Innovation is no easy task, yet we all know that companies must evolve to stay ahead of the competition. Seeking to transform the customer experience, improve operational efficiency, create a new service offering and ultimately improve revenues, business leaders are turning to data to unlock the doors to growth. Just don’t mistake access to information for innovation. The Internet of Things (IoT) can doom your business if your information is not “actionable.”

It’s easy to infer that better information will lead to better outcomes, right?

There’s a concept in the military called situational awareness: recognizing the critical information in your surroundings – team, terrain, assets, opportunities and threats – in order to take decisive, informed action in potentially volatile conditions. It seems like a simple concept, but this ability to act requires more than just training. Athletes have highly attuned situational awareness, too. In team sports, you have to understand where everyone is around you. When you see the whole field, you can make on-the-go decisions as the game ebbs and flows about whether to run, pass, or take a shot on goal. When applied in the business world, understanding the bigger picture can yield transformative operational efficiencies by connecting the right people in the right place with the right information in real time.