Germar Schröder

What’s going on in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry? Companies that used to thrive with clearly defined product portfolios are entering one another’s businesses. Erstwhile hardware companies such as Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Xerox have moved into software services. Software companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, and HCL Technologies make smartphones. Companies that used to offshore computer services, such as WiPro, are moving back onshore and competing through the cloud.

The leading companies in the tech industry are reworking their business models to deliver everything-as-a-service. The transition to a digitized business environment is happening with remarkable speed. Companies are gathering and analyzing huge amounts of data, transforming their manufacturing processes with digital fabrication and other technologies, and incorporating the Internet of Things in their products and processes (see “A Strategist’s Guide to the Internet of Things,” by Frank Burkitt).