Sophisticated nano-technology, 3D printing, virtual reality, robotics, neural networks, machine learning – all of this and more – combined with the power of human ingenuity is causing disruption for many industries, including financial services. Disruption pushes us beyond our existing limitations and, in many cases, presents new ideas that may seem inconceivable.
The tsunami of innovation and waves of disruption are not slowing down, and the magnitude of their impact is unknown. To help us be better prepared for disruptive innovation, we need to understand which areas of our business verticals are ripe for disruption and are perfect breeding ground for disruptive technology. Opportunities for disruption are identified when there are complex experiences, broken trust, redundant intermediaries and limited access to only a few. The world is filled with problem solvers, eager to quickly innovate and offer a better solution.
Today, I had the pleasure of discussing the transformative power of ingenuity during my opening remarks at the 2016 TMG Executive Summit. My focus was on the following four macro themes taking shape within the digital revolution and exponential innovation phenomenon.
- Convergence and Connectivity: The fabric of our society is being transformed through the connectivity of mobile, broadband and a global cloud platform. The convergence of technologies means more connections, more communications, more functionality, more knowledge and more value creation than ever before. All of this has created an insatiable need for people to be and feel connected to the world around them – anytime, anywhere, anyone – and becoming part of a truly networked society.
- Democratization and Sharing Economy: Somewhat self-explanatory, the sharing economy describes our global willingness to collaborate and share all things – from ideas, to new products, to alternative services. This sharing economy triggered the democratization of innovation – meaning innovators create and pass their ideas for the use of all.
- Cognitive and Machine Learning: Artificial intelligence and cognitive learning now intersect society as a whole. Consumers have already been exposed at a cursory level to Siri and Alexa. On a grander scale, IBM’s Watson and the autonomous vehicle are probably two of the most widely recognized innovations based on cognitive and machine learning. The possibilities for this technology are far beyond anything we can imagine today.
- Exponential Leadership: Reaping the significant benefits of new users, connected things, data-driven insights and platform-based resources starts with an innovative and exponential mindset. Leaders today must be equally comfortable with ambiguity as they are with linear certainty. Organizations with the greatest hope of surviving and contributing to the world will be led by those who embrace strategic paradoxes.
