The new competitive advantage
As we try to make sense of it all and at the same time face the prospect of 2021, we must confront the idea of a ‘new normal’ in which the future of work as well as many socio-economic challenges are still to be defined.
In many aspects 2020 was a year that nobody saw coming but everyone will remember for a long, long time. The reason? It was a year of tremendous disruption, change, economic and political unrest – not just in South Africa but in most parts of the world. As we try to make sense of it all and at the same time face the prospect of 2021, we must confront the idea of a ‘new normal’ in which the future of work as well as many socio-economic challenges are still to be defined.
How do business owners strategise and plan for a new decade which will be earmarked with more disruptions as Artificial Intelligence (AI), automatization, 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR), robotics, machine-learning, climate change, geopolitics and sustainability will all be factors influencing the world we live in? More than ever before, this is the time to build adaptive businesses and organizations and an adaptable workforce.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) recently published the top 10 skills needed in 2025… we will need analytical thinking, innovation, ideation (the ability to form ideas or concepts), and creativity and be able to engage in complex problem solving. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data are on the forefront of new developments with machines and computers (that can get work done faster) but cannot be creative, make decisions or solve complex problems as human beings can.
Emotional Intelligence (EQ), good leadership, social influence and the ability to manage people with empathy will be critical in times of disruption. The 10 top skills published by the WEF also include active learning strategies, resilience and flexibility – all traits of the highly sought-after Adaptability Quotient (AQ), which Harvard Business Review calls “the new competitive advantage”.
Well for starters we need to be willing to unlearn and relearn new ways of doing things. We need to move from wanting to rebuild what we had, to re-imagining what we can do through our businesses and organisations. We need to identify pain-points and unbundle our clients and customer’s journeys to optimize their experience.
Ask yourself how many steps you require your customers to take before you deliver value to them? How can you leverage on steps for a better customer experience? Also make sure that you differentiate yourself when it comes to customer experience. Are you operating under outdated or false assumptions? What untapped customer experience, needs and opportunities are just under the surface that you should explore to improve your product and service delivery?
Personally I believe that through every crisis, opportunity arises. Remember, disruption can be a great catalyst for positive change in any organization, even if it is uncomfortable. I want to leave you with two pointers moving forward into 2021:
1 Establish your core values – what is important to you, what do you believe, what do you stand for, as a business why do you exist? Speak, strategise and work with someone that can help you and your business identify these.
2 Choose a process which will assure that you or your business are still relevant – and adding value! Are your services and products still needed? What needs to change? What can you learn from different stakeholders? How can you pivot or do things better and begin to test and implement changes?
When you decide to take your business to the next level and to engage with disruption, creativity and innovation, contact me for customised design thinking, problem solving, strategizing, adaptability / creativity facilitation workshops. I also offer coaching and training solutions.
Bernard van Vuuren / 082 563 1087