Episodes

The buzz: “Companies that view technology as a tool rather than an integrated part of a vastly different business future–risk their very survival” (SAP Executive Study). Welcome to the 4th industrial revolution, with digital technologies changing the world and challenging businesses. What does today’s digital transformation leader need to do to ensure their company remains relevant tomorrow? SAP researchers and futurists report. The experts speak. David Jonker, SAP: “Moonshots don’t begin with b...

The buzz: "Companies that view technology as a tool rather than an integrated part of a vastly different business future – risk their very survival" (SAP Executive Study). Welcome to the 4th industrial revolution. The economy is increasingly based on knowledge, creativity, and adaptability. Digital technologies are changing the world and challenging businesses. SAP researchers and futurists are studying the major trends to understand what today's digital transformation leader needs to start and ...

The buzz: “You’ll be in trouble quickly if you assume your only–or biggest–competition looks exactly like you” (Paige Leidig). All brands operate in a competitive global environment. Some prefer to ignore the competition. Others are obsessed, using under the radar” spying to track other players. If traditional wisdom still holds–that strong knowledge about competitors’ strengths and weaknesses positions you to make smart marketing strategy decisions–then it’s time to add social media to your com...

The buzz: “Companies that view technology as a tool rather than an integrated part of a vastly different business future – risk their very survival” (SAP Executive Study). Welcome to the 4th industrial revolution. The economy is increasingly based on knowledge, creativity, and adaptability. Digital technologies are changing the world and challenging businesses. SAP researchers and futurists are studying the major trends to understand what today’s digital transformation leader needs to start and ...

The Buzz: “The robots really embody that love-hate relationship we have with technology.” (Daniel H. Wilson) Headline news: “Security robot 'in critical condition.’” Say what? It’s true. When Washington D.C. security robot “Steve” took a plunge in a nearby pond, his on-the-job self-drowning accident raised two pivotal questions: Do we really wants robots in the workforce? And which jobs should go to robots versus to humans? In an SAP Digitalist Magazine online survey of more than 1,000 responden...

The buzz: “CHROs using artificial intelligence in the workplace…to transform recruiting, HR service centers, and learning and development? I believe the answer is yes” (J. Meister). As AI moves from ideation to reality, businesses face a challenge: how to use AI systems to help human employees be more productive and happier, rather than to replace them. Good news: The new digital workforce has room for both. Ready to integrate this next AI wave into your processes? The experts speak. Darwin Dean...

The buzz: “79% of sales people that use social media outsell their peers” [Forbes]. Social selling is at a tipping point, “that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, spreads like wildfire” (Malcolm Gladwell). It is impacting how sales and marketing teams collaborate, do business and engage customers. But the laggards – organizations just now joining the social bandwagon – are in “reactive” instead of “proactive” mode. How can they incorporate social sell...

The buzz: “New research provides compelling evidence that diversity unlocks innovation and drives market growth” (hbr.org). With the commoditization of technology, your company may have focused on improving efficiencies. But if you used a cookie-cutter approach to reshape business processes, organizational models, data and architecture, you may have an unwelcome by-product: the inability to innovate. How to fix? Build-in diversity at every level–systems, data, processes, ecosystems, people and s...

The buzz: “Today thoughtful people everywhere are trying to understand the implications of a protocol that enables mere mortals to manufacture trust through clever code. This has never happened before” (Don and Alex Tapscott). Just when the switch to digital money threatens the banks’ cash-handling function, blockchain technology is attacking their role as a trusted intermediary. This is just the tip of the blockchain iceberg. Blockchain is emerging across other industries and lines of business....

The buzz: “Male VCs—obviously most are—are very comfortable now giving female entrepreneurs capital for ‘girl stuff’” (Vivoom). Don’t be fooled. Sexual harassment and discriminatory treatment toward women are not a Silicon Valley-only problem, nor can they be undone by men’s “nice” blogs. Female-founded businesses are out-performing male-started businesses 5 to 1, boosting the US economy by $1.6T. Yet only 2% of funding has gone to women startup founders. What will it take to lift these gender b...

The buzz: “Motivation is an art, not a science” (Dan Tyre). If you’re regularly paying sales incentives to customers and partners but getting nothing in return, you know the challenges of juggling an array of programs and pressure to achieve bottom line visibility. Wouldn’t it be helpful to learn how to optimally manage complex partner programs for contracts, pricing, rebates, incentives, and more? The experts speak. Cara DeGraff, Vistex: “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we u...

The buzz: “You can invent alone, but you can’t innovate alone” (G. van Wulfen). Business leaders have long pondered whether culture impacts an organization’s evolution and growth. If culture is the “personality” shaping the ability to drive innovation, what type of culture will spark new ideas while disrupting old models? Will multiple personalities fight each other? The experts speak. Dan Seewald, Pfizer: “Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something...

