60 Seconds with Mary Lou Bosco, AIM

Mary Lou Bosco

Title: Chief operating officer

Company: AIM Inc.

Location: Pittsburgh, Pa.

Experience: With more than 30 years of experience, Bosco joined AIM in 2006 and was selected COO in 2010.

Modern: Imagine you’re meeting someone for the first time: How would you describe the industry you work in today? What’s the state of the AIDC industry?

Bosco: Our industry is constantly evolving. We develop cutting edge technologies that share the common purpose of identifying, tracking, recording, storing and communicating essential business, personal and product data. Many organizations saw growth this year particularly in healthcare, distribution and logistics. Those in the hardest hit markets such as retail, automotive, aerospace and food service reinvented themselves in other vertical markets. There’s a lot of opportunities for new growth if you have the ability and desire to look outside your comfort zone, be open to fostering new partnerships, and take risks.

Modern: We tend to think of AIDC as bar code scanning and printing. But it’s a much bigger world. What’s the breadth of technologies represented by AIM members?

Bosco: AIM is the global industry alliance for all AIDC technologies. We represent all industries and organizations that use, implement, resell or develop technology, and are essential to enabling adoption, growth and interoperability to those who depend on accurate, available and identifiable data. Our portfolio includes stakeholders of RFID, bar coding and smart devices, and other automatic identification and data capture (AIDC) technologies that are supporting Blockchain, IoT and RTLS applications.

Modern: What’s driving your members’ businesses today?

Bosco: The pandemic brought the importance of traceability front and center and into everyone’s homes. For instance, government agencies on a global basis didn’t know the basics regarding their healthcare inventories including what they had, where it was located or how old it was. With AIDC solutions, these basics can easily be traced.

There’s an increasing awareness among end users regarding the use of advanced AIDC systems driven by increasing digitalization of the supply chain. Overall, we’re seeing an increased demand for automated processes across all vertical markets that can enable businesses and consumers to identify, locate, authenticate and communicate with items in our everyday world.

Modern: Will future growth in your industry come from new industries, new processes or new applications?

Bosco: All the above. Technology is constantly changing. People take for granted the self-checkout at their local supermarket and the ability to view their bank account or track the delivery of an online order on their phone. It’s all about the data and how the data is being collected, used, shared and stored.

Modern: Are there new technologies or new developments you’re watching?

Bosco: AIDC enables IoT and the Blockchain. These are more than just buzz words. We’re seeing increased understanding, acceptance and adoption of these applications in various supply chains including warehousing/logistics, pharmaceutical, food, cannabis and retail. Solutions that allow data to be shared, stored and accessed throughout the supply chain reduces the risk of anti-counterfeiting, improves recall management and safety, and builds brand/consumer confidence.

Modern: What excites you the most about your industry right now?

Bosco: Our technologies will enable the delivery of important, critical products, such as vaccines, that will improve the world’s quality of life and get us back to a real normal instead of a “new” normal. Whether it’s tracking our food supply, our drug supply or even helping monitor temperatures, AIDC technologies are not only collecting valuable information, but also saving lives.