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The Art of ‘Quiet Quitting’ in Employee Management

Quiet quitting, reverse hustle, work-life integration, acting your wage, working at work, morale-adjusted productivity – these are the different terms for the concept that has taken the business world by storm.  

Reintroduced to millions by an engineer on TikTok, the idea of quiet quitting is now seen as a further residual impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some say it is the next stage of the Great Resignation.  

As leaders, how do you identify quiet quitters? How do you manage them to avoid major negative impacts on your business? Is quiet quitting a threat to organizational success? 

We took these questions and more to our Business Buzz Outlook session with Ira S. Wolfe to uncover his insights on quiet quitting and how leaders can best manage this situation with their employees.  

 
Ira S. Wolfe is a Top 5 Global Thought Leader in the Future of Work and HR, Workplace Futurist, TEDx Speaker, and best-selling author. He is also known to his peers as the Certified Prophet of Workplace Trends.
 

Quiet Quitting Looks Different to Everyone 

 

Whether you’re the employer or employee, the definition of quiet quitting can vary. From a manager’s perspective, it can have a negative connotation of employees quitting on the job and not taking the initiative to hide it. This is similar to the idea of presenteeism, where people show up and don’t do their jobs at all or only do as little as possible. 

On the other hand, quiet quitting from an employee’s perspective is giving 100% at the job they were hired for, not more or less. They are showing up but not giving 110% of their performance for just 100% of the pay. 

Ira noted the high level of burnout and overwork that people are experiencing since the pandemic. Coupled with more options being available, people are quitting. They’re also reflecting and evaluating their lives and trying to reset.  

“It was really people just trying to set boundaries, healthy boundaries, for themselves. They did take care of themselves, and when employers are short-handed, they didn’t like that,” said Ira.  

He added that the definition with the best intention is that people are setting healthy boundaries. It doesn’t mean they are trying to get away with just 70% of the work for 100% of the pay. Instead, they are willing to do the work but they’re also going to set boundaries.  

Ultimately, the pandemic prompted employees to reflect on the “hustle culture” that they were living before the lockdowns forced them to slow down. They realize they want more out of life.  

Another major transition that came with the pandemic is that many baby boomers left the workforce – whether due to retirement or COVID-19 deaths. This means millennials and Gen Z, who have a different work attitude, now make up the greatest proportion of the workforce. 

 

“Baby boomers live to work, younger generations work to live,”

– Ira S. Wolfe 
 

Another point he made was that many quiet quitters tend to have multiple jobs. So, it’s not that they are neglecting their work so much as they have to leave to do other things – whether that’s unpaid labor like caregiving or a second job.  

“They’re not quitting. They’re just not willing to give you that extra push, they’re not willing to do it for you for the same level of pay,” he stressed.  

However, he added that it’s not always about pay. Sometimes it’s a feeling of disrespect or detachment from their leaders that causes them to be less likely to invest more in work. 

 

Employers Must Change Their Mindset?

 

When asked if there’s a positive spin to quiet quitting, Ira responded that this is a chance for reflection. Given that many organizations are experiencing a skilled labor shortage while challenged by an aging population and declining working-age population, they have to pivot.  

 

“We should be taking care of people and we shouldn’t be burning them out,”

– Ira S. Wolfe 
 

Citing the World Health Organization’s classification of burnout as a legitimate mental health condition as a result of people putting in more than 100% at work, Ira stressed that living to work is not the best thing for humans or for the planet at large.  

 

What can employers do? 

 

With all that in mind, how can employers make this work for them? Ira suggests simply starting a conversation.  

Though this isn’t a fix for a complex problem, it is a good place to start. He encouraged leaders to check in on their team members, ask them how they’re doing, and have conversations about what inspires them and what they want out of life. This is especially pertinent for younger employees who are more willing to talk about these things.  

Ira also pointed out that employers focus on experience and education when hiring someone, but people are actually looking to make a difference with their work. They want to work for an organization that allows them to feel like they belong to a cause and a community. Yet, those aren’t the conversations that hiring managers have with candidates.  

“It’s simple. Just have a conversation with your employees,” Ira said.  

How Much Should Employers Monitor? 

On the question of whether monitoring employee performance could be effective in solving the issue of a lack of employee engagement, Ira says trust should be the foundation. Monitoring can be beneficial to all parties but it can also seem like too much or overbearing if there is a lack of trust between employees and employers. He described it as a George Orwell dystopic culture.  

 

“When employers are [monitoring employees] to squeeze out every bit of performance, that to me is where it breaks down because there’s a lack of trust”

– Ira S. Wolfe 
 

However, a lack of monitoring means a lack of data on how productive or effective employees and processes are. Ira stressed that when monitoring is done properly with good intentions and the right analytics, it can also be beneficial in helping everyone set healthy boundaries.  

For that to happen, employees must be able to trust that they are not being monitored just because their leaders don’t trust them to be working.  

“I don’t think it’s as much of a problem of invasion of privacy and over-surveillance as it is a lack of trust, which needs to be addressed,” he stressed.  

Leaders should have open conversations with their employees about the kind of monitoring that is being done and how it can benefit the whole organization. It must be made clear that employees are not being taken advantage of and that managers do care about their teams. Still, this is an uphill climb. 

Ira said: “We are entering this level of transparency and authenticity and trust, and the importance of trust in the workplace. But organizations have a long way to go, managers have a long way to go on how not only to build that.” 

Ira added that companies that have cultivated a safe space can have honest conversations with their employees about surveillance – from the importance and benefits to figuring out when it is overstepping.   

“Very few organizations have that and very few managers have been trained, mentored, or coached on how to achieve that,” he explained.  

 

It’s all about healthy boundaries 

When asked whether people who are passionate at work are at a higher risk of overworking, Ira made a distinction between good and bad stress.  

“When people are passionate, when they feel that they’re making a difference and they belong to a community, they will overwork but it’s not stressful,” he elaborated. 

“It’s a healthy level of stress that we’re excited, we’re inspired, we put effort into it”.  

The important thing is to create boundaries around work and change the mindset that an 80-hour work week is a ‘badge of honor’.  

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Misel Ahom: D&I Enables Competitiveness, Agility & Innovation & Beiersdorf

Diversity & Inclusion has evolved from being a side project to a key business imperative. We speak to Misel Ahom, the Global Director of Diversity & Inclusion at Beiersdorf on what goes into successful D&I efforts, how to hold leaders accountable, and the challenges of pushing this agenda forward. 

 
Gain more insights from Misel Ahom’s speech during the ME Executive Day in Frankfurt on how Beiersdorf has made D&I a key pillar in driving innovation and success.
 

You are on the advisory board of BeyondGender Agenda, the D&I network in Germany. On their website, you said that diversity and inclusion are a global imperative that requires great partnerships and focused efforts. Can you elaborate on the kind of partnerships you’re talking about?  