The Buzz: “Tax complexity itself is a kind of tax” (Max Baucus). The confluence of global trade, new technologies and governments' increasing need for tax revenue is impacting the global commerce landscape, challenging you and your competitors. To stay afloat, you need to understand, prepare for and stay on top of changing tax and regulatory compliance rules, as well as new technologies and platforms – including blockchain, machine learning, and big data. Got your lifejacket ready? The experts s...

The Buzz: “Disruption is a process, not an event, and innovations can only be disruptive relative to something else” (Clay Christensen). Rapid change has forced today’s visionary business leaders to replace conventional growth models with a Disruptive Solutions mindset. Say what? This creative thinking methodology enables leaders to anticipate and quickly react to industry disruptions, identify unplanned opportunities, and move past internally-directed core competency thinking to leverage open i...

The Buzz: “Don't annoy science fiction writers…people who destroy entire planets before lunch. Think of what they'll do to you” (John Scalzi). Think a beach day with a sci-fi page-turner is an escape from reality? Not! Sci-fi could prepare us for the possibilities of tomorrow hurtling at us via tech advances like AI, robotics, IoT. Should it be mandatory reading for business leaders? The experts speak. Gray Scott, Futurist: “Science fiction writers foresee the inevitable, and although problems a...

The buzz: “It's actually women who are creating and leading some of the most established and promising companies overall” (@DrewAHendricks). Female entrepreneurs’ accusations of sexual harassment from male VCs and others, are symptoms of entrepreneur ecosystem gender bias. Female startup founders received $1.46B in VC funding (2016) vs $58.2B to males. Does Silicon Valley mirror global tech-intensive industries? How to access power and capital for all? The experts speak. Adam Quinton, Lucas Poin...

The buzz: “You always miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” (Wayne Gretsky). Despite headlines about companies that make regulatory missteps and have lax internal controls, many are still playing catch-up to grasp pitfalls in the business environment. In contrast, risk-aware organizations frame risk as an enabler of business performance vs containing it, and embed risk management in day-to-day. If you’re one of the former, can technology – cloud, analytics, robotics – help gain a competitive ed...

The buzz: “Human resources professionals have long worked to earn a voice in the C-suite and boardroom; yet the Chief Human Resources Officer role remains elusive…many companies still lag in their perception of HR’s value” (Boyden). The unique human capital in your workforce is your only true competitive differentiator. But as the power of the employee takes center stage, does your board have CHRO expertise to guide policies and strategies? The experts speak. Chris Johnson, Mercer: “Society only...

The buzz: “While efficiency…is important…[the HR] function has to think of itself as talent consultants not service deliverers.”” (Josh Bersin, Forbes.com) HR evolved in Europe during the Industrial Revolution from an idea by Robert Owen and Charles Babbage to structure, organize, pay and develop the people who lead and execute on business strategy. Fast-forward. The advent of technology and the need to scale have management evaluating HR with a focus on efficiencies, more than people. Now the w...

The buzz: “We don’t even know If a salesperson replying to us in real-time in the year 2020 would be a human or a robot…AI has already penetrated into our lives with or without our consent” (Mehreen Siddiqua). AI is changing business in ways not seen since the Industrial Revolution, says Accenture. But when we apply AI technologies to human interactions, particularly in B2B Social Selling, will it add value for modern B2B salespeople? The experts speak. Bernie Borges, Vengreso: “The secret to su...

The buzz: “49% of employees feel that a future in which people will ‘work from anywhere in the world’ is now” (ADP “The Evolution of Work” 2016). Reality check: Your company can’t be global without being local. What is your CHRO's role in this? HR needs to understand and comply with local and global cultures, practices and regulations – recruiting, interviewing, hiring and compensation – while supporting a globalized business with a local feel. Say what? The experts speak. Nicole Sahin, Globaliz...

The buzz: “You already have zero privacy – get over it” (Scott McNealy). We as individuals have welcomed Internet-connected, mobile devices to help us make daily decisions. But when we share data with companies, and they share it with their business partners, are their built-in and bolted-on data security capabilities enough to protect our personal information? The experts speak. Brian Kilcourse, RRS Research: “If you spend more on coffee than on IT security, you will be hacked. What's more, you...

The buzz: “Stories give people enough space to think for themselves” (Annette Simmons). Your favorite movie, book, and song are memorable because the director, author and songwriter told an engaging story using drama and emotion. Storytelling is also important for everyone in sales for the same reasons. Prospects need to feel, believe and remember you in order to be moved to make a purchase. If you don’t make it easy for them, you risk becoming the next book they forgot they ever read. The exper...

The buzz: “Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work” (Aristotle). Coffee Break with Game-Changers Radio was invited to broadcast live from SAPPHIRE NOW 2017. Our assignment: ask SAP partners, customers and executives what’s keeping today’s C-Suite awake at night – and what makes them excited to go to work. Today we’re bringing you six “excited” answers: New World of Cognitive Robotic Process Automation (IBM & Mondi); Innovation and Agility: Accenture Liquid Studio (Accenture & SAP); Techn...