Further Industries

For many companies, the use of technologies has evolved from optional to compulsory in recent years. This trend is expected to grow, and the need for innovation will likewise continue to rise. The competitive pressure is so strong that companies will almost no longer be able to survive in the market without solid innovations. This applies to the retail business as well as associations. An innovative approach alone will not be sufficient. What is important is the successful implementation and establishment on the market.
In so doing, each sector, be it the retail business, a consulting firm or administrative organisation, will have to address the requirements of the target group. Most recently, it was mainly the retail business that underwent a major change. Faced with a grim future for a long time, it is becoming to look more optimistic and appears to have emerged from the crisis. In recent years, low investment interest and favourable labour market forecasts have encouraged citizens to go on a spending spree. Most Germans like to go shopping again, not only during a specific season, but year-round. Their focus is on furniture and electronics. One of the major current trends within the scope of cocooning consists in smart upgrades of the living quarters. This trend goes hand in hand with the interest in new furniture.

However, the target groups that account for the lion‘s share of sales in the retail business have changed. It is no longer predominantly a young clientèle that sets new trends and determines the business. Almost all age groups are reviving the retail trade and increasingly also the online trade. For commercial enterprises, this is associated with entirely new challenges. They are required to adjust their business increasingly to the new clientèle.
Especially in the retail business, medium-sized companies are faced with enormous difficulties. These days, it is extremely difficult for medium-sized establishments to maintain their ground against wholesale companies. Even though the sales figures are promising, a number of challenges in the retail business will determine decisions and substantiate the need for innovations and new ideas for instance with regard to marketing.

Although sectors are fundamentally different, significant similarities exist between them. Broadly speaking, the market situation has become more difficult in recent years. Growing competition and a speed that makes it difficult for many companies to implement changes successfully are only two of the main challenges.
Know-how and optimal processes are required to pave the way for innovations. More than ever, the involvement of external experts is vital. Complex structures and the demand for ever broader product and marketing ideas for the product development make it difficult to realize innovations with the pool of human resources only. Furthermore, companies in many sectors are battling a shortage of skilled workers, which is expected to worsen in the coming years. The active collaboration between internal and external employees is the key to realising innovations and new approaches in spite of a lack of skilled workers.
For this purpose, clear structures and an optimized scope of duties are required to create transparency. Aside from the need for qualified skilled workers, companies are faced with another problem. The cost pressure has intensified further in recent years. Companies must operate economically to be able to survive in the markets. Rising energy costs, higher employee expenses and other financial burdens make it all but impossible to implement and establish an innovation for a prolonged period of time. A solid PLM helps prevent operating errors and improve the information exchange. As a result, incurring costs can be contained and reduced.
In addition to the high cost pressure, speed and precision are two requirements companies in many industries are confronted with. For some time now, innovation management has involved more than merely ideas. The focus is on their precise implementation. In so doing, any patents need to be reviewed, special features revised and demands of the target group considered within the scope of the PLM.
Globalisation is the third major challenge of many sectors. On the one hand, it facilitates the development of new markets, but on the other hand it makes enormous demands on the companies. Globalisation makes it increasingly difficult to implement innovations at a reasonable pace. Often the pressure from abroad is such that companies fail in the quest for innovation. To prevent this from happening, information between employees needs to be exchanged efficiently.