On this week’s episode of The Debrief, MT’s editorial team discusses what can be done to boost business optimism and how groupthink can sabotage your transformation agenda.

If the first quarter’s GDP figures briefly put a spring in Rachel Reeves’ step, this boost would have been short-lived, while we can only assume she had regained the standard-issue world-weary tread of a put-upon chancellor by the time the ONS’s latest monthly estimate rolled around. The 0.7% increase in GDP that raised spirits early in the year gave way to projections of virtually flat growth in the second quarter, while the most recent data for May showed a surprise – if small – contraction of 0.1% (let’s not even mention the latest inflation figures). But Downing Street aren’t the only ones feeling under siege. With sentiment among businesses faring scarcely better, we asked our community of CEOs what’s needed to boost optimism.

It’s common to strive towards consensus, but at what point do organisations become echo chambers, where new ideas quickly lose steam under the collective weight of conformity - if they ever even see the light of day? And as businesses face the need to rapidly evolve to meet new realities, what implications does it have for transformations if teams are governed by common assumptions, shared notions of ‘best practice’ and attachment to what’s come before? Data Impact author Ritavan’s own view is clear: groupthink is the “silent killer of transformation”. We discuss his argument.

Credits:

Presenters: Antonia Garrett Peel and Éilis Cronin

Producer: Inga Marsden

Artwork: David Robinson

Links:

https://www.managementtoday.co.uk/mt-asks-against-backdrop-economic-headwinds-boost-business-optimism/opinion-and-analysis/article/1925050

https://www.managementtoday.co.uk/groupthink-enemy-transformation/opinion-and-analysis/article/1924413

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Samsung is putting people at the very heart of its new company proposition. Under the direction of its first-ever chief customer officer, Deborah Honig, the company is evolving from creating standalone products to leveraging AI to give busy customers back time “in a world that reduces to slow down”.

In this week's episode, Honig discusses Samsung's shift towards a "customer-first" strategy, focusing on integrating technology to provide meaningful solutions to everyday problems, such as reducing energy consumption. It's collaboration with British Gas directly supports customers looking to reduce their consumption and their energy bills.

Credits:

Producer: Inga Marsden

Presenter: Éilis Cronin

Artwork: David Robinson

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, MT’s editorial team discusses what chatbots think of your brand and how humans and AI agents might work together in the future.

The traditional customer journey largely consisted of touchpoints that businesses could control, such as website content or paid advertising. The rise of social media and proliferation of influencers has upended this – a challenge for brands that is amplified when these sources feed the chatbots that have become a consumer and business go-to for product and service recommendations. BCG’s chief marketing officer Jessica Apotheker recently spoke to MT about the evolution of reputation management in the gen AI era. We discuss what she had to say.

Continuing the AI theme, in a recent article for MT, Salesforce UK&I’s CEO Zahra Bahrololoumi argued that today’s cohort of business leaders will be the last to oversee ‘all-human teams’. As the technology advances, she predicts that AI agents will become increasingly integrated into the workforce, taking on repetitive tasks so humans can focus on driving innovation. We unpack her argument.

Links:

https://www.managementtoday.co.uk/5-mins-with%E2%80%A6-jessica-apotheker/interviews/article/1922694

https://www.managementtoday.co.uk/todays-ceos-will-last-manage-all-human-workforces-heres-why-thats-good-thing-growth/opinion-and-analysis/article/1923090

Credits:

Producer: Jude Owen

Presenters: Éilis Cronin and Antonia Garrett Peel

Artwork: David Robinson

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.