December 19, 2019
What you read: The 10 most popular s+b articles of 2019
How to think like a CEO, handing off the baton after a long tenure, and more of the most read stories this year.
More Tech & innovation
Archives by year:
s+b BlogsDecember 19, 2019AI in the announcer’s booth
Artificial intelligence could soon deliver sports commentary customized to a viewer’s preferences. And if robots can learn to do this sort of talking, the applications could be far-reaching.
s+b BlogsDecember 17, 2019Use technology to accelerate through uncertainty
Digital investments can help your company be resilient amid changes in the economic environment.
s+b BlogsDecember 16, 2019Gain trust and project order in turbulent times
Leaders must understand four trends, and how they interact, to navigate uncertainty.
s+b BlogsDecember 13, 2019Help old habits die easier
A "stop-doing" culture frees employees from embedded routines and perspectives, which makes room for innovative thinking.
November 26, 2019Thawing the frozen middle
As businesses put trillions of dollars into digital transformations, they need a plan to ensure that middle management is helping make the most of the investment.
November 20, 2019Making automation easy
Daniel Dines runs UiPath — the only unicorn to emerge from Romania and one of the world's fastest-growing software companies — which helps businesses design the way they automate processes.
November 19, 2019Does your legal department spark joy?
How a contract management system can extract untapped value from your legal processes.
November 18, 2019The digital approach to organizational effectiveness
How leaders can use digital twin technology to optimize their company’s health. For more insights, see www.pwc.com/digitaltwin.
s+b BlogsNovember 7, 2019A new business model for digitally adept companies
Management writer Ram Charan explains the benefits of managing by cash earnings per share.
s+b BlogsOctober 23, 2019How subsidiaries can emerge as “centers of excellence”
A case study shows how a small business arm can deliver real value and innovation to a multinational.
October 22, 2019Navigating your enterprise into the future
Using a compass as your guide, you can create innovative, nimble partnerships that move your company forward.
October 21, 2019India’s new unicorns
The world’s largest democracy is becoming a seedbed for billion-dollar startups.
October 14, 2019How operators can make 5G pay
Communications service providers will only gain a return on their infrastructure investments by adopting innovative business models.
October 10, 2019The fourth industrial revolution in agriculture
For agribusinesses, implementing new technologies requires focusing on four critical capabilities.
s+b BlogsSeptember 30, 2019The evolution of problem solving
The professionals who aim to tackle modern organizational challenges have to learn to deliver holistic solutions that drive value realization.
s+b BlogsSeptember 26, 2019Turn your passion into an innovative business
One golf enthusiast’s story shows how curiosity and innovative thinking can uncover demand for something unique.
September 25, 201910 principles of workforce transformation
How to raise the skills of your employees to meet your digital challenges. See also “A guide to workforce transformation.”
September 25, 2019A guide to workforce transformation
How to raise the skills of your employees so that they can move successfully into the future. For further insights, read “10 principles of workforce transformation.”
September 23, 2019They lead, we coach: A multigenerational approach to innovation
With mentorship, the digital natives in generation Z can help create a competitive advantage.
s+b BlogsSeptember 4, 2019Why CEOs should watch the classic movie The Man in the White Suit
The 1951 film, about to debut as a play, has much to teach us about the hazards of innovation.
s+b BlogsAugust 30, 2019Why cool technology sometimes flops
Certain inventions show us that it doesn’t matter how amazing an innovation is if no one needs it.
August 29, 2019Transforming TV by going back to the future
For virtually its entire existence, the vast global television industry has survived and thrived amid a series of transformations. Here’s how it can surf the next wave.
August 26, 2019How permissioned blockchains could give banks an edge
An alternative version of the technology would allow financial-services firms to become trusted platforms for a wider range of services — if Google and Amazon don’t get there first.
s+b BlogsAugust 23, 2019Electronic word-of-mouth can make or break a product launch
It’s the sentiment, not the volume, of posts that matters.
