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10 Things CIOs Can Learn from Start-Ups on Innovation

It is commonplace for CIOs to draw inspiration and ideas from more experienced peers. However, there are many things a seasoned CIO can learn from start-up culture that can be implemented in their own organization and leadership style. In a recent virtual insights presentation, we heard from Hylke Sprangers on Things Enterprise CIOs Can Learn From Start-Ups About Innovation And Disruption. We cover 10 key takeaways from his presentation in this article.  

 
Hylke Sprangers is currently an Executive Director and lecturer at Erasmus University Rotterdam. He worked for 7 years at Talpa Network as Group CTO and board member and was responsible for driving their technology vision, execution, and innovation roadmap. Sprangers specializes in tech strategy, digital innovation & transformation, and platform ecosystems.
 

1. Integrate four dynamic capabilities to manage change and disruption

Sprangers identifies four important capabilities to futureproof companies to benefit from change and disruption: 

  • Resilience 
  • Adaptability 
  • Foresight 
  • Creativity 

“I think creativity is underestimated nowadays because there is a lot of focus on analytical capabilities.” However, each of the four capabilities has its unique function in the futureproofing landscape. “For unknown unknowns, you need to either be resilient or adaptable in your business models and operations as you don’t know what’s going to happen,” Sprangers adds. He mentions COVID-19 as the most recent Black Swan event to impact the business world.  

When it comes to adaptive innovation, foresight, and creativity are much more important. “This is what we call dynamic capabilities, as opposed to operational capabilities needed in your industry or company to run your business,” Sprangers says.  

 

2. Predict trends all year round

“When talking about dynamic capabilities, it’s about the way we see what’s going on.” Here’s how Sprangers categorizes emerging trends. Instead of searching for new trends every year, he distinguishes categories and keeps track of those trends year after year.  The trend categories are: 

  • Trusted Tech: e.g., Cybersecurity, Data Privacy & Sovereignty 
  • Sustainable Tech: e.g., Climate Action, Sustainable Cities 
  • Smart Tech: e.g., Smart Devices, Smart Cities  
  • Immersive Tech: e.g., the Metaverse, Experience Economy 
  • Decentral Tech: e.g., Hyperautomation, Anything-as-a-Service 
  • Autonomous Tech: e.g., Autonomous Vehicles  
  • Human Tech: e.g., Bionics and Prosthetics 

“I encourage all leaders to do some strategic foresight based on these kinds of trends and maps,” Sprangers advises.  

 

3. Get inspired by entrepreneurial leadership

Sprangers defines entrepreneurial leadership as “leadership to empower people to sense and seize opportunities.” He added that it’s always about value creation to benefit society as a whole and not only about profit. There are two modes of entrepreneurial leadership when it comes to start-ups or scale-ups.  

Sprangers refers to the two modes introduced by Andreessen Horowitz, a famous VC in Silicon Valley:  

  • Sensing: Search Mode (Looking for opportunities and finding a market fit)
  • Seizing: Hill-Climbing Mode (Executing and exploiting those opportunities) 
 

4. Be aware of qualities that distinguish entrepreneurs

Out of the 15 leadership principles introduced by Amazon, Sprangers listed the following qualities to distinguish entrepreneurs:  

  • Learn and be curious 
  • Customer obsession 
  • Think big 
  • Ownership 
  • Have a backbone, disagree, and commit 

Based on a study by Timothy Butler where almost 6,000 entrepreneurs and general managers were interviewed, Sprangers refers to three factors that distinguished entrepreneurs:  

  • Thriving in uncertainty: “Are you curious? Are you comfortable with risk? Are you focused on learning? Are you focused on opportunity-seeking?” 
  • Passion for ownership: “Entrepreneurs are driven by a need to own products, projects, or initiatives to have control over the finished product.” 
  • Skilled in persuasion: Entrepreneurs are natural salespeople who communicate their vision effectively to team members and clients.  
 

5. Ask the right questions when hiring entrepreneurial leaders

Sprangers gives examples of interview questions to ask when hiring entrepreneurs based on the three factors distinguishing entrepreneurs.  

Thriving in uncertainty: 

  • Which is more valuable: imagination or analysis? Why? 
  • We decided to launch this product. How could we have done it differently? 

Passion for ownership: 

  • How much of who you are is what you do at work? 
  • Which is a better attitude for a business leader: passion or professionalism? 

Skilled in persuasion: 

  • How does persuading a group of executive peers differ from selling to a customer? 
  • Could you describe an experience when it was important that you changed the opinions of others? 
 

6. Utilize the emergent strategy when it comes to innovation

Peter Drucker famously said, “culture eats strategy for breakfast.” “What he meant was that culture is more important than strategy for a company,” Sprangers explains. 

“And you could also say strategy eats innovation for breakfast.” 

“When you look at innovation, you need to have a strategy on how to differentiate in a world with structural volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. You continuously must innovate.” 

