I had the pleasure of listening last week to David Rowan, the editor of the influential technology and trends magazine, Wired UK. He described the key trends disrupting markets currently and over the next decade, based on his marvellous insight into the digital world.
The theme of the connected society is clearly a favourite of mine as well. With the imminent explosion of the Internet of Things, with sensors becoming part of our everyday lives, and with the popularisation of virtual reality, we have two trends that will further accelerate how connected we are with each other, wherever we are. The need for Connected Leadership has never been greater, with leaders of organisations (and nations) having the vision to embrace our shared experiences and to create new experiences which bring improved quality of life and economic benefit. The exponential rate of technological change is driving changes in our lives as consumers, business people and citizens.
From our Leadership Connections research with Ipsos MORI we know that CEOs place a premium on building more agility and simplicity into their organisations. From our own research at Cirrus, we know that this will only come through devolving decisions, creating more collaboration and making learning a prized asset. This leads to more open organisations which are in line with the openness Rowan described last week: open to change, open to influence, open to opportunity. By connecting people together we can create now forms of value, just as Airbnb has done with accommodation across the world. But it can also be seen as threatening, and I believe there is a natural human reaction to external threats in which we seek to close the door, shut out external influence, and defend our space. This instinct is, in my view, out of kilter with the way technology is opening up our lives, connecting us across borders and cultures, and creating a connected world. The genie is out of the bottle. I am not sure we can put it back.