Technology

Bring your people and technology together

Organisations have invested so much in digital transformation that they need to make sure people adopt these technologies and use them to their full potential.

Work with partners to drive value

With CEOs increasingly interested in partnerships, identifying, integrating and managing third parties effectively can help increase speed to market, reduce costs, mitigate risks and supplement capability gaps in delivering the customer promise.

Get closer to customers

Orchestrating compelling customer experiences requires companies to begin with the customer and work backwards, taking an outside-in perspective to reverse-engineer and shape what the experience should be; then, they should adopt an inside-out view to define how the experience should be delivered.

View cyber security as a strategic function

Increasingly, cyber is no longer seen as a tech issue; it’s a fundamental business operation imperative. The exponential increase in cyber attacks, coupled with the difficulty of detecting an attack on time, calls for automation and innovation in dealing with cyber incidents.

Talent

Experiment with ways of working

As organisations launch return-to-office plans, it’s important for CEOs to develop working structures that suit their people. It’s time to experiment and see what works best. Active listening, empathetic communications and a commitment to finding the right balance over the long term will be key. 

Tell your ESG story

A business’s ESG approach is increasingly seen as a differentiator when it comes to attracting and retaining talent. And with 38 percent of CEOs global saying they’re struggling to tell a compelling ESG story, it’s important for CEOs to articulate for stakeholders the steps they’re taking to address ESG in their organisations. 

Build, don’t follow

Organisations and their employees are changing and leaders need to reinvent the enterprise workforce. Gone are the days of setting a 3-to-5-year workforce plan and delivering this plan at the behest of colleagues. The challenge is that there aren’t new playbooks to replace them - yet.

ESG

Recognise ESG’s impact on financial performance

ESG has become integral to long-term financial success. CEOs increasingly agree that ESG programmes improve financial performance, which includes being able to secure talent, strengthen the employee value proposition, attract loyal customers and raise capital. 

Invest in real-time technologies

CEOs should monitor deeper into their supply chain (i.e. at the third and fourth levels). Global supply chain leaders are starting to double down on investing in technology — including real-time, end-to-end analytics — to identify where issues exist and improve visibility across the entire value chain. 

Take the lead on IDE

CEOs can play a powerful role in helping lead and drive the IDE agenda in the years ahead. Moving forward, it’s important to normalise IDE within companies and create a culture of inclusion and diversity across the organisation to attract and retain new employees. 

Build strong connections among functions

Resilient organisations have well-connected internal teams, so for example, ensuring the finance function is aware of what the ESG teams are doing.

CEO gazes into distance while holding mobile phone
Economic and commercial category
CEO Outlook 2022
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