Sprangers explained two strategies for continuous innovation: 

  • Deliberate strategy: A traditional leadership-driven approach. “Leaders will ask, ‘What kind of company do we want to be in the future and how do we get there?’ It’s foresight and planning, and then action. You create a vision and then execute that vision.” 
  • Emergent strategy: The customer is placed at the center of the strategy, and leaders will experiment based on what the customer wants. Based on the action, a strategy is formed. “Silicon Valley companies and start-ups utilize the emergent strategy. They first define a bold vision and end goal. Based on a bottom-up and agile cycle, they constantly experiment on how to get there by putting out projects, products, and new features.” 
 

7. Adopt elements of blitzscaling

Sprangers refers to Reid Hoffman, the co-founder of LinkedIn, for bringing the concept of blitzscaling to the mainstream. “Blitzscaling is the science and art of rapidly building out a company to serve global markets. When start-ups scale fast, we call that blitzscaling.” 

The four dimensions of blitzscaling are:  

  • Growing your revenues: “Start-ups that need to grow rapidly need to look at their revenues.” 
  • Growing your customer base: “Often start-ups first look at their customer base, and only then look at their financial performance.” 
  • Growing your organization: “Many start-ups fail because their organization cannot cope with the large growth.”  
  • Growing your technology: “Your technology has to scale as well when you have millions of online users.” 
 

8. Approach decision-making with intuition

How do start-ups deal with fast growth and execution? What is their decision-making process?  

“We are focused on data-driven decision making, which is actually very good and more objective. But don’t underestimate the gut feeling. Don’t underestimate intuition and emotion as they are large parts of good decision-making,” Sprangers says. 

“Large corporations need to have a 50-50 balance of data-driven and gut feeling decision-making.”  

He adds, “start-ups and scale-ups don’t use data-driven decision-making all the time. Of course, they do it when they test their products, but when it comes to hiring people or scaling the organization, they use heuristics.”  

 

9. Recognize innovation killers

The answer lies in culture and the integration of new business models.  

“It’s more about culture. It’s also important to look at existing business models vs. when you’re going to explore new business models. Because you always come to a certain point where new business model is going to clash with your old business model. You get a lot of restraint or feedback from the people who are still working with old business models. That’s something that you have to carefully look at,” Sprangers says.  

He advises leaders to align the incentives of the people who are still working on old business models with those who are working on new business models. 

 

10. Explore becoming an ambidextrous organization

An ambidextrous organization is an organization that is good at both operations and innovation.  

“Operation is about exploiting your current business model and operations, and innovation is about exploring new innovations and exploring the two together,” Sprangers says.  

He adds that there are several models for how to combine the two. “First, you have to distinguish between the fact that on the operational side, you are more focused on incremental innovation which accounts for 70% of your innovation efforts, and also of the failure that you get from it. On the innovation side, it’s more about new business models or new technology.” 

“So, you’re talking more about disruptive innovation or radical innovation. For example, most companies split those two into separate entities, so they don’t combine it into one organizational entity.” 

 

*The transcript has been edited for length and clarity.  

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Inside the EU AI Act: Exclusive Insights from Lead Author, Gabriele Mazzini

On August 1, 2024, the EU AI Act officially came into force, establishing the world’s first comprehensive legal framework for regulating AI technology. In this exclusive interview, we speak with Gabriele Mazzini, the architect and lead author of the Act, to gain an insider’s perspective on its development. Mazzini offers a behind-the-scenes look at the complex policy-writing process, discussing how various stakeholders were consulted, and how consensus was reached on the Act’s risk-based approach. He also provides crucial advice for business leaders navigating compliance, shares important updates since the law took effect, and discusses the global implications of the Act. Most importantly, Mazzini reassures companies that now is not the time to panic, but to prepare for the future of AI regulation.

 

What motivated you to take on the role of the lead author of the EU AI Act? How did your background in law influence your policy-writing process?

I realized from the get-go that AI policy was fascinating. I have been passionate since the beginning, notably in trying to understand the intersection between AI as a technology and law as a tool to govern technology. I drafted a quite comprehensive paper about the intersection between AI and EU law in 2018, way before the Commission started working on the AI Act. At the time, I was working in a department in the Commission, which was not the department that ultimately led the work on the Act but was mostly focused on the liability implications of AI. We were reflecting on whether the liability regime in the EU needed to be changed to enable AI. My background in law and the study put in understanding the complexity of the intersection between AI and EU law was essential for the work I did afterwards on the AI Act. When working in policymaking as a regulator it is essential to think holistically, especially in a field like AI where implications are manifold and broad and where regulatory action takes the form of a horizontal legal framework, like the AI Act, which applies across all sectors. 

 

How did you engage with various stakeholders during the development process? What role did their input play in shaping the Act?