 

I firmly believe that we are stronger together. Partnering with external organizations – be it other leading companies, networks, or NGOs – will help us to collectively advance the D&I agenda and enable us to more powerfully shape the impact of D&I both within and outside of Beiersdorf. For example, being a member of LEAD or BeyondGenderAgenda, networks that are both actively driving D&I, gives us a platform where we can exchange, share best practices, and partner with like-minded individuals and organizations that share similar ambitions. This ensures that we do not reinvent the wheel and instead focus on where we can have the biggest collective impact. All members are working towards a common goal but bring in different levels of expertise, experience, and perspectives, and bringing that together provides a strong catalyst for change. 

Diversity and Inclusion is extremely complex and multi-dimensional, so you need the expertise of others to make an impact. 

 

How can business leaders start forming those partnerships? 

 

It starts with a will and the first step is wanting to form partnerships, either internally or externally, and acknowledging that when it comes to D&I it is tough going at it alone. In order to become more inclusive and equitable, most organizations need outside partnerships to really move the needle.  

Once the will is there, the next step is approaching a potential partner that shares the same vision or ambition. It is important to go out there and start making connections, and there are many ways to do so, either via a strong personal or professional network, attending conferences and events linked to D&I etc.   

Once the partnership has been established it goes without saying that you have to commit to building and nourishing the partnership so that it becomes a mutual-beneficial, sustainable relationship that helps both parties to successfully move towards achieving their ambitions. 

In an organization like Beiersdorf, forming sustainable partnerships is really embedded in our overall approach. It is fundamental to our corporate agenda and essential to our corporate commitment to driving a more equitable organization, which in turn will drive a more inclusive society. 

 

Some of your work is around LGBTIQ+ representation in the workplace. What have been the most common challenges faced by companies in trying to create an inclusive environment for this community?  

 

 
Because there are often so few role models that are openly and visibly part of the LGBTIQ+, particularly at the more senior levels in an organization, there is still a long way to go, and many barriers that continue to exist. 

One of the biggest barriers is when people perceive the corporate culture not to be safe, resulting in a fear that coming out at work might potentially have negative consequences, either in terms of their acceptance within the organization or a detrimental impact on their career. It is important for organizations to create an environment where people feel enough psychological safety to be who they are, and that they can be their authentic selves with no fear of consequences. If colleagues are having to hide part of their identity, it impacts us as an organization because they are not able to thrive to their full potential. 

Another common challenge is that different people in the organization are at different stages of awareness and understanding of the challenges that LGBTIQ+ colleagues are facing in the workplace and not having strong allies openly taking a stand. Therefore, education is key, as is the importance of taking a clear stand as an organization both internally and externally. Additionally, it’s also important to provide people with the tools needed to really live inclusion in this space all day, every day, and all year round. 

A key success factor in addressing the challenge of LGBTIQ+ inclusion is to ensure that the right people have a seat around the table, they are being seen and their voices are being heard.  

In Beiersdorf, we are tremendously supported by our very strong and active grassroots community called Be You, consisting of both members of the LGBTIQ+ community as well as allies, who represent the voices of our employees that identify as LGBTIQ+ and help us to shape an agenda to build a more inclusive culture. Bringing it back to partnerships, this is critical as well. Bringing in the expertise of organizations striving for equity for the LGBTIQ+ community is crucial in elevating your efforts. 

 
Gain more insights on HR leadership with the 90Minutes Insights webinar series.
 

How can HR leaders hold the rest of their organization’s top management accountable for D&I outcomes? 

 

There are several levers we are pulling to increase the accountability of our leadership within the context of D&I, though there are undoubtedly more. The more diverse and inclusive we become, the better we can tailor to the needs of our diverse global consumer base by developing compelling product propositions, and the more attractive we will be for the future generation of leaders, so it’s a win-win-win. 

As such, we work hard to establish the mindset within the organization that Diversity & Inclusion is not only an HR topic – it’s a business topic that is relevant for the whole company because of the benefits it brings not just from a people perspective, but a business perspective.  

D&I is a key pillar within our overall corporate strategy and is fully endorsed by top management because we are convinced that it enables us as an organization to be more competitive, innovative, agile, and flexible in this increasingly volatile world. 

We also define crystal clear leadership expectations when it comes to our D&I agenda and set specific goals, objectives & KPIs both on a corporate level and embedded within individual leadership objectives, partly linked to financial rewards. The old adage “what gets measured gets done” does hold true. By making the data transparent and measuring progress against set KPIs, it is easy to identify where the pain points are, hold individual leaders accountable, and ensure action plans are defined to close the gaps.  

We place great value on the actual lived experience of our employees, and we want to give our employees the opportunity to reflect back to us if we are being successful in creating a more inclusive culture where they feel a stronger sense of belonging. This is why we run employee engagement surveys and include questions on diversity and inclusion.  This is the organization telling us whether we are doing a good job and getting better. There is almost no greater sense of accountability than that. It’s about hearing the voices of our employees and actioning their feedback. 

 

What do you think the future of work looks like in terms of D&I? 

 

Simply stated, those organizations that do not embrace and embed D&I as part of their overall corporate strategy will lose their edge and ability to attract the right talent. I really believe it’s the only way forward both for organizations as well as society. 

I am also convinced that when it comes to Diversity and Inclusion, we will continue to make progress, otherwise, I would be in the wrong job. I do believe it is an ever-growing movement and that the understanding of why it is important is also growing. Coupled with the fact that we live in a world that is so interconnected, the potential for change is encouraging and it’s what motivates me to keep going. 

But, it is a work in progress and an ongoing journey. Whilst I am hopeful because I do see traction, we should aim for a transformation because there is a long road ahead. 

 

What is one thing you hope attendees will take away from your speech, People Drive Innovation: From Diversity and Inclusion to a World Class Product Portfolio, at the ME Executive Day?  

 

Representation matters, a lot. We need diverse representation both in communication and in catering to the needs of our diverse global consumers.  From a communication perspective, we have a tremendously global media platform and with that comes the responsibility to shape the imagery that people see and demonstrate what an inclusive society looks like.  

In terms of catering to the needs of our consumers, everyone uses skincare products, everyone wants to feel good in their skin and we need to ensure that everyone can, and no one is left behind. If we get that right, everyone will benefit. 

*Answers have been edited for clarity. 

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How Organizations Are Tackling the Skills Gap

The skills gap problem plagues every industry across the globe. Partly due to the rapid digital transformation wave, many organizations are still struggling to find the right people with the right skills for specific jobs.  

A global survey by McKinsey found that nearly 87% of organizations say they are facing a skills gap while the rest expect to experience it within the next five years. Additionally, McKinsey predicts that roughly 375 million workers around the world will have to switch jobs in the next 10 years to meet shifting organizational demands.

 

Which industries have the biggest skills gap? 

 

The biggest skills gap that businesses are struggling to close is data analytics, IT, executive management, and HR and talent management. The need for these talents is ever-growing but it seems unlikely that the demands will be met in the near future.  

In fact, IBM found that in Europe, the AI skills gap alone is growing with about 23% of tech recruiters having trouble finding the right candidates for a career in AI. This is a problem that will only become worse as AI moves into the mainstream.  

