018: A New Approach to Smart Cities w/ Hitachi's Theo Scherman

Let's face it, Smart Cities have failed to live up to the hype - and given the additional challenges cities face due to the global pandemic, it's easy to think that it is not going to get better anytime soon. But every now and then, you run into someone who restores your confidence in the industry because not only do they possess a realistic vision for the future, but also a clear and detailed strategy on how to deliver it. Today we are joined by Theo Scherman, Chief Strategy Officer for Hitachi Asia, and he is definitely one of those people. Show Notes: 01:00 From South Africa to Singapore 02:20 What led a serial entrepreneur to join one of the world's largest companies? 04:20 Hitachi Asia's go-to-market strategy 05:30 Hitachi's Smart City/Precinct initiatives – OneBangkok (Thailand) & Bhartiya City (India) 08:00 Commercialising Smart City data – it's not just about saving money, it's about generating new revenue streams 10:00 Hitachi's differentiator – most vendors are focusing on becoming a "Platform of Platforms", Hitachi is creating a "Platform Business Model." This model is normally reserved for consumer brands (e.g. Alibaba, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google), can Hitachi be the first enterprise to create one? 16:00 Moving the target from Smart Cities to Digital Smart Cities 23:00 Does a Digital Smart City concept work for both "greenfield" and "brownfield" cities? 26:00 How Hitachi helps cities that are facing budget shortfalls due to Covid-19 by 27:20 What should cities do to deliver against the Smart City promise? 29:30 What do you understand about being in large corporate today that you wish you understood when you started out?