It’s a privilege to interact with many stakeholders as a policymaker and listen to many different views. You also start seeing how society sees your work, and whether they see opportunities or risks. At the same time, it’s also a major responsibility because you have to make sure that whatever choices you make as a policymaker are grounded on facts and evidence and you have as much as possible an up-to-date understanding and knowledge about the matter you regulate.  

It’s both a privilege and a responsibility. I’ve always interpreted that role with much respect and not as a tick-the-box exercise where the job is done after meeting X number of stakeholders. Consulting with and engaging with stakeholders is much more than that. On an individual basis, I’ve always had an open-door policy from the beginning and was willing to meet with whoever was interested in talking to me. The institution as a whole has of course also engaged with stakeholders in a structured way.  

This goes back to a time when the Act was not even in the conception phase. The Commission started engaging with stakeholders already in 2018 and 2019 when it set up an expert group on artificial intelligence. This expert group was composed of around 52 individuals from different backgrounds, namely industry, academia, NGOs, and civil society. That group already gave a broad perspective on the emergence of AI and the policy implications of AI. They also developed ethical guidelines for trustworthy AI which were not a deliverable of the European Commission but of this separate expert group. That work already initiated a structured dialog between the European Commission and the stakeholders.  

That work was also complemented by the establishment of an online platform (the AI Alliance) where citizens and any interested party could provide feedback and suggestions. Another important set of consultation processes took place after the adoption of the White paper. Before the Commission came up with the actual legal framework, which happened in 2021, it adopted a White paper on AI in February 2020, and this was essentially how the institution tried to identify a number of potential ideas for what could be the ultimate draft legal framework and aimed to catalyze feedback on those ideas. That was also another interesting way we consulted widely with stakeholders.  

 

Can you share any particularly challenging moments during the writing process? How did you balance competing interests and priorities to reach a consensus?

No process is perfect. It’s challenging to deal with a legal framework that is so complex and large and ensure everyone fully understands what you’re trying to do. This is because any stakeholder typically tends to have a peculiar perspective when looking at and considering the policy work that is unfolding, which is linked to the needs and interests they represent. When trying to build something horizontal, sometimes the input you receive from several stakeholders does not necessarily fit the overall picture. So, the skill of the policymaker is to try to merge the narrow focus or perspective into the ultimate goal, which is in this case, a broader framework. 

 

What led to the risk-based framework of the EU AI Act?

It was pretty clear to me since the beginning that regulating any AI application or AI technology as such did not make sense. At the same time, also for those applications that may have deserved to be regulated, it did not seem warranted to establish the same type of rules. Hence the idea of a ‘pyramid’-like approach tailored to the actual use case.  

This idea was quite fascinating because we realized that we did not want to regulate AI as a technology.  

We didn’t want to regulate any AI application as if AI always creates risks. To create a balanced legal framework that does not hinder development and intervenes only when necessary, you need to focus on the application level and the use case. Therefore, the risk-based approach was exactly that solution, because depending on the type of risk that the application would generate, the rules would be different. We identified three risk levels where binding legal frameworks apply, plus a fourth level for which no binding rules are foreseen, but certain forms of voluntary compliance are possible. Of course, this choice was not ‘carved in stone’. There is no ontological value in the risk levels either that could have been articulated differently. But I think it was an interesting and groundbreaking idea. 

 

The EU AI Act officially came into force on August 1st. What significant updates or events have unfolded since then that business leaders should take note of?

The fact that the Act entered into force doesn’t mean it’s immediately applicable. The Act is law, so it is binding, but it does not apply in its entirety until after three years.  

There is a so-called transition period. The first applicable rules that companies need to comply with will be the rules on the prohibitions. The top of the risk pyramid, if you want. The second set of rules is around the general-purpose AI models and will be applicable one year after 1 August 2024. Two years after that, on 1 August 2026, all the other rules of the AI Act are applicable except for certain provisions regarding high risk.  

Business leaders need to understand the timeline in which the rules become applicable.  

What has happened since the publication of the Act is that the administrations, both in the Commission and in the Member States, have started to set up internal processes and structures to ensure enforcement. Business leaders, notably those that may be concerned by the rules applicable to the general-purpose AI models, should pay attention to the work that has already started in developing the Code of Practice at the EU level, i.e. facilitated by the Commission. These Codes of practice should be finalized before the entry into application of the relevant chapter of the AI Act, which means before 1 August 2025. 

Another important fact business leaders should keep in mind is that the Act is not 100% clear on all its provisions. In fact, the European Commission will have to develop several executive actions called implementing acts and delegated acts as well as guidelines and templates for about 70 items. There are still many areas where clarification is needed, which is not ideal.  

Therefore, there is an opportunity for business leaders and companies to shape the process of finetuning and clarifying the AI Act in order to determine the actual extent to which certain rules may apply to them. In other words, it is time to make their voices heard. They should be active in the implementation phase now that the legislative phase is finalized, but  so much is still to be clarified.   

 

With penalties for non-compliance potentially reaching up to 35 million euros or 7% of annual turnover, what immediate steps should businesses take to ensure they are not at risk?