Additionally, the 2022 Global Talent Shortage report noted that the top five in-demand roles are IT & Data, Sales & Marketing, Operations & Logistics, Manufacturing & Production, and Customer Facing & Front Office. This shortage is seen almost evenly across industries from education to banking & finance, retail, F&B, and construction.  

The problem is well documented. However, bridging the gap is proving to be a challenge. Though organizations say that closing the skills gap is a priority for them, only a few are prepared to actively respond to the problem. McKinsey noted that only 28% of respondents say that their organizations are making effective decisions on how to close the gap, while only 41% said that they have a clear understanding of the roles in their company that will likely be disrupted.  

For those organizations that want to tackle this issue head-on, what can they do? 

 

Skills training & development 

 

One of the key approaches to addressing the talent gap is by reskilling and upskilling the current workforce. As new technology makes its way into industries, workers need the right support and training so that they can continue to contribute to the organization’s success.  

For example, German giant Henkel offers targeted learning programs to its over 50,000 employees around the world. Its Digital Upskilling Program started out with just IT and Finance learning journeys. It has now expanded to include learning programs tailored to marketing, sales, purchasing, and corporate communications, with more in the pipeline.  

Henkel’s training program functions in tandem with the organization’s Digital Talent Experience and Digital Talent Sourcing programs which include talent management and sourcing functions. The company is able to monitor and manage the talent lifecycle while redirecting the employees to roles that best fit their skill profiles and interests.  

Another example is the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) in Hong Kong which consciously cultivated a culture of learning and development by introducing a learning platform that allows experts to share their experiences and knowledge in interactive e-learning programs for their staff to access at any time. URA has also implemented mandatory learning programs which are constantly reviewed to ensure that employees are being equipped with the right skills at the right time.  

Beyond that, they are also using people analytics to build a skill-based pool and understand where they are lacking in terms of talent placement and which employees are best suited for those roles. With the use of an HR system and people analytics program, the URA can fill in its skills gap more efficiently.  

 

Apprenticeship programs 

 

Besides investing in developing existing talent, organizations are also introducing and expanding apprenticeship programs. The benefit of an apprenticeship program is that talent can be nurtured from scratch and with tailored development based on the organization’s needs.  

Siemens in the US noted that “the skills gap cannot be correct by a strong economy; it can only be correct by a strong community” which they are building via their apprenticeship program.  

Through the Siemens Foundation’s STEM Middle-Skill Initiative, the organization works with various partners in the US to build a nationwide support system to help them scale their apprenticeship programs.  

Similarly, DHL Supply Chain in the UK and Ireland has expanded the types of apprenticeships that it offers to develop the next generation of talent for the logistics industry. They also have a leadership apprentice program that aims to develop future logistics leaders. 

 

Partnering with educational institutions 

 

Externally, organizations are also playing a more active role in cultivating talent outside of the organization via educational programs. For example, Siemens USA has granted billions of dollars to various educational institutions such as the Rutgers Engineering School to help equip students with the tools and skills of the future they need before entering the workforce.  

Global finance firm JPMorgan Chase & Co is doing the same by investing over USD 350 million in its New Skills at Work initiative in an effort to address the global skills gap and prepare future talent with the right skills. The company has worked with community colleges to design a curriculum that is aligned with in-demand skills for jobs of the future.  

Similarly, DHL Supply Chain also engaged with schools, colleges, and universities to help develop employability skills and support career education within the logistics industry. The company’s VP of Talent Acquisition and Learning & Development noted that the business hopes to inspire interest in careers within the industry through its partnerships with educational institutions.

 

Tapping into the gig economy 

 

While digital transformation is part of the reason behind the skills gap, it can also be the solution – at least in the short term. Increased global connectivity has opened a whole new world of talent for organizations and boosted the gig economy to new heights. According to Eurostat, there are roughly 27.6 million freelancers in the EU alone as of 2020.  

When there is a talent shortage that cannot be filled by reskilling or upskilling, organizations are now able to cast a wider net and look beyond their geographical borders for the right skills. While they may not be long-term hires, freelancers could be the solution for some jobs that require highly specialized skills.  

An Australian software company did just when they realized they didn’t have the right developers in-house and decided to hire freelancers instead. This enabled them to not only improve their products but scale them as well in a short period. The freelancers had the exact skills that the company needed at that time.  

 

Bridging the skills gaps requires proactive solutions 

 

As industries continue to transform, the type of skills required from the workforce will evolve as well. Organizations and business leaders are at the forefront of trying to figure out the best ways to bridge the skills gap and secure the future of their companies.  

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Stephanie Stanislawski: HR is Changing the Rules of Engagement

Stephanie Stanislawski, Senior Platform Product Manager at Personio and TEDx speaker, provides insights on the future of Human Resources (HR) and employee engagement, strategies for how HR teams can become key business advisors, and how to shift from reactive to proactive recruitment. 

 

The Future of HR is Content and Branding

 

I want to share with you a few things that I know are coming your way in terms of the future of HR. The first thing is that the old recruitment ways are dead. We cannot assume that job boards work the same way as they used to. We cannot assume that great talents are actively looking for jobs. The best talents are usually not looking, and they may not even want to be approached for a job.  

The new generation also does not want to stay in a company for 15 years. What used to work before in terms of benefits like having an amazing office with full pantries and a ping pong table are no longer alluring because people prefer to work from home.  

The other thing we’re seeing is that content is becoming more important than ever. One of the main things that new generations consume is content as we move towards a content-based society. So, companies need to change their focus quite a bit and become more proactive with recruitment efforts.  

Obviously, employer branding is directly linked to this. The content you create has to be connected to your overall employer branding.  

I think the role of recruiters and HR professionals will start to evolve to meet these new demands from being passive or reactive to proactive and strategic.  

 
Keep up with the latest trends and technologies with our 90Minutes HR Insights webinars featuring industry experts and thought leaders.
 

Nurturing A Global Network of Talent

 

Companies also must move towards long-term nurturing of global networks of talent – which they can build via content creation. This includes building videos around company culture, blogging, and creating courses. They need to find ways to engage the global community and build a network of talent.  

There are already some systems in place, and new ones coming up, that allow HR professionals to assess these global networks to find the right talent. These companies, like Pymetrics, are already helping you sort out talent by skills, knowledge, and preferences. There is more focus on skills rather than academic performance.  

That then gives you a pool of passive and engaged talent that are ready to go when you need them. So as soon as you have a vacancy, you can tap into your talent pool and find the right person to fill the seat. This entire process of skills assessment is becoming automated, which helps tremendously in predicting future organizational needs and ensuring that companies are ready for it.  

There are also tools that track internal team structures and communications to measure engagement. With that, you will be able to quantitatively support recruitment efforts by identifying risks, learning opportunities, and skills that will perform best in specific roles.  A data-driven approach can help match the right skills to the right roles. 

 

HR as a Disrupter 

 

HR will stop being a liability or drain on resources. Instead, HR can start to build new sources of income. For example, by charging for courses or becoming part of a global network of talent. 

