Businesses must remain alert for both future growth opportunities and potential threats. The dawn of advanced technology has enabled, and in many cases forced, quick mobilization into different growth areas, rapid industrialization and wide ranging global expansion. It has also brought profound change, such as improved healthcare, better access to finance and educational opportunities.
And just as businesses cannot afford to ignore the possibilities of these changing times, they also cannot remain unresponsive to the criticism leveled at businesses so often these days. In this new age of globalization—where traditional business models and decades-old ways of working have been turned upside down, there are growing calls for businesses to be more open, responsive and transparent about the investment decisions they are making and the impact they may have on society more widely.
To be truly successful, measured by both the bottom line and the wider court of public opinion, businesses need to ask themselves “what role will technology play in shaping the kind of future that we want for our organization?” Growth depends on more than just selling a successful product or service. It needs to incorporate diversity of thought to make the very best use of the latest technology; it needs to listen to critical voices; and it needs to make the right choices in how it invests in its future.
Technology is a great lever of positive change
We are at a juncture where the focus on what business does and how it delivers is stronger than it has been for some time. In our recent survey, we found that globally only 58% of finance leaders say that businesses are highly trusted by the public. Businesses need to address this issue and fast. It is the responsibility of businesses to predict what the effect of any change they create will be. This does not mean thinking only of the immediate impact of a new product or service. Businesses have to think beyond that – they have to think of the domino effect of what they are creating and changing. For example, when thinking about the self-driving car the immediate impact will be that someone will no longer be required to drive the car. However, the industry has to identify the wider impact of this change as after all the whole ecosystem built around the automotive industry and beyond will be impacted. Of course, much of this focus will be on preparing for a future that does not yet exist; something that can be hard to explain to the investment community and wider stakeholders.
Being responsive to criticism
Innovation and technological advancements can, at times, be viewed negatively by wider stakeholders and cause anxiety. Criticism can often centre on accusations of rationalization, job cutting and efficiency saving. However, to rebuild trust businesses must create meaningful connections between themselves and society by showing how it is using technological levers to bring positive change and investment in the long-term and build more inclusive, sustainable growth.
Putting people first
In my experience, an organization’s people should be at the heart of the technological transformation, not an addendum to it. Technology can provide an opportunity for people to reskill and upskill in areas like AI or coding for example. In my own profession of audit, technological advancements mean that our people are actually freed from the more mundane tasks because those are now being handled by technological processes like RPA, allowing them to focus on the more interesting aspects of their role. For any business, their people are their biggest asset and strongest champions, so how they drive positive change through their corporate culture and ethos is critical.
Technology does not have to be threatening after all. Many of you will remember a time when the automation of the car manufacturing industry was regarded as the death knell for the industry. However, look how it has thrived and the industry is now one of the leading proponents of utilizing the very latest in AI.
Source: EY