They should not consider themselves to be at the receiving end of a process they cannot influence. Instead, now is a time to engage critically with the provisions, especially when those rules provide a certain margin of appreciation. Companies need to proactively engage with the regulators and suggest interpretations, positions, and ideas to make sure that those rules are applied reasonably and sensibly. This is one of the challenges of regulating technology, where there is a knowledge gap between the regulators and the companies that develop those technologies.  

Of course, it goes without saying that regulators should not be dependent only on the company’s views. Although it was not obvious in our case, especially at the beginning of the process, regulators should invest heavily in having internal deepseated expertise on the matters that it intends to regulate. You need to know what you want to regulate in order to do that well. Only if you have your own technical expertise you can properly engage with external stakeholders constructively, while at the same time retaining the independence of judgment that is necessary to take broader societal considerations into account. On the other hand, those who developed the technology and the products must have a say in suggesting the best ways to comply. This exchange needs to happen. I understand sometimes companies, especially the smaller ones, don’t have the resources to engage extensively with the regulators, but I think at this time when so much still needs to be clarified it’s an exercise that is worth doing. It doesn’t have to be individual companies; it could be industry associations.  

 

Many companies are facing a shortage of AI talent. How do you think this skills gap will impact the successful adoption of the EU AI Act?

Because those skills are rare, companies need to increase their strength in certain AI-related skills. The concern is that, as I mentioned before, companies at this stage may have to invest more in compliance than AI skills. That may impact the company’s ability to compete in the AI space.  

If you spend more money on compliance, as opposed to research and development or AI engineers which are also scarce, there is a risk of imbalance. The same may happen with authorities because they must ensure compliance with all these rules and need to equip themselves with several technical skills.  

I hope this set of rules will be somewhat clarified as soon as possible so that companies can hopefully shift more of their budget to AI skills rather than AI compliance. In my view, the successful adoption of AI in Europe depends on the ability to get this legal framework, and the tools needed to implement this framework, working effectively and sensibly as fast as possible. So there is still important work to do. 

 

Who holds the primary responsibility for implementing and enforcing the EU AI Act within organizations?

It should be a team effort. The Act does not foresee a figure like a data protection officer (DPO) in the privacy legislation. This is not an obligation, so the Act does not require, for instance, a Chief AI Officer in companies. The obligations that the Act establishes are on the economic actor, which is the provider, the deployer, so the company itself. This means that the companies can organize themselves as they wish. The Act gives total freedom to organizations to organize themselves depending on their size. I don’t think there is necessarily only one model. Ultimately, the legal responsibility is on the company. If there is a lack of compliance, the company will have to pay the fine.

 

How do you see the EU AI Act influencing AI regulation in other parts of the world?

There is a huge interest around the world. Since I left the Commission, I’ve traveled from South America to Asia, and I have witnessed a growing interest in understanding this piece of legislation. It’s quite normal in this phase because AI governance and regulation is something that is of interest globally. Governments are wondering how to deal with the ‘AI wave’.  

This interest is also reflected by the collective efforts at an international level. For instance, UN agencies are investing heavily in reflecting on AI governance frameworks. As the EU is the first regional actor to come up with such a comprehensive legal framework on AI, it’s normal that countries around the world are looking with interest at that framework and are asking themselves whether they should get inspiration.  

It’s too early to say whether the Act will turn into a regulatory model for other regions around the world. There is a need to understand whether those choices fit the socioeconomic or legal context in those countries. The capacity to implement a framework like the AI Act also differs from country to country. A legal framework is not just a piece of paper. It requires human resources, skills, funding, and structures to turn it into an effective tool that can achieve the objectives it was designed for. It needs to be managed and brought to life. Not all countries are in the same position, and they would be well-advised to consider questions of implementation and enforcement from the get-go, not after the law has been agreed. 

 

Are there any specific areas where you believe the Act could have a significant global impact?

I hope the risk-based approach can be considered as one of the foundational elements. The idea is to consider AI as a tool that has both benefits and risks and is not necessarily dangerous by its nature. It’s a technology with different risk levels depending on how it’s used. I’d like to see this risk-based approach adopted widely. 

The extent to which certain areas of the AI Act may have an impact beyond EU borders could also depend on certain company choices, especially for companies that sell their products and services in the EU. They may adjust their compliance system to the EU legal framework simply because they want to sell in the EU.  

Those companies may therefore decide to adopt the same or similar compliance structure when selling their products outside the EU. It’s up to the companies whether to have two systems, one for the EU market and one for the non-EU market. It’s not for me to say what is economically convenient for companies. But these considerations may be relevant in determining whether we may see a larger or a narrower adoption of certain areas of the Act. 

 

What are the key trends or developments shaping the AI landscape in the coming years? How might the Act need to evolve to address these future challenges?