Beyond that, HR becomes a disrupter and changes the rules of engagement. This can look like allowing people to choose the kind of benefits they want, or even renting out talent to NGOs or other companies.  

With the rapidly changing landscape, HR professionals must upskill their own profiles. One thing they can do immediately is to learn as much as possible – about employer branding, content creation, and the evolving technology ecosystem. Keeping an eye on these changes and starting to build that talent network is crucial. Even if you’re not offering them a job, just initiating a connection first could pay off in the long run.  

 

Talent Mobilization Will Be Crucial

 

We know that Europe, Canada, Australia, and some other regions will very soon see a significant need for fresh talent coming from other geographies where there is plenty of young talent but a lack of opportunities.  

With this, I do see a need for mobilization. Global mobility will remain an important discussion, and hopefully governments will figure out an efficient process around taxes, migrations, and visas.  

Additionally, remote work will continue to be the norm. If companies want to engage talent from wherever they are in the world, they can. Because it may be difficult for people to move countries for various reasons. This will be a growing trend and we will see plenty of development in this area.  

 

Modernize Recruitment Strategies to Attract Younger Talent 

 

Gen Z will be approached through content. It’s extremely important for them. Even marketing is changing. They no longer care if celebrities like Britney Spears have the latest Adidas shoes. They just want to see influencers, people like them to whom they can relate.  

So, I think companies need to focus on engaging that talent in a more human way through content like videos and talking about the benefits of working in a company via reviews. Essentially, things that are working in e-commerce will probably also work for talent and engagement. HR teams must step it up in terms of employer branding, content creation, and even looking to influencer programs to engage the younger generation.  

 

*The transcript has been edited for length and clarity. 

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Quantum Computing in Business: Risk or Reward?

As a rapidly growing market, McKinsey & Partners estimates that quantum computing will have a global market value of USD 1 trillion by 2035. In fact, more business leaders are considering the use of quantum computing, with 81% of senior executives expecting it to impact their industry, according to EY’s Quantum Readiness Survey. Almost half also believe that quantum technology will start to transform industries as early as 2025.  

This trajectory is supported by Gartner’s prediction that 20% of organizations will budget for quantum computing projects by 2023, compared to less than 1% today. This means that quantum consulting as a service will also see a rise as organizations try to leverage quantum computing to extract a business advantage. 

The question still remains as to what kind of benefits quantum computing can bring and how it will impact businesses going forward. To iron out these mysteries, we spoke to Dr. Angie Qarry, a quantum physicist and entrepreneur,

 
Dr. Angie Qarry holds a Ph.D in Physics and has worked in applied research in the field for over a decade. She is a scientific, technological, strategic, and innovation advisor and entrepreneur in quantum & deep tech innovations.
 

Quantum technology is for optimization

 

Speaking on how quantum computing can be applied in the business world, Dr Qarry explained that it will be about using the technology to optimize or improve upon existing processes by applying quantum algorithmic thinking to solve problems. 

“It’s just thinking differently about computability. Taking this problem that you have and thinking differently in order to take advantage of this computability,” she said.  

While there is hope that quantum computing can solve many of the current optimization problems, Dr. Qarry cautioned that we must be careful with this thinking: “We can have an advantage only in the class of problems that quantum computing can solve. The technology cannot solve all the problems on earth, because these problems fall in a class of problems that do not have an efficient solution.” 

Once that is understood, business leaders may consider how this technology can solve certain optimization problems within their organizations to give them a business advantage.  

“The moment you start to accept and learn about emergent technology, or adopting it in your business use case, you will have the advantage when the technology is ready,” said Dr Qarry. 

Citing an example, Dr Qarry shared BMWs usage of quantum technology to discover optimal sensor positioning for their automated vehicles. This is an optimization problem that quantum computing can solve – finding the best position for each sensor while limiting interference. 

 

Building a quantum-ready workforce 

 

As with any emergent technology, there is a lack of talent in the current pool. On the question of what organizations can do to build a quantum-ready workforce, Dr Qarry suggested two pathways.  

First is to think about how to build internal quantum teams. Specifically, a quantum computer lead who understands the technology on a hardware level as well as quantum computer engineers and software engineers who will be able to run the circuit and applications.  

The other option is to simply outsource the talent.  

“What you need are thinkers who can map your business to the application, and then run it. This is a skill in itself,” noted Dr Qarry. She added that to start off, it may be easier for businesses to outsource this while building their own quantum team.  

However, she advised looking at this in a broader view. It’s not just about building a workforce to run new equations – it’s about building a new workforce for a new computability area.   

 

Security risks of quantum technology 

 

One of the main concerns with the advancement of quantum technology is the security risk it poses. The United States Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announced in mid-2022 that it has chosen the first group of encryption tools designed to withstand attacks from quantum computers in the future.  

Apart from network security, quantum technology also poses a threat to certain aspects of blockchain technology, and therefore cryptocurrency. Specifically, Dr. Qarry singled out the risk to signature schemes in blockchain technology that are needed for authentication before a transaction. Though some cryptocurrencies are trying to stay ahead of the curve by adopting signature algorithms that are quantum-resistant for now, it is a race.  

On the other hand, Dr. Qarry also noted that quantum computing can help cryptocurrency by providing quantum verification. As with any emergent technology, it works both ways.  

 

Can quantum computers change the world? 

 

Though quantum computers have the potential to solve many problems, scaling remains a challenge due to issues like fault tolerance and error correction. This is one of the reasons skeptics don’t think the technology will ever scale.  

However, Dr. Qarry is more optimistic. She said, “In 25 years, we have increased the lifetime of a qubit from nanoseconds to 10s of milliseconds. In 25 years, we already have 127 qubits with IBM and 2,003 with D-Wave. So there is huge progress even if the technological or engineering aspects are extremely challenging.” 

As an emergent technology, quantum computing has the potential for major social impact. In fact, it may not even need to succeed in achieving a specific technological level in order to see the social impact.  

Dr Qarry added: “It’s in the development phase and there will be huge social impact if it scales. We’ll never know if we stop now.” 

Addressing business leaders, Dr Qarry said that waiting to invest only when the technology is ready may be too late.  

“Those that entered earlier have already prepared all the algorithms and applications to be ready with just one click, giving them the business advantage. So it depends on your level of risk-taking and how you accept emerging technologies.” 

 

*The insights have been edited for length and clarity.

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What Do You Do If You Fall Victim to a Cyber Attack?

cyber security

As cyber attacks become a more constant threat, organizations are forced to examine their risk management strategies. Checkpoint found that there were 50% more attacks per week on corporate networks in 2021 compared to the previous year.  

On top of that, more than 55% of large companies are not effective at stopping cyber attacks, identifying and fixing breaches, or containing the impact. Accenture’s State of Cybersecurity Resilience 2021 report also noted that 81% of CISO said that “staying ahead of attackers is a constant battle and the cost is unsustainable” compared with 69% in 2020. 

We spoke to Nuno Martins da Silveira Teodoro, Cyber Security and Privacy Officer of Huawei Portugal and Tom Hofmann, CISO and DPO of Eniwa AG about whether humans really are the weakest link as well as the role CISOs play in this increasingly risky security landscape. 

