Intelligent CIO Africa Issue 31 | Page 67

t cht lk TECH TALK /////////////////////////////////////////////////// ENTERPRISES MUST BEGIN THEIR JOURNEY TO THE EDGE Morten Illum, VP of EMEA, Aruba, says that, in the search for competitive advantage, it is increasingly clear that every business should be looking in one place – at the edge of their network, where technology and people meet. W here data and processing power were once concentrated in the back-office, now they live at the edge, near the people who are using it – as both employees and customers. This shift has radical consequences for companies in every industry. As a new book, Opportunity at the Edge, from Fast Future – and in collaboration with Aruba – demonstrates, it has the potential to overhaul business models, transform user experiences, and even create entirely new industries that could be worth trillions. At the edge, enterprises can deploy technology to create user experiences that are faster, more dynamic and personalised to individual needs. Edge computing www.intelligentcio.com technologies – from the mobiles that customers use to connect to service, to the sensors that can track activity, and the Artificial Intelligence (AI) that can analyse the data collected in real time – make it possible for every organisation to provide a radically improved level of service. This has implications for all industries and sectors of the economy. In a hospital, it could mean that initial diagnoses are made seconds after someone crosses the threshold. In a school it should allow the classroom experience to be tailored to the learning needs and comfort level of every pupil, supporting attainment and wellbeing. In the workplace it will enable more effective collaboration between people, wherever “ AT THE EDGE, ENTERPRISES CAN DEPLOY TECHNOLOGY TO CREATE USER EXPERIENCES THAT ARE FASTER, MORE DYNAMIC AND PERSONALISED TO INDIVIDUAL NEEDS. INTELLIGENTCIO 67