Product and platform investments unlock capability-driven scale As digital maturity advances, organizations evolve towards a capability-driven model that emphasizes workforce enablement and platform-based collaboration. Here, the focus shifts from central governance to developing enduring, cross- functional capabilities within domain teams – often through digital academies or hub-and-spoke learning networks. Persistent cross-functional teams become the engine of scaling-up, combining IT and operational expertise to deliver solutions that can be adapted across diverse production sites and supply chains. The “hub” consolidates scarce digital talent and accelerates innovation, while “spokes” replicate proven solutions through a structured train-the- trainer approach. This archetype is especially effective for networks with heterogeneous equipment and process landscapes, where human capability, not technology uniformity, determines scaling-up speed. Schneider Electric exemplifies a capability-driven model by embedding circularity and talent transformations into its academy-based, hub-and-spoke capability-building programme (Figure 34).59 Fully rewired enterprises are capable of technology-driven scale At full maturity, technology-driven scaling- up defines the fully rewired enterprise. Here, transformation becomes systemic rather than programmatic, with enterprise-wide adoption of cross-functional teams and tightly integrated digital architectures. A centralized IT or “intelligent manufacturing department” drives deployment, working directly with business owners and digital translators to embed solutions into daily operations. The focus shifts towards technology standardization, interoperability and data quality – unlocking seamless integration across MES, ERP and cloud systems. Platforms are unified, analytics are democratized and feedback loops between sites enable continuous improvement. This model fundamentally changes how the organization operates, aligning business and IT to deliver resilience, scalability and real-time decision-making. Midea’s technology-driven model is defined by enterprise-wide system integration and cross- functional agile teams – over 20 product owners, 50+ translators, 100+ developers and 160 experts – operating on a unified cloud-edge IIoT architecture (Figure 34).60 Global Lighthouse Network: Rewiring Operations for Resilience and Impact at Scale 51

Global Lighthouse Network 2026