IBM Chairman and CEO, Ginni Rometty, said that a new technological era is upon us, one that marries digital business with digital intelligence, called cognitive business. We have talked about IBM’s Watson on the show before, with the appearance on Jeopardy that can potentially help business with vast information gathering ability to help make better decisions. Five key areas where a business can benefit were highlighted by Rometty:

1. Drive Deeper Engagement: Help clients behind the scene for better customer experience.
2. Scale Expertise: Companies spend lots of money training employees, this could be scaled more effectively.
3. Put Learning in Every Product: Build products that adapt to each consumer’s needs.
4. Change Operations: Streamline your supply chain to help margins.
5. Transform How You Do Discovery: From pharmaceuticals to financial industries, research will be the foundation of many many segments will work in the future.
6. “Instead of being disrupted, be the disrupter. I do it inside my own business,” said Rometty. “You will be the disrupter if you choose to do it.”

Ginni Rometty: Forget digital-cognitive business is the future (IBM)