Smart ways to future-proof your business

AS Singapore embarks on its journey to becoming the world's first Smart Nation, companies are slowly catching on to how technology is able to empower their businesses.

Vivian Balakrishnan, who oversees the Smart Nation programme, recently mentioned that emerging technologies, including data analytics, real-time monitoring and artificial intelligence, are leading to breakthroughs in the production of services and goods. Organisations today are also thinking about the future. Most of the time, they are asking a variation of the same question: What can we do to better prepare ourselves for the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead?

We often refer to this concept as future-proofing, a reference to the steps that organisations can take to better position themselves for what lies ahead. Future-proofing is not new, but it is nonetheless fraught with misconceptions. Make no mistake, ensuring that the organisation is prepared for the future is and always will be a critical part of any smart IT strategy, especially in today's fast-moving, data-driven world. Like anything else though, there is a right and wrong way to go about it.