 
Nuno Martins da Silveira Teodoro is a cybersecurity expert with experience in cybersecurity strategies and programs, threat intelligence, cybercrime and warfare, and data privacy. He has worked with regulating bodies and managed international certifications and cyber programs.
Tom Hofmann has over 20 years of experience implementing projects from Finland to Tokyo and an interest in how to leverage human-centered innovation in social and technical systems.
 

We need more engaging cyber awareness training 

 

When asked why humans are still the weakest link in cybersecurity despite hours of training, Teodoro counters that humans are simply the “most probable link to be exploited” given the sheer number of employees in any given organization.  

He added, “You only need one to execute what criminal actors want.” 

Specifically, he pointed out that bad actors try to exploit people’s needs to help and support others. This, combined with a lack of cybersecurity awareness from just one person in an organization can have devastating effects.  

Attackers are becoming savvier by exploiting chinks in the human chain via social engineering. So even the latest technology can leave an organization vulnerable if people lack the right level of cyber awareness. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center’s 2021 Data Breach Report, social engineering attacks such as smishing, phishing, and business email compromise (BEC) were the most common cause of cyber breaches in 2021.  

In fact, the 2022 State of Phish report found that 78% of organizations experienced email-based ransomware attacks in 2021. Moreover, 79% experienced spear phishing attacks while 87% experienced bulk phishing.  

Attackers have all the time in the world to exploit humans in an organization and they’re getting very good at it. In contrast, businesses are simply unable to spend all their time and resources training their employees, which presents a disadvantage.  

As such, Teodoro suggested engaging employees in a pragmatic way when training as opposed to showing slides or running computer-based simulations that they do not identify with.  

He said: “This is where I usually try to target the training courses we do, which is to identify the fine details that can indicate that someone is a victim or an attempted social engineering attack.” 

Hofmann agreed that forcing people who are overworked and understaffed to watch boring training videos are ineffective, adding that blaming employees for falling victim to phishing attacks would also be pointless. Instead, he advocated for leaders to try to understand the problems their employees face and what they need to be more secure.  

 

Human-centric approach to cybersecurity

 

On the question of a human-centric design of cybersecurity, Hofmann explained that it’s about combining technical and business viability. However, this is made difficult when there is a lack of trust between employees and their supervisors.  

Hofmann recalled that in his experience, project managers’ bonuses are tied to certain projects. Under pressure to deliver, they do all they can even if it means coming up with workarounds that may compromise security.  

Teodoro elaborated, “For sure, penalization is something that creates a culture of fear, and it creates a culture of not alerting or reporting anything or hiding things that could otherwise be critical.” 

“I think we should foster a culture of transparency, a culture of openness, and a culture where everyone is at ease to report to the upper management or CIO or to anyone who has the responsibility that they believe something is wrong, even if it started with them,” he added.  

Hofmann, who agreed, stressed that the only way to build this sort of trust is for leaders to go out and meet people, while also refraining from using blame or shame.  

Even so, both speakers conceded that this will be difficult to do. An organization-wide cultural shift requires the cooperation of each department. The challenge is that everyone has their own agenda and way of doing things. Each person also responds differently to engagement and security awareness training. This means CISOs are faced with the mammoth task of figuring out how to best engage employees across the organization and merge them together to create a holistic version of security culture. 

When asked about the greatest contributor to behavioral change in cyber awareness, Teodoro suggested creating ‘Cyber Champions’. These are employees from different business areas who can spread the message while also using them as a conduit to understanding what each team is concerned with daily in terms of security.  

 
Gain more insights on how the newest technologies can impact your business in our ME Business Buzz Outlook webinar series with industry experts.
 

Ransomware: To Pay or Not to Pay 

 

 According to the Sophos State of Ransomware 2022 report, there was a 78% increase in the number of organizations hit by ransomware attacks alone in 2021. It is also an expensive breach. On average, the cost of rectifying the impact of ransomware attacks the same year was USD 1.4 million.   

On whether organizations should pay the ransom, Teodoro and Hofmann both agreed that it is the absolute last resort.  

Hofmann specifically noted that paying the ransom only serves to fuel the “ransomware pandemic”. The only exception he would consider is if someone’s life is on the line – for example, if a hospital was hit by a ransomware attack and needed to recovery access to their life-saving systems. He warned, however, that there’s no guarantee that everything will return to normal once a ransom is paid because decryption keys do not always work.  

Teodoro went on to emphasized that resolving a ransomware attack is a complex process, even if you did decide to pay. Finance leaders should consider if they know how to negotiate with ransomware attackers and if they have a team in place with the required expertise to handle such situations.  

This is particularly important given that in 2021, 65% of ransomware attacks resulted in data being encrypted, while only 4% of organizations that were breached recovered all their data, according to the Sophos report. Additionally, 90% of organizations that experienced a ransomware attack has faced operation issues as a result while 86% faced a loss of revenue.  

As such, the experts recommended setting up a crisis management team for cyber attacks to contain the incident and manage the fallout both internally and externally. After all, haven an incident does occur, it has the potential to turn into a crisis. 

Teodoro said, “If you have everything on crisis management prepared, you will know that being vocal, transparent, honest, and confront the public facing audience and your customers in a direct and open way are the best possible thing you can do. If you try to hide or conceal it, you will lose all your credibility.” 

Noting that communication is vital, Hofmann noted his surprise at how leadership in many organizations remain reluctant to openly address breaches on the assumption that it would hurt their brand. He described this as a “biased decision”.  

He explained: “I would rather trust a company who is open about it and who is transparent about what they are doing rather than a company that is hiding stuff from me. As a customer, I would ask, do I trust this organization with my data?” 

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The Impact of Big Data Analytics Across Industries

Big data has long evolved from being confined to IT sectors to becoming a business imperative. In 2018, the International Data Corporation (IDC) forecasted that global revenue for big data and business analytics solutions would reach $60 billion in 2022 with a compound annual growth rate of 11.9% from 2017 to 2022. However, the IDC’s latest Spending Guide placed that figure at $215.7 billion in 2021. 

As companies continue to find new ways to better leverage the massive amounts of data being collected every moment to enable solutions and retain a competitive edge, we take a look at several case studies of how big data is applied in five different industries.  

 

Human Resources: Driving business performance via people analytics 

 

A McKinsey case study details a major restaurant chain with thousands of outlets around the world looking to improve customer satisfaction and grow revenue. Business leaders believe could be done by solving the company’s high staff turnover problem by better understanding people. 

New and existing data were collected from individuals, shifts, and restaurants across the US market including the financial and operational performance of each outlet. Some points considered include personality traits of employees, day-to-day management practices, as well as staff interactions and behaviors.  

The more than 10,000 data points were used to build a series of models to determine the relationship, if any, between the desired outcomes and drivers. The model was used to test over 100 hypotheses, many of which were posited by senior management based on their own observations and instincts from years of experience. 

Noting that some of the hypotheses were proven while others were disproven, McKinsey reported: “This part of the exercise proved to be especially powerful, confronting senior individuals with evidence that in some cases contradicted deeply held and often conflicting instincts about what drives success.” 

