Technology Revolution: The Future of Now

Today's buzz: Manufacturing. Reality check: manufacturers must adapt or die. Survival means automating your shop floor, deploying M2M technology, leveraging Big Data. What else? What is government's role? The experts speak. Brian Raymond, National Association of Manufacturers: "We've got a long way to go and a short time to get there (East Bound and Down, Smoky and the Bandit theme song, sung by Jerry Reed, 1977). Mike Walton, Atos: "If the leader is filled with high ambition and he pursues his aims with audacity and strength of will, he will reach them in spite of all obstacles!" (Karl von Clausewitz). Scott Bolick, SAP: "The factory of the future will have only two employees, a man and a dog. The man will be there to feed the dog. The dog will be there to keep the man from touching the equipment." (Warren G. Bennis) Join us for Manufacturing Survival: Idea to Performance.

Today's buzz: SMEs. A recent Oxford Economics study of 2,100 small to mid-size enterprises in 21 countries found that those leveraging technology to boost innovation, strengthen customer relationships, improve agility and expand business, are able to compete effectively against multinationals. How? The experts speak. Steve Freeman, Decision First Technologies: "To achieve an agile and competitive enterprise, SMEs require the individual within flatter organizations to make better, more timely decisions. This reality places self-service information access at the core of a successful SME's information strategy." Edward Cone, Oxford Economics: "Live in fragments no longer. Only connect..." (E.M. Forster, Howards End) Kevin Gilroy, SAP: "Technology and innovations are the competitive equalizers for SMEs anywhere. An SME can 'look' as competitive as a large company, present themselves anywhere, and compete globally with rivals of any size." Join us for Equipped to Compete: Tech-Powered SMEs.

The buzz: CRM. Has your company's CRM evolved to keep up with today's digitally-empowered, brand-controlling customers – or is it stuck in vanilla call-center mode? If the latter, wake up! Your audience is seizing the power moment-by-moment via smartphones, 4G networks, social networking – and defying traditional CRM tools. The experts speak. Brent Leary, CRM Essentials: "When it comes to building lasting relationships with customers living in The Millisecond Economy, 'speed thrills and the lack of it kills'". Susan Etlinger, Altimeter: "The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence; it is to act with yesterday's logic (Peter Drucker, management consultant, self-described 'social ecologist', 1901-2005). Jamie Anderson, SAP: "My philosophy born from eight years in the recording industry: 'I'd rather be a failure at something I love than a success at something I hate (quoting George Burns, late actor) '". Join us for Engaging Your Customer: New Recipe for A Long Marriage.

The buzz: Things. Your POV on The Internet of Things and M2M (machine to machine) technology: Real or vapor? Now or futuristic? Listen up! Companies that fail to implement M2M will fall behind their competitors, say a majority of IT decision makers in six countries surveyed by Harris Interactive for SAP. The experts speak. Don Peppers, Peppers & Rogers Group: "When devices begin to join the Internet of Things in vast numbers (as will happen over the next ten years), they won't just talk to you, they'll talk to each other and they'll begin to make smart decisions themselves. Lights, thermostats, and door locks will 'learn' your habits and begin adjusting automatically." Benjamin Wesson, SAP: "Sometime in 2008, the number of 'things' connected to the Internet exceeded the number of people on earth (Berg Insights 2012). Indeed, every time you turn on your car, the car is capturing telemetric data to be analyzed later by service personnel." Join us for more on The Internet of Things and You.

The buzz: Millennials are here. Retailers, watch out. Tom Julian, Doneger Group: "A celeb today has more impact and influence as a player in fashion and the retailer than an award-winning young designer." Greg Girard, IDC: Get off of the catwalks and on the sidewalks to see what's coming next. Pinterest is the newest sidewalk. Sarah Austin, Pop17.com: "Micro-celebrities, fashion bloggers, and Hollywood celebrities are the new trendsetters. They embrace technology blogging platforms, social media and photography. Naima Mora, Model: "Fashion and technology have allowed us as millennials to put ourselves in the spotlight that was traditionally held for celebrities." Hadi Labarang, FSHN: "Bloggers and photographers with a significant following are now celebrities of their own." Layla Sabourian, SAP: "88 percent of millennials admit to following every celebrity's move in weeklies and online." (Young Entrepreneur Council) Hear Fashion Retailer Alert: Delight Millennials or Die! – Part 2

