Today, ThoughtWorks, a global software consultancy released a
first of its kind report, “The Next Big Disruption: Courageous
Executives”,
revealing what sets top business leaders apart from their competition. The
report profiles an elite segment of C-Suite leaders referred to as “Courageous
Executives” in the US, the UK, Australia and India and the findings underscore
the critical role technology plays in business strategy, from navigating the
chaos of digital transformation to how they’re setting their business up for
future success. The report also sheds light on the leadership styles of
Courageous Executives including their tolerance for risk and failure, their use
of customer insights and the ways leaders in all four countries are preparing
for the future of work.
This report, developed by ThoughtWorks in partnership with
research agency Northstar, features insight from Fortune 100 C-Suite executives
who are: advocates for digital transformation; have an active role in directing
how technology enables their business; have seen their company’s revenue or
profit increase significantly due to a recent technology change; and 85 percent
of which self-identified as risk takers.
“As companies across all industries embrace the changes of
our increasingly digital world, we’re seeing leaders at the helm of these
companies dive deeper into how technology is implemented and how it works,”
said ThoughtWorks President and CEO, Guo Xiao. “I began my
time in the industry as a developer, giving me the tools I needed to approach
business with a technology first perspective. Executives across the globe are
learning that a strong grasp of technology matters and they’re finding ways to
adapt. Our findings show that 54 percent of Courageous Executives have
developed a deep understanding of technology with a remarkable 57 percent of
these leaders reporting having written code,” noted Xiao. "A tenacious commitment to embrace
technology is what today sets apart truly Courageous Executives."
On this brand of executives, Sudhir Tiwari,
Managing Director, ThoughtWorks, India has this to say, “The Post Digital
world, characterized by rapidly shifting competitive forces, in whatever
industry we are in, needs courageous leaders. Courageous Executives are those
who recognize the world as an amorphous rather than a monolithic crystalline
place, needing relentless effort in pulling together, alignment and
competencies from previously unthought places. Given little history, the
Courageous Executive is a sum-product of Risk, Ambition and Adaptability.”
According to the report, notable themes uniting
Courageous Executives include:
Proactive Approach to Technology Changes
According to the report, to keep pace and anticipate future
technology shifts, Courageous Executives conduct research, analyze their
competitors, troubleshoot tech challenges and hire subject matter
experts. A majority of Courageous
Executives (65 percent) say that digitizing and adapting to new technology is a
top business priority followed by growth.
Research – 63 percent of leaders do their own
research to stay ahead of technology changes. Top trends they’re exploring
include security threats; human and machine interaction; new hardware, software
and operational platforms; machine learning and artificial intelligence;
virtual reality and augmented reality.
Competitor Analysis – In all four countries, big tech decisions are
most often fueled by competition. Asked to identify the largest driver
motivating change, 47 percent pointed to their competitors.
Tolerance for Risk and Willingness to Fail
Understanding risks and its impact on ongoing business success
is an important characteristic of a Courageous Executive along with the ability
to rebound after a perceived failure.
Appetite for Risk - In fact, 87 percent of all
executives agree that taking risks is necessary to achieve goals and maintain a
strong competitive advantage with 62 percent pointing to their willingness to
take risks their competitors won’t as a key differentiator.
Failing Well - Courageous Executives reported their
most common reaction to these setbacks was to focus on what went right with the
second being to stay as positive as possible. When asked how failure affected
their employees, 54 percent globally said that they believed failure made them
even more motivated to succeed.
Use of Customer Insights
Throughout the world, courageous leaders recognize the necessity
of maintaining a close connection to their customers. 91 percent report that customer input directly informs
their strategic decision-making. While there is some agreement as
to the best methods for gathering that customer input, there’s still a lack of
consensus among executives when it comes to what data they’re collecting and
who is assessing the insights.
Data Source - Overall, the
most common source of insight is customer research, followed by social feeds
which are monitored by 68 percent of Australian, 60 percent of UK and Indian
and only 38 percent of US leaders. Other ways
executives gather information includes using analytics from a content
management system or implementing a designated customer insights task force.
Customer Engagement - Gathering data from
multiple sources is universally valued, but 87 percent of executives report
having an internal team dedicated to their customers. Additionally, 58 percent
of US and 48 percent of Australian executives say they speak to their customers
themselves, which is far more than 32 percent in India and 22 percent in the
UK.
The Future of Work
Across continents, nearly half of all courageous leaders
describe their company culture as “team-first,” meaning they hire primarily for
cultural fit, with skills and experience the second consideration. A third
define their company as having an “elite” culture, described as hiring only the
best to change the world by untested means.
Subject Matter Experts
- An overwhelming majority of
Courageous Executives (90 percent) emphasized the importance of key hires,
stating that discovering subject matter experts and new talents helps their
context and credibility and is crucial to success.
Tech’s Impact - 70 percent believe that replacing white-collar workers with
technology is a natural progression and to be expected. To prepare for the
potential impact of technology on the workforce, 87 percent of leaders admit to
researching new technologies that may help them save on staff costs. 83 percent
also agree that they’re preparing for the impact of technology replacing their
workers by limiting new hires to reduce ongoing overhead.
