“Elevated.” That’s the word often used to describe the ideal modern shopping experience. “Convenient” is another. I think they’re often one in the same. It doesn’t matter if you’re an operations manager for a c-store, big box store or a luxury boutique, your customers will never rate the shopping experience with your brand as “elevated” if they don’t find it convenient in some way.

Zebra’s acquisition of the Motorola Solutions Enterprise Business in October 2014 is the largest acquisition we have made in terms of deal size and employee integration. We think the acquisition’s lasting significance stems from its impact on the millions of frontline workers globally who need increased capabilities from technology-based solutions to tackle everything that’s now on their plates.

It’s always a fear of the unknown that seems to sideline us, right? We don’t know what to expect, so we start devising all these worst-case scenarios in our head. By the time our minds are done mapping out all these scenarios, we’ve come to believe that whatever we were thinking about doing “isn’t worth the risk.” In business, it’s this fear that stifles innovation, progress, improvement, digital transformation…whatever you want to call it. Not budget.

Depending on where you are in the world, you may be hearing conflicting reports about the current state (and future) of the manufacturing workforce. For example, here in the U.S., some leaders are touting the creation of hundreds of thousands of new manufacturing jobs as a signal of improving economic health. However, this good news is counterbalanced by a stark truth: millions of manufacturing jobs are likely to go unfilled in the next 5-6 years in the country.

I’ve worked on voice projects – and only voice projects – every day for nearly 20 years. I’ve kept this laser focus because I believe, like many others, that voice command technology is one of the most important automation technologies of our time. It’s how we keep people, and therefore business, moving.

If you want to make your vehicle go faster, you might be compelled to put in an engine that will give you more horsepower. But if that vehicle is a 20-year-old minivan with a suspension that can’t handle the extra horsepower, you’re not going to get anywhere, much less get there faster. You must first upgrade the suspension to be able to handle the higher-speed turns or you’re going to have a lot more problems to deal with.

Editor's Note: This conversation was first started by John Wyer in 2021. Steve Mulroy picked it up in 2024 and added some new perspectives and recommendations for your consideration. I know your mail carriers are probably using mobile devices for everything these days – or supposed to be, anyways. Yet, in speaking with them casually, they’ve expressed three concerns about their current mobile technology: 1. Outdated devices or software.

Your frontline workers need AI, and they need it now. They need guidance. They need information. And it’s getting harder to find a co-worker or manager that can provide these things. Everyone’s busy. In fact, in Zebra’s latest Global Shopper Study, 85% of the retail associates surveyed said they believe AI will help them be more productive, and 78% said AI/machine learning would boost efficiency and customer service. Three-quarters said the same for generative AI (GenAI).

Today, business leaders around the world, especially those in charge of consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies, are using artificial intelligence (AI) in their distribution networks and supply chain as part of their constant evolution in such a competitive market. Their main objective in leveraging AI is to obtain more precise and efficient demand management, leading to correct and optimal management of inventories, cost reductions and revenue growth.

When you’re using SAP mobile apps to execute mobile workflows and transactions, I would bet one of the biggest challenges is often a lack of offline capabilities. How many times is your wireless network connection interrupted by a dead spot or a temporary network outage in your facility? How frustrating is it to lose your mobile app session and any data and transactions that you were actively working on when that happens?