It will be interesting to see whether the trend in generative AI will continue along the lines we have seen so far. This trend towards developing larger models that require more data, and more computing power, is based on certain underlying architectural choices. Perhaps intelligence will come from other foundational choices that do not necessarily rely on growing data sets or computing power. This will ultimately shape the investments around creating a technology stack to support this.  

From a regulatory and policy point of view, it’s a challenge to keep regulation up to date, but it’s not impossible. When I think about the AI Act, making sure it’s future-proof was one of my main concerns since the beginning. However, certain choices made after the adoption of the Commission proposal, such as regulating foundation models or deleting the possibility of updating the AI definition, do not necessarily go in that direction from my point of view. We will see whether the Act will be able to stand the test of future developments. 

Currently, I’m more concerned about ensuring the Act works now to enable trustworthy innovation in Europe. This is where the Act will prove its value. It should be applied in a way that is accessible, easy to understand, and provides legal certainty to companies so that they can rely on a stable legal framework and focus on building the products.  

 

*The interview answers have been edited for length and clarity.

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6 Insights from Indra Nooyi: Building a Legacy of Curiosity and Mentorship

Nowadays, leadership is about more than results. Today’s leaders are expected to align business and societal values, inspire trust in their employees, and contribute meaningfully to business transformation and resilience. It’s not enough to master technological advancements, leaders need to also manage with compassion while driving business growth and success.

In our fireside chat with Indra Nooyi, former CEO and Chairman of PepsiCo, we explore the concept of performance with purpose, the importance of purposeful leadership, and the inevitable challenges of pursuing a career in the highest echelons of business.

Here are six key insights from Indra Nooyi:

 

1. Embrace Curiosity and Continuous Learning

 

Nooyi emphasized the importance of being a curious, lifelong learner, especially during rapid change and disruption. She advised leaders to approach new challenges and technologies with excitement and a desire to understand their impact. Stressing the importance of approaching changes with a thirst for knowledge and a love for disruption, Nooyi explained that leaders who continuously expand their understanding can better navigate the rapid transformations shaping the business landscape.

“Look at the next decade or so as a glorious time for the curious, learning individuals, and people who love disruption.”

She also stressed the importance of fostering this culture of curiosity and learning within teams, as it builds a solid foundation for future resilience.

“Everybody has to have a shared understanding. And for those who are not willing to study and get that shared understanding, they don’t belong, because the world demands that everybody invest the time to develop that shared understanding.”

Nooyi advises leaders to:

  • Approach new challenges with a desire to learn, rather than fear.
  • Continuously expand their understanding and knowledge within their field and beyond.
  • Encourage a culture of curiosity and learning within their organizations.
 

2. Align Purpose with Business Outcomes

 

Nooyi introduced the concept of ‘performance with purpose’ during her time at PepsiCo, significantly transforming the organization and generating incredible success. This idea highlights the need for an organization to directly link its purpose and social impact activities to tangible business results. This strategic alignment helps drive real change and ensures that purpose-driven efforts translate into sustainable value creation.

“If you didn’t work on environmental initiatives, there would be a cost to the company, because we’d be denied a license to operate in certain markets, and somebody would penalize us for using too much water or having a carbon footprint that’s too intensive.”

“I think it would be prudent for everybody to link purpose with business outcomes – short-, medium-, and long-term. If you do that, it’s performance with purpose, not performance or purpose.”

Nooyi advises leaders to:

  • Understand how purpose-driven actions can impact the company’s operations.
  • Approach purpose-driven strategies with a focus on performance, outlining clear business cases and value creation.
  • Link purpose initiatives directly to business outcomes.
 

3. Develop a Supportive Ecosystem

 

Nooyi credits much of her success to the support structures she built, including a dedicated spouse and family as well as mentors who were invested in her growth. She advises aspiring business leaders to build a strong support structure to enable their career advancement and lean on those who are generous with their support. She did caution that building this structure may be more challenging when balancing a career with personal goals. Especially for women, cultivating this type of ecosystem can be game-changing.

“If you want to rise to the top, think of the support structure you’re going to build. If you’re not able to build a support structure and you still want to have family and kids, just know the rise may be harder to come by.”

“I was lucky that my bosses were not political. They were just straight shooters. So, I think you’ve got to pick your boss carefully if you have that choice.”

Nooyi advises leaders to:

  • Find people who can be your support structure, including friends, family, and professional peers.
  • Carefully choose the company and managers you work with because the right environment makes a big difference.
  • Recognize and accept that even with a strong support system, the path to the top may be tougher for women.
 

4. Focus on Output, Not Gender

 

Speaking directly to women in leadership, Nooyi reiterated the need to focus on delivering high-quality work and contributions rather than getting distracted by gender-related discussions. While it is inevitable in business spaces, Nooyi encourages women to position themselves as capable, competent professionals first and foremost. The work will speak for itself.

“I think the bar for women is higher than men only because everybody knows the leadership model for males. They didn’t know what the female model was for leadership. So, anybody new coming in would have to outperform the men to earn a seat at the table.”

