Innovation is an integral part of technology and engineering, especially in automotive industry. However the automotive segment continues to face a dynamic set of challenges. For those with the right ambition, it represents an exciting times with opportunities to differentiate and stand out from the crowd. With autonomous or self‑driving vehicles, changing ownership and usage models and heightened customer expectations; the industry is on the cross roads and brink of digital revolution that can change the world and can bring significant competitive advantage using Big data Analytics.

In near future, next-generation automak­ers will be evaluated based on the complete­ness of their solution and more five dimen­sions -Electric, Autonomous, Connected, Mobility Services and Information and not only on the basis of the physical, safety and performance characteristics of their vehicles. It’s time for the automakers to come to the information business to visualize an overall process for big data in and around the car for making a world of informed event of car, in personal experience and connected cars.

Technology has transformed automobiles, applications and services grounded in advances from sensors to artificial intelligence to big data analysis. The ecosystem is witnessing a steady influx of new players and the continued evolution of the roles played by key stakeholders and the balance of power among them - of particular interest is the evolving relationship between automakers and software providers.

Data is cheap and dumb. Future and customer expectations can be met if its insight driven organization and not being using it for decision making. And should act upon insights everywhere across the business, making smart, collaborative and transparent decisions that generate value and create competitive advantage by merging data regardless of the format both structured and unstructured – the results are impressive.

The ability to harness data is enabling masses of data to be utilized to form actionable customer segments and individualized offers to bring out the value and power of data, whether customer retention or spend management or sentimental analysis or predictive model.

Connected Cars

Connectivity was never new to automotive rather the business opportunities and market have grown to a different scale. While automotive digital technology once focused on optimizing the vehicle’s internal functions, the computing evolution is now developing the car’s ability to digitally connect with the outside world and enhance the in-car experience. This is the connected car – a vehicle able to optimize its own operation and maintenance as well as the convenience and comfort of its passengers using onboard sensors and internet connectivity.

Humongous opportunity are there to leverage new sources of Big Data to accelerate product design, improve vehicle performance and enhance the driver experience, be it applying statistical models as an approach to spend management or sentimental analysis of the social media data and its impact on the sales and business or making a simulation of real problem or developing an predictive analytics model for forecasting efficiency as well as operations and performance.

Big Data Analytics empowers the traditional model for a detailed data sources, coupled with advanced analytics and enrichment capabilities. Concern of traditional business areas like Warranty Analysis, Predictive Maintenance, Product Performance, Parts Forecasting and Distribution Dealer Satisfaction can be given a completely new dimension.

360 degree Change desired

The connected car is a game-changer for the auto industry and it depends on how effectively OEMs will be able to defend their territory against the tech giants that consider the connected car a key element in their overarching “connected life” growth strategies.

The time calls for reshaping the operating models— incorporating business, IT and an open connection into the entire connectivity ecosystem—to maximize value from connected car solutions.

From a structural standpoint, flexibility to address fast changing market trends, multiple developments to determine their market potential, and partner with relevant 3rd parties to design and develop new innovative offerings is the objective. This ensures that the connected car becomes a strategic focus for the OEM while providing offerings that are relevant to local markets.

From execution side, next gen tech skill in technology development to create new connected car offerings and to manage relationships with end consumers, highly efficient processes and a commitment to open innovation will be required to keep pace with ever-shorter technology innovation cycles and heightened consumer demand for frequent product innovations.

And, from a technology perspective, an open technology architecture including standardized APIs is required to enable the seamless integration of third-party apps and services, while big data, analytics and cloud technologies are vital to creating data-driven services.

To transform these opportunities into company value, auto senior executives need to recognize that connected car solutions go far beyond a simple vehicle option. Excelling in the connected car market requires a totally new business, which means profound changes in strategy, mindset, culture, and operations across the entire organization.