Between Worlds

Adam Alter is the author of the New York Times bestseller ‘Drunk Tank Pink: And Other Unexpected Forces That Shape How We Think, Feel, and Behave’, which examines how the world shape our thoughts and feelings beyond our control. I met up with him at NYU Stern, where he is an Associate Professor of Marketing with an affiliated appointment in the New York University Psychology Department. We spoke about his research on judgment and decision-making and social psychology, as well as his new book, which asks why so many people today are addicted to so many behaviors, from incessant smart phone and internet usage to video game playing and online shopping.

Cindy Gallop is one of the most brilliant and controversial minds in advertising today. Starting as a theatre publicist in the UK, she went on to forge a 30 years career in brandbuilding, marketing and entrepreneurialism, as well as launching a number of provocative platforms including IfWeRanTheWorld and MakeLoveNotPorn. Never shy to throw a few punches, her Twitter bio reads simply: ‘I like to blow shit up. I am the Michael Bay of business.’ From the elevated surroundings of her New York penthouse apartment, I was to find out just how many industries, companies and professions were, according to Cindy, long overdue a serve of disruption and re-invention.

Alex Rosson is a legend in the music business, having founded one of the world’s best headphone brands, Audeze, and is now responsible for starting up a new audio division for Detroit based watch and lifestyle brand, Shinola. I met up with Alex at the famous Village recording studios in West Los Angeles. The Village has been home to most of the greatest names in rock, from The Doors to Guns N’ Roses, Coldplay to Lady Gaga. The room we recorded this interview in was the same used to produce the classic album, Aja by Steely Dan. Alex and I talked about the origins of digital cinema, the rise of the head-fi movement, why listening to analogue music is good for you, and his plans for the launch of Shinola Audio. Listen out for the fun cameo from Alex’s uncle (the owner of the studio) and who makes a grand entrance at the end of the interview.

Gordon Watson has taken over the reins at luxury phone brand Vertu at a crucial junction for the company. I previously encountered the brand, famous for its high end communications devices, when I presented at EQT’s annual conference, a Swedish private equity group that had acquired the company from Nokia. Late last year, Vertu was bought by Chinese investors and is on the verge of launching a new suite of data driven, luxury concierge services to complement its high end handsets. Visiting their headquarters in England, I spoke with Gordon about the future of mobile devices, and what luxury might mean in a technology context.

Ankur Kothari is a pioneer in the area of robotic process automation and the design of digital back offices. A co-founder of Automation Anywhere, he has been working over the last decade on transforming entire industries by introducing them to a digital workforce and human–robot partnerships that can help them scale efficiently. We met up in Hyderabad, a city in India where many of the world’s biggest companies locate their outsourced IT and back office operations. We have all heard that robots may be coming for our jobs, but I was curious to learn - will anyone really be sad to see transactional, routine tasks done by a machine rather than a human being?

One day Rob Lilwall, an ordinary geography high-school teacher, decided to drop everything to cycle from Siberia to London via China, Australia and Afghanistan. The journey took 3 years, covering over 50,000 km. He didn’t stop there. Soon after, he attempted another trip from Mongolia to Hong Kong. 5,000 km. In winter. On foot. An adventurer, author and motivator - Rob and I caught up to talk about overcoming obstacles, the call to adventure, and how to survive being chased by bandits in Papua New Guinea.

Professor Ian Goldin is Professor of Globalisation and Development and Director of the Oxford Martin School at the University of Oxford. Previously he was Vice President of the World Bank, and also served as an adviser to President Nelson Mandela on economics and development. He is the author of 20 books on innovation, globalisation and economics - and it was his latest title, ‘Age of Discovery: Navigating the Risks and Rewards of Our New Renaissance’ that we spoke about over coffee when we caught up in Dubai. Despite populist claims that countries and individuals are better off alone, Professor Goldin believes that the modern age is inextricably connected and interdependent. And that’s a good thing - as just like the original Renaissance, we are about to live through a new age of innovation, transformation and reinvention.

When I wrote my last book, ‘The Dictionary Of Dangerous Ideas’, I wanted to find a platform that represented the future, rather than the dusty past of publishing. That brought me to Blurb, and many years later to their offices in San Francisco where I met up with their founder, Eileen Gittins. Starting her career in imaging at Eastman Kodak, Eileen left to found a number of successful digital companies before coming up with the idea of creating a simple digital platform for authors to produce high quality books. We spoke about where books will go in the future, how games like Minecraft help teach kids computational thinking, and what can be done to encourage more young women to become entrepreneurs.

This week, I had coffee in Hong Kong with Philippe Schaus, the CEO of the DFS Group. DFS, owned by LVMH, is one of the world’s leading travel retail brands and has been a key player in the globalization of luxury, driven initially by the rise of the Japanese middle class, followed by the rapid growth in mainland Chinese travellers. Formerly a President at Louis Vuitton in Europe, and also a current member of the LVMH Executive Committee - Philippe shared some fascinating insights in our discussion on the future of travel and the design of airport experiences, as well as new directions for global luxury brands as well.

Author of ‘The Inner Gym’, Light Watkins is a renowned expert in Vedic meditation who has personally coached over 2,000 people, from bankers and artists, to comedians and rockstars. He recently founded The Shine, a community event centered around inspiration in Los Angeles. At TEDxVeniceBeach last year, Light gave a popular talk on ‘Debunking the 5 Most Common Meditation Myths’. We caught up in West Hollywood for breakfast where we chatted about why mindfulness has become such a hot issue for 21st century companies, and the connection between meditation and the adaptive mindset that leaders need to survive in this time of complexity and constant change.