August 15, 2019How cities can stay cool on a warming Earth
As the demand for air conditioning grows worldwide, a more energy-efficient approach, already in use in the Gulf countries, offers a potential solution.
August 13, 2019Why your customers should be central to your innovation efforts
Ditching the “science fair” mentality toward innovation will help transform ideas into commercial reality.
August 8, 20196 steps to upskilling your people
A comprehensive way to build talent and fill jobs in our rapidly changing digital economy. For further insights, read “A strategist’s guide to upskilling.”
August 1, 2019China’s herd of unicorns
About 200 Chinese startups have valuations of $1 billion or more, and many are preparing to go global.
July 25, 2019A strategist’s guide to upskilling
Companies and local governments can unlock opportunity by working together to raise the quality of talent. See also “6 steps to upskilling your people.”
July 24, 2019Nigeria’s untapped banking potential
How Peter Amangbo, outgoing group managing director and CEO of Zenith Bank, positioned it to win the 30 percent of Nigerians who don’t have bank accounts.
July 24, 2019A new view of the fortune at the bottom of the digital pyramid
In The Next Billion Users, Payal Arora reports that the global poor have similar digital motivations to everyone else.
July 23, 2019The dawn of the Chinese blockbuster
Filmmakers with local heroes and digital technologies are disrupting Hollywood’s global advantage.
July 10, 2019The catalytic co-investor: How Siemens US keeps R&D alive
Barbara Humpton, US CEO of one of the largest and oldest engineering firms in the world, talks about continuous innovation, the future of AI, and the societal aspects of technology.
June 25, 2019Our Planet: Our Business, and our conversations
A new film shows the challenges and opportunities for businesses that want to help avoid environmental collapse.
June 24, 2019How to build disruptive strategic flywheels
Gaming, artificial intelligence, and deep learning are paving the way for dynamic and resilient 21st-century business models.
June 13, 2019Conversational computing
James Vlahos’s new book, Talk to Me, is a good starting point for exploring how voice computing could disrupt your business.
June 12, 2019Ensuring trust in an age of digital banking
Johan Torgeby, CEO of Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (SEB), one of the biggest Nordic banks, explains how trust and technology must form the foundations of banking in the digital world.
June 11, 2019Jabil’s manufacturing leap
How one of the biggest companies you’ve never heard of may create the future of manufacturing.
June 7, 2019How blockchain can improve the aviation industry
Aerospace businesses could benefit from sharing data about aircraft history, maintenance, and operations.
s+b BlogsJune 7, 2019Why cryptocurrency’s not quite ready for takeoff
There’s an innovative sweet spot known as the “adjacent possible” that new technologies need to hit before they can soar.
June 5, 2019A crisis of legitimacy
Today’s toughest global challenges are unintended consequences of yesterday’s success. If our prevailing institutions can’t adapt, they could lose the right to lead.
June 5, 2019Winning with a data-driven strategy
Making decisions based on hard evidence requires a major shift in culture, technology, and mind-set.
s+b BlogsJune 4, 2019Competing for consumers in driverless cars
Once drivers become passengers, a new “fifth-screen” economy focused on the in-car experience will flourish.
May 29, 2019Organizational effectiveness goes digital
New technologies offer leaders an agile way to assess their company’s health and embark on improvement. See also “The digital approach to organizational effectiveness.”
s+b BlogsMay 28, 2019So you think you know your customers?
Gathering different sorts of data can yield surprising insights and drive more effective decision making.
May 21, 2019Voice technology delivers on banking needs
Financial services is full of customer pain points that could be resolved with the help of voice-assisted devices. For further insight, read “Banking on voice.”
s+b BlogsMay 21, 2019Banking on voice
Voice-assisted devices will revolutionize the financial-services industry by providing customers with on-demand service and by helping banks reduce costs.
s+b BlogsMay 20, 2019Why office spaces should include Wi‑Fi‑enabled buses
As traffic gets worse and commuting times lengthen, companies could improve productivity and employees’ well-being by providing dedicated transit.
