Critical factors for the successful implementation of Industry 4.0: a review and future research direction

Industry 4.0 symbolizes the fourth industrial revolution and the current trend of automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies. The purpose of this article is to examine the research question on how to successfully implement Industry 4.0 in organizations. This study through a systematic literature review protocol proposed by Tranfield, Denyer, and Smart analyzed 84 articles in depth. The descriptive, categorical and thematic analysis of the literature is conducted. This study identifies 10 critical success factors which are necessary for the successful implementation of Industry 4.0 in the organization. Based on the 10 critical success factors 10 research directions in this area is further expounded. This study can be used by the organizations as a guiding factor while implementing Industry 4.0 in their organizations. Focussing on these 10 factors will help organizations to be sustainable during the implementation of Industry 4.0. Though there are some literature reviews on Industry 4.0, this study critically analyses the literature for finding the critical factors for the successful implementation of Industry 4.0.