Dominic Maidment, Unilever: IoT gives supply chains ‘a sixth sense’

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The industry talks plenty about digital transformation, but what real impact does the IoT have on supply chains for businesses like Unilever?

IoT News caught up with Dominic Maidment, Global Lead Enterprise Architect at Unilever, ahead of this year’s IoT Tech Expo Europe to cut through the noise and understand how the IoT is transforming one of the world’s largest companies.

For Dominic, the future isn’t about one single piece of tech; it’s about the creative fusion of several. He speaks with excitement about combining IoT with AI, edge computing, and digital twins, describing it as “like giving our supply chain a sixth sense.”

It’s this blend of powerful technologies that enables new possibilities. “What truly thrills me is how this tech cocktail can drive sustainable innovation,” he says, pointing towards examples of “smarter factories, less waste, and energy use so efficient it would make a kettle blush.”

To make that perfect tech cocktail, all the ingredients need to mix well. Dominic points to one of the biggest headaches in the industry: interoperability. He has an all-too-relatable analogy for it, calling it the “tech version of trying to get all your relatives to agree on dinner.”

It’s a witty line, but one that captures a serious problem. “Without standardisation, we risk a spaghetti junction of devices, protocols, and platforms,” he warns, and that’s before even getting into the security implications of such a tangled mess.

So how do you start to untangle it? A key trend Dominic urges businesses to watch is edge AI. Instead of sending vast amounts of data to the cloud, you process it right where it’s created. “It’s like giving your devices brains at the border,” he explains.

The impact of using AI at the edge is immediate. You get faster decisions, better privacy, and an end to thumb-twiddling while you wait for a response from the cloud. For a business like Unilever, “this could mean real-time responsiveness in manufacturing and logistics, no more guessing games.”

What’s clear from Dominic is that many people often misunderstand what IoT is all about. He’s keen to correct the common misconception that it’s “just a bunch of gadgets talking to each other.” In his view, that completely misses the point.

“In truth, it’s the data that’s the real star captured, analysed, and acted upon.” The devices are just the supporting cast.

He uses another great metaphor to drive the point home, describing IoT as “the nervous system of a smart enterprise.” The sensors are the nerve endings, constantly feeding information back to a central brain that can make intelligent decisions.

At its core, that’s what Unilever is building. It’s “how we turn insight into impact.” The technology isn’t the goal; it’s the vehicle for smarter, better-informed action.

Given the complexity, it’s easy to see why some companies might feel overwhelmed. When asked for his advice on where to begin, Dominic’s answer is straightforward and people-focused: Forget the shiny new toys for a moment.

Instead, he advises, “begin with a business problem, not a tech wishlist.” It’s about finding a real-world challenge and then figuring out if technology offers a smart solution.

Dominic stresses the need to build teams with people from across the business and to always plan for growth. This is how you ensure a great idea can actually work at scale. “We don’t do tech for tech’s sake, we do it to make life better for our consumers and our planet,” he explains.

In the end, it’s a powerful reminder that the most advanced technology is only as good as the human purpose it serves.

Dominic Maidment will be joining other IoT industry experts at this year’s IoT Tech Expo Europe in Amsterdam on 24-25 September 2025. Dominic will be sharing further insights in a panel discussion titled ‘The Future of Digital Twins – Intelligence, Automation, and Beyond’ on day one of the event.