The buzz: Millennials are here. Retailers, watch out. Tom Julian, Doneger Group: "Millennials have become the most racially diverse, most educated, self-expressive, liberal, upbeat generation to date. They have impacted shopping/commerce, the work environment, social media platforms, and lifestyle behavior around technology." Greg Girard, IDC: "Savvy retailers are evolving and melding digital and physical omnichannel assets to engage millennials, the vanguard of a pervasive digital persona touching nearly every aspect of 21st century life. Retailers that don't will soon be 'out of fashion'." Frida Wollweber, Cucuka: "Retailers be alert, millennials' expectations are high! Offer your finger, they will take your hand. Listen, don't talk. Gain their trust and they will treat you well." Li Gong, SAP: "Fashionista millennials say, 'I don't want to see products on a model or mannequin. I want to see how other girls wear them'." Hear Fashion Retailer Alert: Delight Millennials or Die! – Part 1

Today's buzz: Diversity. Inclusion now covers race, age, gender, religion, impairments, skills, viewpoints and more. How will it benefit your company? The experts speak. Paul Albert, Albert Investments: "Outstanding women directors I know would rather see the primary emphasis on their qualifications to contribute, with their label as a woman irrelevant to their board nomination." Nola Masterson, Science Futures Management: "The pressure to fit in or 'lean in', as the current crowd likes to quote, is a problem for a well-run board." Brian Barnier, ValueBridge: "Too often, risk management does more to put blinders on than take them off. Board diversity can help take blinders off to more easily see risk in the business." Nicole McCabe, SAP: "It's not about whether a diverse board will positively impact the business. It's whether that board can be inclusive enough to take advantage of the business benefits." Join us for Board and Workforce Diversity: Enterprise Risks, Opportunities, Rewards.

Today's buzz: Insurance industry. Do you gnash your teeth every time you deal with insurers? Do they even know the meaning of 'customer experience'? The experts speak. Mark Breading, Strategy Meets Action: "The insurance industry is in the midst of a long transition from paper to digital, affecting every part of the business, but especially the customer experience." Nathan Golia, Insurance & Technology: "I had the good providence to stumble upon a plan of the city council. A construction plan of epic proportions. We're calling it a freeway. Eight lanes of shimmering cement running from here to Pasadena. Smooth, safe, fast. Traffic jams will be a thing of the past." (Judge Doom, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, 1988 film). Kathy Ann Hutson, IBM: "Customer-centered innovation is key to growth in the changing insurance marketplace." Bob Cummings, SAP: "There is no path. A path only forms when you walk." (Chinese proverb) Join us for The Digital Insurer: Opportunities with Customer Centricity Trends.

Today's buzz: Corporate innovation. How often are your organization's decision-makers really right? If not often enough, and their typical excuses wag a finger at your data – too much, too fast, too big, or just 'bad' – then take a closer look at the analytics tools they're using. The experts speak. Elizabeth Hedstrom Henlin, TBR: "No matter where you are in your BI adoption journey, there has never been a better market to be a buyer of new technologies – especially within business intelligence and analytics." Mark Lenke, CSC: "We are no closer to the answer if we cannot discover the right question, and the question after the question is the one to focus on. Leveraging a Big Data and analytics approach creates a flow of information that spawns new thoughts and analysis." Puneet Suppal, SAP: "Newer forms of innovation are cropping up, some inspired by age-old practices from around the world. Rethink how to invest in the future." Join us for Corporate Evolution: Investing in Analytics.

Today's buzz: CMO. Who's calling your marketing shots today – your MBA'ed CMO or hyper-vocal/social/mobile customers? A pop quiz to help you answer. Is your CMO (a) listening and responding to social sentiment? (b) a champion of memorable experiences with your legions of brand-owners? (c) using analytics to pull signals from your big and small data? Pencils down. Before deciding whether to hug your CMO or post their job, listen to the experts: Jonathan Becher, SAP: "Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." (Albert Einstein or William Bruce Cameron, "Informal Sociology") Steve Carlotti, Cambridge Group, "Listening and reacting is what is required today, and that's a lot harder than the planning and acting that was required yesterday." Allen Bonde, Digital Clarity: "In B2B, it's critical for CMOs to emphasize thought leadership and selling big ideas versus simply selling products." Join us for The New CMO in the Age of Customer Experience.