Technology
Bring your people and technology together by transforming your corporate culture:
Organizations have invested so much in digital transformation that they need to make sure people adopt these technologies and use them to their full potential.
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. They should then adopt an inside-out view to define how the experience should be delivered.
Choose the right speed and technologies for your digital transformation:
Start with your strategic goals and work back. The scope and speed of change will depend on whether you want to modernize your tech stack or disrupt your business models.
View cyber security as a strategic function:
Increasingly, cyber is no longer seen as a tech issue. It’s a fundamental business imperative. The exponential increase in cyber attacks, coupled with the difficulty of detecting an attack in time, calls for automation and innovation.
Use strategic M&A to bolster efforts:
To open up new markets or acquire talent and new technologies, M&A can accelerate growth and digital transformation efforts.
ESG
Recognize ESG’s impact on financial performance:
ESG has become integral to long-term financial success. CEOs increasingly agree that ESG programs 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:
Companies should monitor their supply chains more deeply (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.
Aim to measure the progress and effectiveness of your ESG initiatives:
Increasing measurement and governance to build a more robust and transparent approach to ESG initiatives is among the top accelerators of ESG strategies (26%). Stakeholders increasingly want to know how companies contribute to society.
Build strong connections among functions:
Resilient organizations have well-connected internal teams, allowing, for example, the finance function to know what the ESG team is doing. Consider moving some of your ESG reporting to your financial function to imbue ESG reporting with the rigors and controls of financial reporting.
Talent
Experiment with ways of working:
As some organizations 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 communication and a commitment to finding the right approach over the long term will be key.
Use technology to see what works and when to pivot:
Technology is a good tool for understanding employees’ expectations, creating connectedness and relieving stress, as well as ensuring productivity. Use technology to monitor what works—for employees and for the company.
Tell your ESG story:
A business’ ESG approach is increasingly seen as a differentiator when it comes to attracting and retaining talent. Fifty-one percent of U.S. CEOs believe that corporate purpose will be important for strengthening employee engagement and the employee value proposition over the next three years.