Are businesses up to speed on IoT?

Many businesses "know that it could have a huge effect if done properly," said Marek, at SADA Systems. On the other hand, he added, "a lot of them are really not sure how it's going to change their business."

The hardware may be "cool toys," Marek said, but a business must focus on the "behavioral change or the actions" that would come out of an IoT project.

Added Rick Jordan, director of sales and strategic alliances at Tenet Computer Group, of Markham, Ontario: "We need to educate a lot of clients … and make sure there's a need for it."

"It's still fairly new to us," he said.