Ultimately, the analysis revealed four insights that have gone on to inform the company’s day-to-day people management in its pilot market.  

Just four months in, the company experienced: 

  • Over 100% increase in customer satisfaction scores 
  • 30 seconds improvement in speed of service  
  • Decrease in attrition for new joiners 
  • 5% increase in sales  
 

Supply Chain: Improving cost and service efficiency 

 

A multi-location manufacturer sought to mine its vast library of inventory, shipping, and freight billing data to find ways to improve spending while maintaining service levels. They also wanted to identify opportunities for better inventory management, trip reductions, and order consolidation.  

Using available data, the solution provider created an integrated data management and analytics platform. This was supplemented by a custom order management algorithm.  

The system helped the company consolidate orders heading out to the same location in order to ship them out in one go, thereby reducing congestion at the shipping dock and reducing freight costs by 25%.   

Predictive analysis applied to the company’s supply chain management also led to: 

  • 10% increase in shipping capacity 
  • Improved service-level metrics 
  • 10% decline in inventory levels  
  • Less shipment backlog during peak seasons 
  • Clarity on freight spend drivers 
 

Healthcare: Effective screening and treatment of diseases 

 

In China, there has been a rise in cerebrovascular diseases such as strokes. In response, the government launched a Healthy China 2020 plan aimed at improving public health. 

Following that, medical professionals investigated how best to treat strokes and related medical conditions by identifying three key areas: accurate screenings, precise treatments, and meticulous rehabilitation.  

They wanted a more effective way to analyze data than just using the traditional manual paperwork system, which was not scalable.  

Partnering with IBM, the Shanghai Changjang Science and Technology Department along with China’s top three hospitals developed an intelligent stroke assessment and management platform. The AI-enabled platform analyzes patient information, applies a screening model, and compares these details with known risk factors.  

Patients that have been identified as high-risk are then channeled to the appropriate physician with treatment recommendations and corresponding probabilities of success.  

This application of big data analysis led to: 

  • 15% improvement in diagnostic accuracy of stroke risks in patients 
  • 80.89% accuracy in predicting treatment outcomes 
  • Scaling risk screenings to cover a larger population and encouraging early treatment 
 

Financial Services: Post-trade analysis 

 

The National Bank of Canada’s Global Equity Derivatives Group (GED) provides trading solutions that manage securities such as stocks, futures, funds, and options. It collects and processes a high volume of stock-market financial data, but faces a challenge when it comes to data analysis.  

The bank sought to find a more effective and scalable way to process and analyze structures and unstructured data, as well as historical data, in order to develop a better analytical solution.  

Using an open-source big data processing framework and moving its processes to the cloud allowed the bank to achieve its goal of scalability. The GED was able to analyze hundreds of terabytes of trade and historical data. This now enables their business analysts to conduct quicker post-trade analysis.  

Big data analysis allowed the bank to: 

  • Reduce post-trade analysis process from a few weeks to a few hours 
  • More robust post-trade analysis 
  • Improved trading operations 
  • Increase revenue 
  • Increased customer satisfaction 
 

Manufacturing: Predicting Equipment Anomalies 

 

A major manufacturing company looked to deploy digital twin technology to make manufacturing more flexible and efficient. The company, which was struggling to meet its production targets due to unscheduled downtime, created an IoT sensor-enabled digital copy of its critical equipment to predict potential anomalies and maintain the flow of its assembly lines. 

Falling short of its production target also meant that the company faced increased operating costs, customer dissatisfaction, and lost market share to its competitors.  

Applying IoT-supported digital twins technology allowed the company to collect real-time data. When analyzed with other data sets – historical and maintenance-related – the company was able to remotely monitor and assess its physical assets.  

The ML-based algorithm sifted through plenty of data to help detect abnormal equipment behavior and proactively suggested corrective actions before failure. This led to: 

  • 100% achievement of production target 
  • 25% reduction in operation costs 
  • 54% increase in profit margins 
  • Timely product delivery 
  • Higher customer satisfaction and increased market share 
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Gerd Leonhard: The B2B Potential of the Metaverse

The next wave of digital change is on the horizon, with forward-looking companies considering a leap into the future via the metaverse. In fact, Gartner predicts that about 25% of people will spend at least an hour a day in the metaverse by 2026.  For a better understanding of what the metaverse is and its effects on businesses, we spoke to futurist and author Gerd Leonhard.

 
Gerd Leonhard is a renowned futurist and thought leader. He was named one of Wired’s Top 100 Most Influential People in Europe and ‘one of the leading media futurists in the World’ by The Wall Street Journal. He is widely regarded as a global influencer and has advised business leaders from Fortune 500 companies as well as government officials and NGOs.
 

The Metaverse is Close, But Not Quite Here Yet

 

Though companies like Meta seem to be leading the charge in creating the future of the metaverse, Leonhard noted that the tech giant should be disconnected from the debate of the metaverse in general.  

Using the term virtual reality or virtuality instead, he pointed out that the full fruition of the metaverse as an immersive space is still a long way off for now due to practical reasons like limited internet bandwidth and device capabilities.  

For the metaverse to function as we imagine it – being fully immersive and capable of handling hundreds, perhaps millions, of users at one time – we would need over 1,000 times the current computing power. The technology is simply not there yet. Although, this future could arrive sooner than we think given all the advances being made in quantum computing. 

Another drawback to the metaverse is the problems presented by wearable tech such as disorientation and confusion, not to mention the high price points. This makes the metaverse less accessible to the average user. 

Leonhard suggests that the wide adoption of virtuality will likely amplify the digital divide due to unequal access to T1 internet. The metaverse is simply inaccessible to most people right now. 

“I always say, we should not mistake a clear view for a short distance,” said Leonhard. 

 

Augmented Reality Over Virtuality

 

The lowest hanging fruit, for now, will be augmented reality. The futurist explained that some of the best applications for such technology will be for training, education, and operations – particularly for judges, lawyers, surgeons, and other highly skilled jobs.  

Along with AI, virtuality could be useful in various industries. One current application is using virtuality to augment digital twins – which not only saves cost but also makes the engineering and design process more efficient.  

Leonhard said: “Here’s what I think about augmented reality – it’s about living our actual lives to the fullest extent possible and supporting this with great technology. You see things differently, but it’s not replacing your reality.” 

“I think it will be more important to think of it like this. We don’t want the metaverse to become what I call a meta-perverse.” 

During his talk, Leonhard cautioned that there are major problems with how humans may interact with virtuality – from dehumanization to reductionism. This is on top of other issues like data mining, privacy violations, and media manipulation. 

Though Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg believes it is time for immersive digital worlds to become the primary way people live, Leonhard disagrees.  

“The metaverse is a piece of technology, and technology is a tool,” said Leonhard. 

“It’s a B2B tool right now primarily for what I said earlier – education, training, R&D. Clearly as a consumer device, I don’t see it becoming very big in a long time.” 