Nooyi was also candid about how tough it is for any leader the higher up the ladder they go. Leaders who want to reach the top must be prepared to sacrifice and forget “balance”.

“If you want to be in the top two or three layers of a company, all bets are off when it comes to balance because the effort it takes to get to the top of a big company is enormous. On the other hand, if you want to have a good job and maintain it, you can have a decent balance. You have help at home, predictable hours, not too much travel, not too much stress. But you should also realize that somebody from below might want to take your job.”

“Especially with technology changing, you must remain updated with everything. As you move to the top of the organization, the whole ball game changes. It’s a punishing schedule, and anybody who thinks it’s not can think again.”

Nooyi advises leaders to:

  • Focus on delivering their best, high-quality work, and making an impact.
  • Be mindful of how your mannerisms and behaviors might distract from your message and competence.
  • Be prepared to make sacrifices as you climb the corporate ladder.
 

5. Embrace Tough Decisions for the Greater Good

 

Nooyi shared that she had to make many difficult decisions during her time as CEO of PepsiCo, such as workforce reductions, that were ultimately necessary for the company’s long-term success. She emphasized the importance of making these tough calls with plenty of compassion and focusing on the greater good.

Elaborating on this painful decision of layoffs, Nooyi said: “For the sake of productivity, especially when you introduce new technology, there is going to be a reduction in workforce. Now you can approach it objectively and say, ‘Hey, tough luck, I want to reduce the workforce’, or you can look at it with a little bit of compassion and say, think about how to retrain the workforce for new jobs.”

“Don’t sit here wringing your hands about the 10,000 who have to leave the company. Think of the 145,000 people who are left behind; they have to be successful too,” she added.

Nooyi stressed that tough decisions must be made when running a company and delivering financial results. These decisions are painful and not everyone will like them, but a leader must focus on the bigger picture.

Nooyi advises leaders to:

  • Approach tough situations with compassion, and a focus on supporting impacted team members.
  • Accept that leaders must make tough decisions that may not be popular but are necessary for the organization’s success.
  • Maintain a focus on long-term goals rather than getting bogged down by short-term pains.
 

6. Leave a Lasting Legacy Through Mentorship

 

Mentorship features heavily in Nooyi’s professional narrative. She places great emphasis on finding a suitable mentor and being a mentor to others. Nooyi takes great pride in the leaders she has personally mentored and developed over the years. Many of them have gone on to become CEOs themselves. Nooyi sees this as a key aspect of her legacy.

She pointed out that leaders who want to be effective mentors must be ready to let their mentees outgrow them and possibly take over their jobs – it is, after all, a form of succession planning. Nooyi also advised that leaders who want to be mentors should be generous with their time. This led her to stress the importance of mentors choosing their mentees. If they’re going to spend the time and effort to mentor someone, they need to be selfless about it.

“Mentorship is an unselfish act because if you mentor somebody very well, they could take your job. When you start thinking about mentoring people, which is your job as a leader, approach it with the company in mind, not your job security.”

Leaders can create a lasting impact far beyond their tenure by investing in the next generation.

Nooyi advises leaders to:

  • Take pride in mentoring and developing the next generation of CEOs.
  • Be unselfish in their mentorship, invest time, and provide honest feedback to help mentees grow and succeed.
  • View mentorship as a key element of your legacy and responsibility as an experienced leader.

*The insights in this article have been edited for length and clarity.

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Strategies to Close Sales in the Digital Space

As digital transformation is solidified, business leaders and salespeople are making the best of both virtual and physical spaces for their professional dealings. In fact, HubSpot found that 63% of sales leaders believe that virtual sales meetings are just as or more effective than face-to-face meetings. On the customer side, 75% of B2B customers prefer remote sales interactions over face-to-face, according to McKinsey.

So, while the age-old skill of reading body language to gauge interest levels and finishing a meeting with a firm handshake can still play a part in your in-person sales meetings, the virtual space holds just as much promise.

Sales professionals need to continue honing their in-person skills while building virtual communication capabilities to ensure success. How can you leverage the best of both worlds to make a lasting impression with CxOs and successfully close deals in a digital space?

 

1. NETWORK

Networking is the fundamental tool of any salesperson, but it has evolved in recent years to encompass both physical and virtual events. The refinement of virtual networking has rapidly solved the issue of distance for many professionals, enabling the creation of vibrant digital communities where people can make connections, work together, and share knowledge regardless of location.

Getting involved in different LinkedIn groups, for example, can be beneficial when trying to establish a network of people in specific industries or shared interests. They’re already in the same space, ready to connect with you. This greatly increases the quality of contacts you can make and allows the easier establishment of relationships. Virtually networking also presents a larger opportunity to network with executives who are farther away – allowing you to break into newer markets – and communicate on the go. The digital space gives salespeople the opportunity for a more targeted approach to networking.

it’s important nowadays for salespeople to learn how to bring digital connections into the real world. For example, you could attend in-person networking events and connect with prospects that you’ve already linked with online. Meeting face-to-face after establishing a virtual connection is a great way to strengthen that professional relationship. The same can be done and vice versa – where you meet a prospect in person and continue to strengthen that relationship in the digital space via LinkedIn or follow-up emails.

