Wearables At Work: Early Adopters Will Win - InformationWeek

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Comments
Wearables At Work: Early Adopters Will Win
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glenbren
50%
50%
glenbren,
 User Rank: Ninja
6/29/2014 | 11:49:06 AM
Re: Too Much Information
Imagine also companywide fitness challenges, wherein employees wear activity-tracking devices that sense their movements and transmit their progress to a central display. Such friendly competition adds fun to the workday and promotes worker health, potentially reducing an organization's medical costs.

I can't think of anything that would add LESS fun to my workday than having to wear an activity-tracking device, pitting me against my fellow employees and displaying my progress for all to see! There's enough competition in the workforce already, just let me do my work and leave me alone!
SaneIT
50%
50%
SaneIT,
 User Rank: Ninja
6/24/2014 | 7:34:43 AM
I think wearables will shine in a few key industries
"Businesses whose operations include high-risk activities or emergency services are strong candidates for wearables. Glasses containing instruction videos or documents become especially valuable to workers repairing bridges or oil rigs, as the Deloitte report notes. Ambulance drivers and firefighters benefit, too. They're never hands-off, yet they can look up anything they need, connect to hospitals and backup crews, and monitor their own health and safety. "

 

I think this is a good summary of where wearables will excel.  Years ago there was a demo video done with a mechanic replacing engine parts using a heads up display on a wearable computer.  The parts were all done with an overlay and he was given a step by step set of animated instructions.  This type of application would remove a lot of human error or "best guess" methods of work.  It would be incredibly useful for emergency personnel as well.  Imagine firefighters going into a dark and smoky building with a HUD that overlays thermal imagery or building maps.  Aside from that I know that I've had times that I wouldn't mind being able to remove a large monitor from my desk and exchange it for something like the Google Glass display.  

 
GAProgrammer
50%
50%
GAProgrammer,
 User Rank: Ninja
6/23/2014 | 4:55:31 PM
Not to mention...
About 90% of the wearables hype is PERSONAL not professional. There are a few edge cases for business/organizational use for wearables, but let's be real. The hype is way bigger than reality - Nike figured it out and already bailed.
Kristin Burnham
100%
0%
Kristin Burnham,
 User Rank: Author
6/23/2014 | 3:36:47 PM
Too much?
The level of security and privacy will be the sticking point for many people. When does tracking go too far? How much data is too much? 
zaious
50%
50%
zaious,
 User Rank: Ninja
6/23/2014 | 3:14:49 PM
Re: Too Much Information
There are worries about privacy and this is legitimate. Your Gym habits going to your employers database is not something you would always like. 

However, there are benefits in it, too. It may open doors to keep better track many things, workign with some tedious things might become easier. 

Drew Conry-Murray
100%
0%
Drew Conry-Murray,
 User Rank: Ninja
6/23/2014 | 1:00:40 PM
Too Much Information
The future sounds exhausting. I don't want to have my fitness game-ified in the name of lowering my employer's healthcare costs. I don't want to have my day obsessively tracked and monitored and nudged
by an army of "smart" devices. I feel like IoT propopents are trying to tighten the web of relentless analytics. Maybe that's fine for monitoring all the moving parts in a jet engine, but people aren't motors whose efficiency and productivity can be endlessly tweaked.
Shane M. O'Neill
50%
50%
Shane M. O'Neill,
 User Rank: Author
6/23/2014 | 11:37:03 AM
API skills
Are API management skills lacking in most IT departments? Will they become more of a priority now that APIs are key to managing and securing new wearables data?


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