 
Gain more insights on how the newest technologies can impact your business in our ME Business Buzz Outlook webinar series with industry experts.
 

Use Virtuality to Enhance Connections 

 

In a B2B context, Leonhard said: “In the end, every business wants engagement, experiences, and relationships. That’s why they make money.” 

He suggests looking into how augmented reality can be used to improve customer experiences – whether it’s creating a more engaging website, gamifying certain interactions, enhancing the digital twins process, or training.  

In fact, it could even be used to elevate meetings, events, and conferences. This technology may even alleviate the need for travel.  

Australian brand 19 Crimes harnessed the power of AR to drive consumer action to huge success. It introduced an app that, when used to scan the labels on their wine bottles, brought some historic characters to life. The AR experience told the tale of the 19 criminals turned colonists which inspired the brand name, the brand’s history, and the larger story of Australian wine and culture.  

The campaign proved highly successful, with over 1.2 million app downloads and 153 social media impressions. The AR campaign also led to a 104% year-on-year growth for the brand in the US market, and an overall sales growth of 60%. 

 

Security and Privacy in the Metaverse 

 

On the question of privacy and security of clients in the metaverse, Leonhard pointed out that this would merely be an extension of the existing problems with digital media.  

It’s important for regulators to understand the impact of the metaverse. People are already raising questions about trust, data privacy, accountability, and liability on the internet in general. With the metaverse, these concerns are amplified.  

“So far, we’ve done whatever we could just because it’s possible – the Internet of Things, big data, mobile 5G. Now, we have to start thinking about what we want and who is in charge,” Leonhard said. 

 

Next Meta-steps for Businesses 

 

We are currently in a time when technology is becoming exponentially powerful. Leonhard predicts that in a decade, almost everyone will be connected to the internet, that augmented reality glasses will be everywhere, and that virtual worlds and supercomputing will be common.  

So, what can businesses do now to prepare for this eventuality? Leonhard suggests that businesses start to think about things like tracking data, surveillance, and cookies.  

Stressing how people now care about a brand’s business practices – on top of the security of their own data and whether they are being surveilled or observed – the futurist stresses the importance of building trust in a digital environment.  

This includes making headway in sustainability – since “green is the new digital”.  

 

Talent in a VR-based Future 

 

In fact, the World Economic Forum projects that there will be several hundred million new jobs in the green digital space and climate technology alone. Similarly with virtuality – and the metaverse – we can expect to need talent for jobs that don’t even exist yet. 

On this point, Leonhard advised businesses to focus on the functions that would be most important to people such as engagement, experiences, relationships, as well as anything to enforce those functions via AR and VR technology.  

“That is something to look at first, to create better value, build deeper relationships, and get real engagement. Not escape,” he said.  

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Dennis Mulder: How Microsoft Leads by Example in Digital Transformation

As many organizations continue to search for balance in the new digital landscape, leaders are faced with the mammoth task of managing both technological and cultural change. We speak to Dennis Mulder, CTO of Microsoft Netherlands, on leveraging data in digital transformation and the crucial role of leadership in creating a smooth transition to hybrid work.    

 
Gain more insights from Dennis Mulder’s panel discussion on accelerated growth in the digital landscape during the ME Executive Day in the Netherlands.
 

Many businesses are still finding their footing in the hybrid work environment. How can leaders ensure a successful transition into the hybrid work model?

The pandemic and change of expectations of a hybrid setup have changed the landscape quite dramatically. Companies that have gone through a digital transformation before the pandemic are really thriving now in this new world.   

But with a lot of economies opening up now, I think many companies are still looking for the right balance. How much work do you do from home? What do you expect from people? How does that play into the technology that you need?  

You want to be inclusive of the people who are working remotely and that’s hard if the majority are physically in the office. So that’s it, figuring out that balance and what it means for companies.   

I think the key here is that leaders need to lead by example. They have to show that sometimes, it’s ok not to be in the physical meeting room. Showing how the balance works out for them and being a little bit vulnerable about their own struggles is going to help bring comfort to people to make the decisions that fit them best. 

 

What challenges do organizations face when transitioning to a distributed enterprise? How can leaders overcome these challenges?

What we call the digital transformation process – where more processes and products rely on digital technology – is, in many ways, also a cultural change. People need to do things differently. And in general, people are open to change and are willing to change but they do not want to be changed. So, telling them to change does not always work.   

I firmly believe leaders need to lead by example, as I said. But another key area is to address the cultural change and take the time to make it a process.   

PROSCI is a change management methodology that talks about what people need to change. The fairly famous acronym is ADKAR – awareness, desire, knowledge, ability, reinforcement. So, why are we making the change in the first place? Why do I have to change? What do I have to know to change? Do I have the right skills?  

Procedures and processes are really changing. So cultural change requires a process to drive that change. 

 

How can businesses leverage technology to support this move towards a distributed enterprise approach?

In general, we don’t have enough developers to fulfill the needs of tech for all these companies. There’s a war for talent and companies have a hard time retaining tech talents. So, we need to adopt tools to enable more people to develop or build software.   

If your enterprise developers focus on exposing the data on building APIs to access core systems, often called systems of record, then you can do systems of engagement – more on the faster apps and web app experiences and other similar things.   

Customers also want to see innovation sooner, so if you have more people focus on those in an agile way, building on top of the core systems of record, provided that they are thoroughly thought through by enterprise developers, we can get more done. We can automate more processes ourselves instead of just relying on the IT Department.   

And for that, you have a lot of platforms for rapid application development, or what they call robotic process automation platforms. Low code is what it’s often called as well. These tools in our portfolio are really needed to support this move to this distributed enterprise.

 

What should businesses focus on when implementing cloud computing in their digital transformation process?

Cloud is a key foundation for the entire digital transformation. It is foundational because it allows you to level up. It allows you to focus on functionality over raw computing. It will make you more agile.   

But what you have to do before you broadly adopt it is to think it through. I always make an analogy with a city. If you want to build a city – in this case, the city is your application portfolio in the cloud – you do need to have electricity, sewers, roads, and utilities. If you just let people go to swipe their card and do some cloud, you will get a lot of integration issues and a lot of dead roads and dead-end streets.   

So, you need to have a central governance organization that hands out access to the cloud based on the knowledge that the receiving team will have autonomy but stay within the guardrails or rules of the company. It’s about finding the right balance between autonomy versus speed.   

In cloud, you’ve outsourced many things to the cloud vendor. There’s a shift in responsibility and that requires governance. Same with low code platforms. You do need to govern what goes where. It’s tempting to jump right in, but you’ll shoot yourself in the foot if you do.

 

How can organizations use data and technology to enable growth and ensure resilience amid global disruptions?

Data is the new oil, or data is the new gold, right? That’s what a lot of people say.   

The way I look at it is we have this notion called a digital feedback loop – the prongs are engage customers, optimize operations, empower employees, and transform products. Data is produced in all four areas, but all four areas can be strengthened with data from the other areas.   

For example, Tesla collects a lot of data from the car and their product in order to improve their manufacturing and customer support processes. So how can we take data out of a certain product to make employees better, for example?  

