INDIAN INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT, AMRITSAR

ACADEMIC YEAR 2023-24

BATCH – MBA 09

COURSE – EMERGING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES

Course Instructor– PROF. KALPIT SHARMA

Group Activity 1

Case: HomeWise Innovations

Submitted by – Group 6

ANIKET CHATTERJEE- MBA/09/057

ANJALI NANDANKAR – MBA/09/059
ARGHADEEP HAZRA– MBA/09/062

ARNAB NATH – MBA/09/063

RAGHAV KUMAR- MBA/09/086

SHIVAM KARIA- MBA/09/070
UTKARSH TIWARI – MBA/09/103
Question 1. Explore alternative revenue streams and business models for Home-Wise
Innovations' IoT products beyond direct sales.
Ans:
 Partnerships and Collaborations:
a) Utility Companies: Partner with utility companies, insurance companies to create
joint packages or bundles for personalized energy plans. Offer bundled packages with
energy efficiency incentives and rebates.
b) Collaboration with Smart Home Platforms: HomeWise’s thermostat product is
compatible with voice assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant .
HomeWise can partner with platforms like Google Home and Amazon to increase
reach and user base.
 Use based model/ Subscription Services:
a) HomeWise can implement pay as per use model for specific features like energy
optimisation recommendations or remote-control access.
b) Value-added services: HomeWise can offer extended warranties and predictive
maintenance as value added service to their basic offering.

 B2B Sales/ Corporate Partnerships:

a) Explore possibilities of partnering with Corporates who are likely to offer IoT
products similar to HomeWise’s Eco Control as a part of their employee wellness
program.
b) Explore selling “Eco Control” to small scale companies who operate from a small
office space and encourage them to use HomeWise’s device instead of traditional
AC/Room Heater system.
c) HomeWise can nudge Railway Companies to use their IoT device in compartments of
trains for temperature control.

 Data-driven insights: HomeWise has prioritized transparency and user consent, ensuring
that customers have full control over their data and how it is utilized safeguarding
consumer privacy and security. HomeWise can Provide anonymized and aggregated data
analytics to energy providers, insurance companies, and research institutions. They can
sell this data to businesses or research institutions interested in consumer behaviour
patterns, market trends, or smart home usage statistics. However, for all of these User
Consent is a must.

2
Question 2. Assess the competitive landscape for IoT devices and recommend strategies
for HomeWise Innovations to maintain its competitive edge.
Ans:
Assessing Competitive Landscape:
 Security: HomeWise Innovations has implemented robust security measures, including
end-to-end encryption protocols and regular firmware updates to patch vulnerabilities
 Smart device integration like Alexa and Google assistant further integrating with
systems like Google Home via self-coordination
 Interface is user friendly and can effortlessly set personalized temperature schedules,
receive real-time energy consumption insights, and even receive alerts for maintenance
or system irregularities

 Adherence to industry standards like ISO/IEC 27001

 As we can see from the Case facts that HomeWise adheres to industry standards and
consults with cyber security experts to safeguard consumer privacy. They are thinking
about extending the product portfolio to include electronic consumer durables such as
refrigerators, washing machines, and lighting systems in accordance to market trends.
 They can also leverage the data collected from consumers of their devices to understand
consumer behaviour, preferences and buying pattern, which will make them stay ahead
of the curve.
 Lastly, HomeWise’s IoT products like EcoControl is highly differentiated in terms of
features, optimisation option and autonomy to get connected with other systems.

Strategies for HomeWise Innovations to maintain its competitive edge:

 Standardizing Hardware and customizing Software:
Home wise should try to develop those devices that require similar hardware
components while offering differentiation through software. It will lead to a reduction
in not only operational costs but also in after-sales services due to the same kind of
skillset will be needed for the technicians.
 Personalization in Design and Services:
It can also offer personalized products to direct customers as well as to large business
houses for bulk orders through making changes in designs and user interface
 Predictive Maintenance:
They can also provide advanced services by integrating predictive data analytics like
software updates. This will lead to increased trust and loyalty among customers.

3
 Replacement of Physical Parts with Software Parts: They should try to replace
hardware components with high-tech software to reduce the physical component
costs. This will help in providing services remotely.

 Market Segmentation and Tailored Bundling: They should do market research and
analyse that data to clearly define the market segmentation. It will also help in future
market prospects where they can expand their product offerings and can offer
products in bundles to attract more customers at some discounted price point.

 Skill Development of employees: They should try to foster a culture of continuous

learning and growth which will lead to more innovation in the field of the Internet of
Things where technology is evolving daily. It will help increase creativity and
employee morale boost which will result in a highly differentiated product offering

 Customer Feedback: Try to develop a feedback mechanism at several customer

touchpoints to know what they think about existing products, what features they want
in upcoming products they wish to have, and several other product and service-related
queries. This will help in