Council Post: The Pivotal Role Of Technology In A Range Of Industries

Matt Maher is Founder of M7 Innovations where he guides brands through the evolving media and technological landscapes of AR, VR, and Voice.

This past year was an equalizer for our collective behaviors, forcing us all to shift both our way of life and perspective. This is not only true for individuals but also for organizations, which had to pivot how they engage with the public and ultimately provide their goods and services — from retail and restaurants to education and the general workforce. And if there was one constant supporting all of this change, it was technology, hands down.

As we enter a new year, we’re still unpacking the long-term implications of how technology and organizations will continue to evolve together. So when I look at key areas of change, I group them into buckets so that there is logical crossover and synergy among the technologies being used. Based on my experiences, these are key areas where we’ll continue to see advancements — and adaptations — with technology that will have far-reaching effects.

Retailers And Restaurants: Engaging With Voice Technology And Augmented Reality

Voice technology will become one of the most important ways for brands to reach and engage with consumers, as it will connect physical retail spaces with online shopping and e-commerce. But in order to do it right, retailers will need to establish an ecosystem that connects consumers’ devices, such as voice assistants (for example, Alexa), hearables (for example, AirPods) and smartphones, to provide the best customer experience.

From a consumer perspective, digital wayfinding will catch on quickly with the adoption of hearables. Imagine walking into a Walgreens and asking Siri or Alexa where your favorite soap is and immediately getting an audio-guided response to go to aisle five, and boom, you’re good to go. But as I mentioned above, this seamless experience will only be effective if retailers successfully connect all of the (voice ecosystem) dots.

Click over to augmented reality (AR) and how it’s helped restaurants, fast-casual dining and other foodies pivot to stay in the game. The ability to place a high-fidelity dish on your kitchen table via AR isn’t just engaging, but science says it triggers a craving. This is just one arrow in restaurants’ marketing quiver as we’ve also seen them deploy other smart techniques, from offering delivery deals and touchless menus (a la QR codes) to dining igloos and blowing up their social media. These innovations aren’t anything to sneeze at; they’re defining how it’s all gonna go down from here. With AR, there’s been a clear ROI, and it’s been a fun experiment that bigger brands will really get behind this year.

Education And Employment: Meaningful Connections Through IoT And Virtual Reality

The one thing that ties together learning and working is the (lack of, or missing) interpersonal, in-person connections that we all took for granted. Enter the creation of data-driven, shared spaces. By retrofitting and redesigning these communal environments with IoT devices and sensors, the anonymized data they collect will give insights into the behavior and traffic patterns of people. So, for instance, you’ll be able to know when the restroom is vacant or when the best time is to grab food from the cafeteria, all via a real-time push notification to your smartphone. It’s all about occupancy and avoiding any unwanted or unneeded personal interaction.

When it comes to education, virtual reality (VR) will be a tool schools and universities adopt to enhance learning and engagement. Instead of staring at a computer screen all day, users will learn by seeing and doing, which can provide an incredibly rich experience in the absence of in-person learning. With VR, students can be completely immersed in the lesson to visit ancient sites or even train to become a surgeon. It bridges the divide between our physical and virtual realms, and while it’s not a new technology, it’ll be adopted at scale this year by educational institutions around the world.

One last thing about the future of work: Hybrid work environments will become a big part of our life. Microsoft owns both the hardware/software rails with its PCs and Microsoft 365 (for example, Teams, Outlook), which is a pretty notable nail in the coffin for Zoom and Asana. And when it comes to verticalization, Dell just announced it will create a dedicated Microsoft Teams button on all of its upcoming displays. That’s the physical manifestation of entering into the virtual world, and I believe Microsoft is poised to own it. It might be nice to finally have one solution we can all get behind.

Technology helped us get through 2020, and we’re going to see how our changing relationship with it continues to unfold over the next several months and what that may mean for years to come. What we’ve seen so far has been an abrupt, dramatic change in the way we use technology, so I think there are more surprises for us just around the corner. Until then, stay safe and be well.

Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?