future of the company insights from dicussions building on an initial perspective - paige morrow -...
TRANSCRIPT
The Future of the Company Insights from Discussions Building on an Ini4al Perspec4ve by: Paige Morrow |Head of Brussels Opera4ons | Frank Bold
Context The ini4al perspec4ve on the Future of Work kicked off the
Future Agenda 2.0 global discussions taking place through 2015. This summary builds on the ini4al view and is updated as we progress.
Ini4al Perspec4ves Q4 2014
Global Discussions Q1/2 2015
Insight Synthesis Q3 2015
Sharing Output Q4 2015
Disconnected Business Big business has become disconnected from the broader society within which it operates. A narrow focus on short-‐term returns has led some to act in ways
that benefit themselves whilst harming society and the environment.
Being Part of Society Is the purpose of the corpora4on just about pursuing profits,
or does it have a broader responsibility to produce socially beneficial outcomes and be a part of society rather than apart from it?
Being Part of the Solu<on Some see the failure to make capitalism inclusive and to address
sustainability challenges as an opportunity to build deep rela4onships with customers and stakeholders by working on solu4ons to societal challenges.
The Decline of Shareholder Value Will large companies with dispersed shareholders be the dominant model
across all markets or will they be replaced by a mix of alterna4ve models beXer suited to mee4ng the long term needs of a wide range of stakeholders?
Measuring and Repor<ng on Impacts Wider stakeholder representa4on in decision-‐making, the requirement to report against a wider set of measures and risks and the development of
benchmarks and labelling to all industries are all being discussed.
Responsible Business Regulatory changes should support a vision of business
that provides a level playing field based on the ‘do no harm’ principle and internaliza4on of externali4es.
Crea<ng Las<ng Change The use of regulatory s4cks and carrots has the poten4al to achieve high
impact but may be resisted by incumbents. A subtle approach of experiments to “nudge” the system in the desired direc4on may have greater impact.
Making Compromises Reconciling the need for companies to act sustainably and in accordance with principles of interna4onal human rights with the local prac4ces will require compromise to develop workable context and industry-‐specific guidelines.
Business Solu<ons to Societal Problems Re-‐visioning the role of business in society may lead to a reduc4on in
inequality, less par4san poli4cs and greater ac4on as businesses take the lead rather than wai4ng for Government to lead them.
Rediscovering Purpose Before the myth of shareholder value, companies had a responsibility to a
wider set of stakeholders. We need to revisit the purpose of the organisa4on and understand why in some parts of the world we have lost our way.
The Human Touch In a world of global and digital marke4ng and consump4on,
consumers will increasingly favour those brands that can offer more emo4onal engagements, and specifically human-‐to-‐human contact.
Data Risk Management As privacy and data are subsumed within wider risk frameworks,
greater self-‐regula4on and more in-‐house data risk management will lead to deeper integra4on of engineering, privacy and policy.
Hollowing Out the Professions Technology is challenging the white-‐collar worker and automa4ng both middle and high-‐end jobs. The future will see fewer accountants, lawyers and doctors and a hollowing out of the previously ‘safe’ professions.
Skill Concentra<ons The growth of the nomadic global elite ci4zenship accelerates the
concentra4on of the high-‐skill / high-‐reward opportuni4es within a select group of globally-‐connected ci4zens, who move ahead of the urban pack.
Age Diversified Workforces The demographic changes underway are fundamentally altering virtually all aspects of life as we know it. Workforces are becoming
older and more age diversified than ever in history.
Con<nuous Learning to Enable Employment As the pace of change accelerates, the knowledge economy grows and the
value of accredita4on declines. This leads to a shi` from "educa4on then work" to a world of "con4nuous learning” needed to keep us all employable.
Two-‐Way Trust An increase in trust between employees and employers builds
greater alignment and enables democra4sa4on of the workplace, more flexible ways of working and more effec4ve organisa4ons.
Making Work Work (for People and Work) We will see a shi` in priority from ‘money maXers’ to ‘meaning maXers’.
This will lead to the emergence of community and wellbeing managers in organisa4ons and new ways to measure success.
Resources Shaping the Future Landscape Resource cri4cality, resource security, emerging legisla4on around
closed-‐loop supply chains and new labeling standards for waste will all combine to shape and define the future business landscape.
Future Focused Organisa4ons increasingly reflect a desire to care for the next genera4on, ac4vely ques4oning the value of capital, implying a return to no4ons of tradi4on and of passing on a legacy that is about more than money.
Millennial Managers As more digital-‐na4ve Millennials take the lead they bring different
perspec4ves, experiences and expecta4ons about societal challenges and the role of organisa4ons. This drives a shi` towards a deeper sense of purpose.
21st Century Organisa<ons The emerging organisa4on feels very different from c20th companies -‐ collabora4ve, crowd-‐funded, flaXer, human-‐focused, hyper-‐specialised, informal, localised, out-‐sourced, project-‐based, purpose-‐led and virtual.
Business Response to Resource Risks To prevent the exploita4on of global regulatory arbitrage, we work
out how to more effec4vely govern the global footprint to create a level playing field: Business and government develop new models to manage risk.
Incumbent Blockers Several large, well-‐established organisa4ons con4nue to seek to prevent
change by arguing for short-‐term incremental shi`s rather than wider, more collabora4ve system-‐based change that may benefit society in the long-‐term.
Joining the Dots Increasing collabora4on drives companies to re-‐organise based on social
networks. The shared economy changes the shape of many organisa4ons, but a shi` in the role of the company from employer to facilitator challenges many.
SeRng the Moral Compass Integrity is separate from the process of corporate governance and the rule of law. Although not yet fully ingrained in corporate life, some see a higher sense of ethics in Asia in comparison with the West.
The Genera<on Divide The perspec4ve gap grows between the expecta4ons of the young,
who are increasingly global in their outlook, and the more tradi4onal views of more senior and experienced colleagues.
Many Voices A key challenge for the ASEAN region is leveraging regional diversity
and culture beyond ethnic diversity: Age, gender, na4onality and religion are all increasingly seen to have a place at the boardroom table.
Asian Government Connec<ons Asian companies con4nue to be more closely linked to
government than many of their counterparts in the west. This shapes how they operate and how they evolve.
Regional vs. Global Standards Performance measures become increasingly more regional and country specific and local values are priori4sed. But, as many Asian organisa4ons become regional global players they also play down na4onal creden4als.
Disrup<ve, Decentralised Consensus Ledgers Plaeorms, such as block chain, developed for crypto-‐currencies reduce cost and complexity to connect mul4ple par4es to a single agreed digital record shared by all. This transforms the way we hold, access and value informa4on.
Disaster Recovery Services As businesses increasingly suffer from the impact of natural and man-‐made events -‐ such as climate change, cyber crime, terrorism and system failures -‐
there is a growing demand for disaster recovery advice and services.
New Finance Business Models FinTech creates new opportuni4es for the delivery of beXer business, consumer service and financial inclusion. But it also has the poten4al to open up businesses and consumers to greater fraud and exploita4on.
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