Adopt a multichannel approach to networking.

 

2. BE ACTIVE IN INSIGHTS SESSIONS

More and more businesses are offering online events now that allow participants from across the globe or a specific target region to come together in a virtual space. From panels to forums, trend discussions, and knowledge sharing by experts – these are all excellent spaces for salespeople to not only to keep up with the latest trends in their market but also to meet prospects.

Of course, there’s no point in attending these virtual events if you’re not going to participate and be heard. As a salesperson, you need to make an impression. When you’re in a virtual space where you are either a tiny little box on someone’s screen or not even visible in the session, the only way to stand out is to speak up.

Ask questions, offer insights, and talk about your own experiences where relevant.

Being engaged in insights sessions with prospects is a surefire way to get yourself noticed. This will translate to prospects remembering you and therefore being more open to talking to you. That’s a foot in the door. From there, you’re free to work your sales charm and get a meeting! This can look like connecting with other attendees on LinkedIn who were vocal during the session by commenting on their questions or insights. Share your thoughts on what they said and start building a relationship with potential new prospects.

 

3. BE AN EXCELLENT LISTENER

Once you’ve connected with a prospect and secured a meeting, you must continue bringing your A-game. As a seasoned salesperson, you understand the value of listening during a sales call. Online, you don’t have the ability to properly read body language. This leaves you with the alternative of clear and precise communication which can only be achieved with active listening.

When you listen to your prospect with empathy, you will be able to ask the right open-ended questions to generate better discussions in your sales meetings.

At the end of the day, people want to buy from those they trust and who they feel care about their well-being, understand their pain points, and actively seek to alleviate their concerns. This is the same both offline and online. Work at creating a lasting and memorable impression of yourself as a valuable business asset to your clients, not as a salesperson.

Once you learn to effectively build trust by asking the right questions and matching their answers to your solutions, you’ll find that deals will flow like wildfire even during trying times.

 

4. MAINTAIN CONFIDENCE

Confidence in sales, whether face-to-face or online, will always stand to have the most chance of securing a deal. As businesses start to emerge on the other side of a pandemic – and are navigating an accelerated digital transformation wave– it is natural to uncertain in unchartered waters. CxOs may be more cautious with their investments and business strategy. As a salesperson, your job is to try and cut through that hesitance.

An effective way to maintain your confidence is to plan out your meeting agendas and have a strong closing prepared when networking or during sales meetings. A well-thought-out closing strategy will help greatly in calming your nerves and being prepared for both expected and sudden client situations.

As per The Ultimate Guide To Closing The Sale by Resourceful Selling, be a top seller by “remaining upbeat, even when dealing with pessimistic prospects.”

“[Top sellers] don’t feel bad for themselves, even when a sale fails to close. They maintain enthusiasm by repeating positive affirmations to themselves, such as, ‘I will close the sale because I have the best product.”

 

5. BE PREPARED TO HANDLE OBJECTIONS

You are probably familiar with objections. Facing these online can seem daunting, given the lack of body language cues and the ability to turn on your sales charm for prospects. However, learning to handle sales objections online can save you a lot of grief and time.

A key factor in successfully turning around objectives is to be prepared for them, especially since virtual meetings with prospects tend to be short. However, the added benefit of virtual spaces is that you can instantly pull up relevant information, stats, or case studies to address unexpected objections. Did your prospect ask a question you weren’t expecting? No problem. You can immediately look up the right information during the call to address their objection and turn it around.

Embrace sales objections as part of the process and take it as a chance to nudge your prospects along their journey. Be on their radar to ensure visibility and make sure to follow up – with an email, perhaps with an in-person meeting to demonstrate your solutions in more detail.

“It’s not your customer’s job to remember you. It is your obligation and responsibility to make sure they don’t have the chance to forget you.”

– Patricia Fripp, Executive Speech Coach and Sales Presentation Skills Trainer

 

Mastering the hybrid sales strategy means finding ways to leverage both in-person and virtual spaces to your advantage. Focus just as much on perfecting your skills in virtual meetings as converting your digital connections into the real world. Effective and efficient communication, especially, is a key differentiator that can significantly you from your competitors in creating a lasting impression among CxOs, closing sales, and enhancing your brand in the digital space.

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4 Reasons to Invest in B2B Lead Generation Tools

Ensuring a continuous leads pipeline is a Sisyphean task – never-ending and often tedious. A recent report by ViB Tech found that lead generation is the top challenge for 41% of B2B marketers in 2024. This explains why 46% of B2B marketers cited lead quality and conversation rate improvement as their main priority, according to the same report.  

