The monetization of highly automated systems in SMEs: A case study

The commercial success of many automated systems stems from the ability to turn high numbers of transactions into revenue. In large enterprises this is typically done with bespoke billing software, tailored to the market of the business. Small businesses do not typically possess the skills to develop such complex systems, and so do not benefit from the efficiencies and revenue assurance that they deliver to their larger competitors. In order to make such bespoke systems more viable for SMEs, the impact on the business' cash flow need to be minimized. This is in terms of both the amount spent, and the period before the investment begins to generate cash for the business. This paper presents a case study exploring the identification and modeling of the business processes and systems required to automatically monetize a service to track vehicles using mobile phone derived sensors. The case-study explores the approach used, its strengths and weaknesses with respect to SMEs, and how it can be improved to minimize development costs and reduce lead-time.