May 17, 2019Rolling toward responsible capitalism
Jean-Dominique Senard, the departing CEO of Michelin and incoming chair of Renault and of the Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi alliance, argues that the prevailing concept of corporate purpose needs an update.
May 13, 2019The kidtech is all right
Dylan Collins, CEO of SuperAwesome, describes how his six-year-old company is hitting a growth spurt by leading the charge on digital privacy for children.
s+b BlogsMay 8, 2019Uniting creatives and consultants
If professionals want to change the world, they need to master the Four Cs.
s+b BlogsMay 7, 2019How virtual reality is improving decisions in soccer and in business
A 3D simulation is changing the behaviors of the world’s best soccer players — and the business world is catching on.
May 6, 2019Making connections with the new digital consumer
To thrive in a world of apps, platforms, and privacy concerns, marketers have to become multitaskers.
s+b BlogsMay 3, 2019The global village needs walls
Facebook’s evolving mission statement is evidence that people are craving smaller communities and niche experiences.
May 1, 2019Automating trust with new technologies
Blockchain, IoT, and AI offer companies new ways to track, secure, and verify their assets.
May 1, 2019Make the most of tax time
Taxes are often viewed as simply a compliance issue. But what if organizations thought of taxes as a way to benefit their businesses now, and help them plan for a better future? Here, a collection of articles delves into different corners of the tax world to explain how it’s done.
April 30, 2019Facing up to the automotive innovation dilemma
The rise of connected, autonomous, shared, and electric vehicles will reshape the industry. The challenge in the meantime is survival.
April 29, 2019Ears wide open
Voice-activated technology and devices are creating new media, entertainment, and marketing businesses built on the age-old power of simply listening.
April 26, 2019Uncovering the hidden talent on your staff
Worried about a skills gap? CEOs can try these strategies to find the employees who have what it takes to transform a business.
April 24, 2019Mission critical
Economist Mariana Mazzucato explains how solving society’s toughest problems starts with rethinking how value is created and innovation is incentivized.
April 23, 2019Machine learned
In his new book, Globotics Upheaval, economist Richard Baldwin wrestles with the opportunities and perils brought about by globalization and robotics.
April 22, 2019The confidence premium
In PwC’s annual global survey of chief executives, CEOs’ optimism about their own company’s prospects is a leading indicator of broader economic prosperity. How, then, can we best foster confident CEOs?
April 12, 2019What is fair when it comes to AI bias?
It’s not the algorithm behaving badly, but how we define fairness that determines an artificial intelligence system’s impact.
s+b BlogsApril 11, 2019Large businesses don’t have to be lousy innovators
In his new book, Harvard Business School prof Gary Pisano offers senior leaders a three-part solution to the innovation challenge.
s+b BlogsApril 2, 2019What is an office for?
The rise of remote working is making companies more focused on the spaces they create to bring people together.
s+b BlogsMarch 26, 2019Have we reached “peak” chief digital officer?
Companies are recognizing that digital transformation needs to be part of their core strategy and are creating fewer CDO positions than they were two years ago.
s+b BlogsMarch 19, 2019Leadership lessons from a guitar hero
What the business world can learn about career success and longevity from rock virtuoso Jeff Beck.
s+b BlogsMarch 4, 2019The silver lining of an aging population
Economists often warn that an abundance of elders will be problematic for the economy. But new research shows that such a demographic shift could be a good thing.
February 27, 2019The Future Value of Your Data
The monetary value of information about a single person’s online and offline activity may reach $10 a month by 2025 in the U.S. For further insights, read “Tomorrow’s Data Heroes.”
February 27, 2019How to pick technology winners
Some of today’s innovations will become as prevalent as smartphones. Others, such as jet packs, won’t take off. Three factors can help you tell which are likely to succeed.