To stay ahead of the game with consistent lead generation, B2B marketers must find quality leads, qualify them, and find out where the leads are on the buyer’s journey. This requires immense resources and effort from both sales and marketing teams. It takes valuable time away from building thought leadership, boosting brand awareness, nurturing leads, closing deals, and growing professional relationships – all of which are key to making sales. 

This is where lead generation services like ME Matchmaking come in – taking over the repetitive, tedious tasks of finding and qualifying leads while providing wider benefits like scheduling meetings and branding opportunities.  

When used in tandem with standard marketing strategies like content and email marketing, lead generation tools can be a boon to an organization. 

Here are four reasons to invest in a lead generation service:  

 

1. Saves time and money 

On average, 60% of B2B marketers report wasted time and resources from unsuccessful lead generation campaigns (Marketing Profs). In fact, only about 22% of organizations surpassed their target for leads generated (ViB), despite the same or higher marketing budgets for 73% of organizations in 2024 (Marketing Profs).  

On the sales side, sales professionals require an average of eight cold call attempts before reaching a prospect. Additionally, sales professionals only spend 34% of their time on actual selling (HubSpot). The rest of their time is taken up by research, writing emails, updating data, and scheduling meetings and calls.  

A good lead generation service can increase quality leads in your marketing pipeline while saving sales and marketing teams valuable time in the initial phase of the process by: 

  • Conducting initial prospecting to find the best leads. 
  • Performing thorough research and qualification to narrow down the best leads. 
  • Maintaining and updating a database of leads. 
  • Scheduling meetings and calls with an organization’s target prospects. 

This enables B2B marketers to focus on building brand awareness and thought leadership while allowing sales teams to refine their sales pitch and nurture existing leads. 

 

“The meetings are booked in our schedule every other week, and we have time to prepare and do follow-ups, it allows us time to nurture leads.”

Business Development Director, Keto Software
 

2. Improves lead quality 

Speaking of lead qualification, 40% of sales professionals struggle with lead quality while prospecting (ZoomInfo). This is disappointing given how time-consuming the manual process of prospecting can be. Although buying a leads database could be a short-term solution, these databases may have outdated or incorrect information on job titles, company size, and email addresses, among others. Quality is simply not guaranteed. 

On the other hand, a lead generation partner can: 

  • Handle data cleanup and qualification to ensure that only the most promising leads make it down the sales funnel.  
  • Provide direct access to the right decision-makers who are uniquely interested in the solutions your organization provides. 
  • Curate a list of prospects tailored to your organization’s target group and buyer persona. 
 

“ME Matchmaking is really good at finding these executives that are otherwise hard to reach. That’s why it’s been a very attractive service to us.”

Marketing Director, IFS Nordics
 

“With Management Events, we can really pinpoint the organizations we want to talk to and people the people we want to meet.”

SVP of Sales & Marketing, Solita
 

3. Enables nurturing of lasting relationships with prospects 

Nurturing strong professional relationships is commonly agreed to be a cornerstone of the sales and marketing process. A HubSpot report found that 82% of sales professionals find it the most crucial aspect of the sales process. Developing and maintaining relationships with prospects will continue to pay off over time.  

An effective lead generation provider handles all the legwork at the beginning of the sales process and empowers B2B sales professionals and marketers to focus on building trust and nurturing relationships with prospects, turning them into valuable business partnerships.  

As a lead generation partner, ME Matchmaking will: 

  • Schedule and book virtual 1-to-1 meetings throughout the year with new prospects from your target market. 
  • Provide a well-researched profile, with information like investment priorities and budget, for each lead that you can access to help with relationship building. 
  • Provide avenues for networking directly with decision-makers at exclusive events. 
 

“Management Events is one of the networks we use as a first connector to meet the right people, it’s great that we can meet people all year long.”

Senior Manager, Field Marketing, Northern Europe, OutSystems
 

4. Provides opportunities to boost brand visibility 

Brand awareness is often cited as a key factor in effective B2B marketing, taking up more than half the budget for 57% of B2B marketers (InboxInsight). Whether it’s content marketing, email advertising, or building thought leadership, B2B markers understand that boosting brand visibility will lead to improved conversion rates.  

This is supported by an Edelman and LinkedIn study which found that 75% of decision-makers say that thought leadership has led them to investigate products and services they were not considering before.  

A lead generation service doesn’t only provide leads, but also opportunities for boosting brand awareness to thousands of top decision-makers in Europe, both online and offline.  

The service includes: 

  • Opportunities for increased brand visibility at exclusive in-person and virtual events all year round. 
  • Building thought leadership via roundtable discussions, keynote sessions, and forums with top executives. 
 

ME Matchmaking: The Best of Hybrid Lead Generation 

Gone are the days of struggling with cold calls and emails. A lead generation service like ME Matchmaking is an effective and proven way to get high-quality leads, grow brand visibility, and meet directly with Europe’s top CxOs.  

Update your lead generation strategies today!