ASSA ABLOY believes that product leadership, with the constant flow of innovative new products and services to the market, is the single most important source of organic growth. This is especially true in the connected society where competition in the Internet of Things (IoT) is fierce.

“Product leadership means being the best when it comes to solutions – doing something that no one else has done before or in a way that no one else has done before,” says Åsa Christiander, director product management, Shared Technologies. “And if you want to be in the lead you have to be first.” 

Shared Technologies is a central ASSA ABLOY function responsible for the development of common group platforms and interfaces. 

“Some products need to be local, because there are different regulations and standards in different parts of the world,” says Åsa. “But when it comes to software, we can do that on a global basis, so we try to get synergies on the technology level and then we diversify the products.” 

Product leadership means being the best when it comes to solutions

There are six global platforms currently available or in development by Shared Technologies. Some, like the recently developed Accentra, a cloud-based access control system, is more or less as an end product, with simple variants in color scheme or language available for the different markets. 

Other platforms, like CLIQ, an electronic cylinder technology first developed 15 years ago, are more like back-end technologies that can be used by different divisions and companies within the Group for many different products. 

Many of the newer global platforms being developed are targeted at the area of interconnectivity and information, such as Connected Homes and Information Services, which is basically the Internet of Things but for ASSA ABLOY’s universe. They include products that can remotely control who is coming into people’s houses. 

Creating global platforms helps share the burden of development across the divisions. It makes development cheaper and also, in many cases, faster, especially when it comes to adding new solutions onto the platform. 

“Without a platform you would have to run the whole race all over again when you come up with a new idea,” says Åsa. “And the world is moving faster. So in regards to product leadership, if you want to be first, then you have to be fast.” 

Global platforms: CLIQ, Aperio, Hi-O, Accentra, Seos, Connected Homes and Information Services.