Leader of Industrial Products & Construction sector, Felipe Requejo, Global Leader of Power & Utilities and Tim Hanley, former Global Leader of Industrial Products & Construction sector, share their insights around the Industry 4.0 paradoxes and how organizations can tackle them. 

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