There are some bridges to cross, though, because often the operational data is owned by someone else. Same for product or customer data. This gets into data governance across the enterprise. It is another area that requires investment.   

Ultimately, combining these data sets and applying AI on top of it can get you a competitive advantage if you think it through well. Data becomes the centerpiece that you use for data-driven decision-making.

 

What are some key trends in technologies for 2022 and 2023?

A lot of companies are on this digital transformation journey. To me, it’s about how we can accelerate that. This is where things like AI and low code platforms come into play. How can we transform the entire organization to embrace technologies to drive change?  

From that perspective, it’s more about organizational change in many ways.  As a CTO, you would argue that I probably talk about tech all the time. But most of my conversations with customers and my equivalents in large enterprises are about how we can transform the organization and people, about changing people and how they think about things instead of the next great piece of tech.   

It’s still about people-process-tech. We’ve been saying that for many years. But I think it’s also about data. I talk about people-process-tech-data as being the core thing to think about and not seeing them in isolation. Instead, connect them to really become successful with cloud and open-source platforms.   

Sometimes mindsets are blocked. In certain organizations, a CISO department may restrict access in an attempt to reduce risk. But that’s the wrong way. To take the analogy with the roads, of course, you can enter but we keep you safe with guardrails and other capabilities.  Quite a few companies are struggling with finding the right balance. 

 

How can they overcome that hurdle?

I firmly believe leaders need to lead by example. They must create this fearless organization where experimenting and making mistakes is okay and not punished. Give people enough autonomy to figure things out.   

It’s more cultural than it is technological or anything else.  I think Microsoft is an example of where that works, and we’re still on that journey. It requires inspirational leadership and good examples.   

  

*The answers have been edited for length and clarity.  

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The Power of Social Selling: Why & How It Works With C-level Clients

You must have heard the term “social selling” before.  It’s all the rage, and rightly so. We’ll get into why it’s so popular a little later, but first, let’s understand social selling vs social media marketing or advertising.  

 

What is social selling? 

 

LinkedIn defines social selling as “leveraging your social network to find the right prospects, build trusted relationships, and ultimately achieve your sales goals”.  

In other words, the foundation of social selling is building a relationship with your audience and potential buyers so that when they are ready to make a purchase, you are who they think of first. 

After all, buying and selling are inherently social activities. Back in the day, we would meet up with people in our communities to exchange reviews about different products and services. Today, we do this on the internet. Our neighborhood became a lot bigger.  

Social selling puts you, the brand, into that neighborhood so you can still connect with your clients directly and put your brand at the forefront of the minds of C-level decision makers. Social selling done well can potentially replace cold calling altogether. Wouldn’t that be great? 

 
Open up conversations with decision-makers with Management Events. Discover how Dell benefitted from our services.
 

What does social selling look like?

 

A word of caution: Social selling is not spamming. You don’t want to bombard your audience with unsolicited messages. Instead, focus on having meaningful interactions and presenting specific solutions to specific problems.  

It’s about positioning your brand as trustworthy and valuable, not annoying.  

One way to do this is by creating social media posts highlighting how one of your products solves a specific problem for a specific group of people. This can help naturally attract your target audience to your profile and brand, therefore building trust and encouraging sales. 

For a B2B company, this can look like generating content to encourage conversations and engagement with your audience. Your sales team members can and should also participate on social media to interact with the brand’s target audience. Over time, a relationship can be built. The visibility from those interactions will trickle back to your organization.  

 

Social Selling Index (SSI) 

 

Importantly, social selling can have a positive influence on certain marketing metrics like referrals, direct traffic, exposure to new audiences, and more.  A well-executed social selling strategy will create a snowball effect with your audience helping spread the word of your brand and generating more inbound leads.  

But how do you know your strategy is working? 

LinkedIn introduced the Social Selling Index (SSI) back in 2014 which measures the impact of social selling on the LinkedIn platform and Sales Navigator.  

The platform outlines four components that it uses to generate a score: 

  1. Establishing a professional brand with a well-managed LinkedIn profile 
  1. Finding the right people on the platform 
  1. Sharing relevant, conversation-inspiring content 
  1. Building and strengthening relationships.  

You can access your SSI score in Sales Navigator. It could also be helpful to keep these four components in mind when building your social selling strategies. 

 
For more tips on how to ace social selling with C-level clients, read our 8 Social Selling Tips for Building Trust.
 

Why should you care about Social Selling? 

 

If you’re still not convinced, let’s look at some benefits of incorporating social selling into your toolkit.  

It is effective

Think about your own experience with brands on social media and you’ll see that social selling is an effective marketing strategy.  

In fact, LinkedIn reports that businesses that excel at social selling generate 45% more sales opportunities than those with lower SSI scores. Additionally, businesses are 51% more likely to reach their sales quota when they prioritize social selling.  

Need more numbers? 78% of businesses who deploy social selling techniques outsell businesses that are not on social media. 

 

It builds real relationships

 

Real relationships ultimately translate to value. 

A 2021 Forbes article notes that 66% of business event professionals have postponed events while 87% have canceled because of the pandemic. Networking has shifted mostly online now, making this the perfect time to prioritize social selling.  

With this approach, you can create those real relationships with your customers where they are already actively engaged in conversations. Social selling targets the decision-makers who are already interested in what you are selling and who are further along in their buyer’s journey.  

By making authentic connections and offering useful information when the time is right, you develop customer loyalty and brand awareness, while still maintaining that personal touch. Do this well to set yourself apart from your competitors, since 73% of customers say that just one extraordinary experience raises their expectations of other companies. 

 

Social buying is already happening 

 

The Global State of Digital 2022 reports that there are currently 4.62 billion social media users, that’s a 10.1% increase from the previous year. Facebook remains the most-used social platform but there is an overlap and other platforms still see hundreds of millions of active users each day.  

Crucially, people are not just on social media to socialize. They are also engaged in brand research. About 28% of the oldest group surveyed (55 to 64-year-olds) do their brand research on social media. The numbers increase as we look at younger users which is at 51-56% for 16 to 24-year-olds. 

Salesforce also reports that millennials and Gen Z’ers are 4.1 times more likely to cite user-generated content such as reviews and photos as an important consideration when making a purchase. So as the younger generation’s purchasing powers rise and they become the new generation of C-suites, social selling will only create more opportunities.  

Some snapshots of other important figures: 

  1. 70% of Instagram users use the platform to research services and products 
  1. 70% of YouTube users say they have purchased from a brand after seeing it on the platform 
  1. 18.3% of American Facebook users made a purchase on the platform in 2020 
 

You don’t want to get left behind 

 

As of 2020, Statista estimates that 25% of e-commerce enterprises worldwide were planning to sell their products on social media. As for B2B marketers, 96% use LinkedIn for organic marketing, with Facebook and Twitter come second with 82% each according to Content Marketing Institute. 

Whether you’re a B2C or B2B company, your competitors are already engaging in social selling. You’ve already seen how effective this approach is. Social selling can preserve and even improve your competitive edge the sooner you get on it.