February 21, 2019A Guide to Modernizing Your Company’s Technology
An essential pocket guide for your digital transformation, from legacy technology systems to the platforms of the future. For more insight, read “10 Principles for Modernizing Your Company’s Technology.”
February 21, 201910 principles for modernizing your company’s technology
Today’s technology platforms are not just new versions of legacy systems. They allow you to design a completely new digital enterprise — as long as you follow these guidelines. See also “A Guide to Modernizing Your Company’s Technology.”
February 19, 2019Tomorrow’s data heroes
Telecom companies are struggling to find a profitable identity in today’s digital sphere. What about helping customers control their information?
February 12, 2019Sustaining Southeast Asia’s momentum
How the 10 countries of the vibrant ASEAN region can avoid the threat of slower growth.
s+b BlogsFebruary 6, 2019Strategy Talk: How to Help Your Team Get More Creative
Leaders should draw on the past to spark ideas that are both novel and practical.
February 6, 2019Inside Symantec’s tech transformation
Symantec chief information officer Sheila Jordan has spent four years leading IT during one of Silicon Valley’s most noteworthy corporate change efforts.
February 5, 2019Team Human vs. Team AI
To make artificial intelligence live up to its promise, we need to understand and reframe the values implicit in the technology.
s+b BlogsFebruary 4, 2019How to Cultivate a Data-Inclusive Culture
Data is often the lifeblood of modern organizations, but a company’s culture must take both its risks and rewards to heart.
February 1, 2019Will Manufacturers Rule the Global Economy Once More?
Tuck School of Business professor Richard D’Aveni proposes a technology-driven vision of manufacturing dominance.
February 1, 2019Facing up to a four-generation society
A practical discussion of how we might turn a massive social liability into a common good.
s+b BlogsJanuary 29, 2019Saving Lives with High-Tech Underwear
Health sensors that are built into people’s daily lives (and attire) could help researchers address many types of life-threatening crises.
January 28, 2019Water Experts for the World
The Dutch turned adversity into a compelling economic opportunity. Other countries could do the same.
January 24, 2019E-Sports Is Beating the Competition
As the industry continues to find its footing as a business, competitive video gaming has emerged as the fastest-growing sector in the global sports business.
January 23, 2019Overcoming digital distraction
Six steps to help you limit connectivity and improve your focus and productivity.
s+b BlogsJanuary 22, 2019Is AI the Next Frontier for National Competitive Advantage?
Businesses should get involved as governments devise national AI strategies to encourage innovation, protect citizens, and compete globally. See also “2019 AI Predictions: 7 Trends You Can’t Afford to Ignore.”
January 21, 2019AI Predictions You Can’t Afford to Ignore in 2019
Despite all the information available about artificial intelligence — and the efforts business leaders are making to come to terms with this technology — there are still some takeaways you should consider this year. Gain additional insights with PwC’s 2019 AI Predictions.
January 18, 2019Digital native retailers are giving physical stores a radical makeover
Online brands are opening brick-and-mortar shops, using technology and data-driven customer insights to transform the in-store experience.
January 16, 2019Financial services and social values can mix
For Antonio Huertas Mejías, chief executive officer of the MAPFRE insurance company, economic growth aligns with making a sustainable contribution to the wider community.
s+b BlogsJanuary 14, 2019Yes, Henry David Thoreau Was an Industrial Innovator
We can learn valuable lessons from the transcendentalist writer’s forays into the family pencil business.
s+b BlogsJanuary 10, 2019Stop Dropping the Baton during Business Transitions
How to avoid the destructive effects of handoffs.
January 9, 2019How robots will transform the C-suite
Senior executives need to lead a workforce that seamlessly blends human talent and automation.
January 7, 2019HQ 2.0: The next-generation corporate center
Major companies are transforming their core and rethinking their functions.
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