Successful Leadership, Philanthropy, Community, GGC: Governance, Public Policy, Communities
Is Blockchain a fundamental world-shaping technology, or just a lot of hype masquerading as one? This session demystifies blockchain through some very easy to understand analogies, talks about the kind of blockchains, tokens, and explains its relationship with cryptocurrency. We then move on to some blockchain use cases – at an enterprise, country, and planetary level. What is as or more interesting is the philosophy behind blockchain – the circumstances of its birth, how it is a decentralising and democratizing force, and how it is Left of Centre in its outlook. We look at both a practical and an idealist view of blockchain, and how it can perhaps help shape a better world. Through this session, participants will understand what the blockchain really is, what it can do for them and their businesses, and how it can shape the world to come through its decentralising and distributing philosophy.
Machine Learning, Sustainability Innovations, Robotics & Automation, Purpose, Creativity, Design Thinking
As disruptions like COVID slow down the world, yet accelerate change, digital transformation of traditional businesses becomes even more of an imperative. Businesses with digital business models thrived during the pandemic, physical only businesses declined. Digital Transformation (DX) is an old 'buzzword' and means different things to different people – about technology, culture, business models, etc.
This session will explain what DX means for large, successful, traditional enterprises, why is it necessary, how it is different from digitization, and who needs to own it and lead it. It will then talk about the Holy Trinity; the three compulsory things organisations need to address for their DX and explain with case studies as to how this was done. Finally, it will talk about how exponential technologies can help make DX happen.
Most of the content and learnings in the session come from my decade of work in digital transformation as a practitioner (Chief Digital Officer), and so participants will go beyond the knowledge and awareness to how to begin, what to expect and what changes need to be done to make DX happen.
Are Web3, the Metaverse, and NFTs the new buzzwords on the block, or is there real substance there? Do they have implications on our lives? And on our businesses? This session starts with explaining these terms and what they mean. It traces the evolution from Web1 to Web3 and how each one of them has spawned businesses and inspired tectonic life changes. We look at the metaverse and Web3 through five different lenses, and eventually discuss how these imply a business model change for most companies and industries, as well as how they will change our personal lives and relationships. We discuss how Web3, and its features are heralding the Creative or Passion Economy, and how that has the potential to change everything and become the real Future of Work. The session then delves into some practical ways that those individuals and organisations can learn and use some of these both for their personal growth as well as for their organisations. Interspersed in the session are references and conversations about blockchain, data and the economic philosophies behind these changes.
Is Blockchain a fundamental world-shaping technology, or just a lot of hype masquerading as one? This session demystifies blockchain through some very easy to understand analogies, talks about the kind of blockchains, tokens, and explains its relationship with cryptocurrency. We then move on to some blockchain use cases - at an enterprise, country, and planetary level. What is as or more interesting is the philosophy behind blockchain - the circumstances of its birth, how it is a decentralising and democratizing force, and how it is Left of Centre in its outlook. We look at both a practical and an idealist view of blockchain, and how it can perhaps help shape a better world. Through this session, participants will understand what the blockchain really is, what it can do for them and their businesses, and how it can shape the world to come through its decentralising and distributing philosophy.
COVID has been a great Paradox: it has slowed down the world, yet accelerated change. Vaccines have been the miracle that have helped the world emerge out of this massive disruption. However, vaccines do not cure a disease but teach it to produce the right antibodies and give it immunity - if the disease strikes again, the body has the right defences to resist it and win. This session explores how we can learn from COVID and vaccines and produce the right 'antibodies' in our organisations today, so as to make our company immune from external disruption, and thus build 'the immune organisation'.
The session identifies seven such strategic 'antibodies' that we need to develop - around business models, technologies, digital, culture, etc; how to build them, and then how these would help our companies survive and thrive in this increasingly uncertain world - of pandemics, wars, and global warming related catastrophes.
The session also draws on Nassim Taleb's work on Black Swans and Antifragility and explains how the participants can use these seven 'antibodies' to build an immune, antifragile organisation.
The session also has an interesting dose of JRR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, to make it more interesting!