Between Worlds

I first met the writer Molly Flatt in Bogota, Colombia a number of years ago, but to continue our discussion on the future of books and publishing, we arranged to meet in an equally interesting, although somewhat less exotic, bar in Fitzrovia, London. A prolific journalist and researcher into digital trends, Molly is the Associate Editor for FutureBook, Digital Editor for PHOENIX magazine and Associate Editor for the Memo, and writes regularly for publications such as the BBC and the Guardian. Her debut novel is entitled The Charmed Life of Alex Moore.

Peter Sheahan is one of the smartest people I know, and the perfect choice for our first podcast guest of 2018. An expert on business transformation, he runs Karrikins Group with staff in more than 23 cities across seven countries. He is the author of seven bestselling books, including the recently released ‘Matter: Move Beyond the Competition, Create More Value, and Become the Obvious Choice’. When our paths crossed again recently, we caught up over a meal and spent some time debating recent market moves by players like Amazon and CVS, and what it really takes for established companies to fundamentally reinvent themselves.

The new luxury consumer has never been more different. They're younger. They're more connected. They're more global, and more demanding of brands than at any time in history. To understand the significance of digital for the future of luxury, I caught up with Mohamed Marfouk, Global Operations Director of LVMH at their headquarters in Paris.

In an age of multiplying devices, platforms and social media channels - it can be tempting to forget the classic lessons of marketing and branding. On a recent trip to Miami, I caught up with Bruce Turkel, an author and marketing guru who has helped some of the world’s leading brands including Hasbro, Nike, American Express and Citicorp. We chatted about the challenges of marketing in this new fluid digital environment, and why some things - like discovering the authentic truth of your brand - will never change.

Sometimes the hardest thing for any leader to do, is to actually do nothing and just listen. For Michael Bungay Stanier, a bestselling author and a world-leading expert on coaching - the best way to engage someone in a meaningful conversation is to know the right questions to ask. Speaking with me over a coffee in Toronto, Michael (who left Australia 25 years ago to be a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University) explained the 7 simple questions that leaders should start with, and that where explored in his latest book, ‘The Coaching Habit’. My own question was perhaps a little more troubling: why will coaching still be important in the algorithmic, AI-dominated companies of tomorrow?

I was in LA over Halloween, and so took the opportunity to look up one of my favorite genre-bending, sci-fi authors - Peter Clines. Peter has a number of brilliant books including ’14’, ‘The Fold’, and his latest, ‘Paradox Bound’, which he originally pitched to his agent as a cross between Neil Gaiman’s ‘Neverwhere’ and ‘Cannonball Run’. Growing up in Stephen King's hometown of Maine, his first epic novel at the age of eight was ‘Lizard Men From The Center of The Earth’. In the bright glare of the LA sun, we spoke at length about a wide range of geeky topics from time-travel to the occult, evil stars to parallel universes.

The war for the living room used to be simple: influence whoever was in charge of the family TV’s remote control. With the rise of the Internet of Things, smart speakers, and AI-enabled home automation systems - the home itself has become the next computing platform. To get a handle on what the future of smart homes might look like, I caught up with Alex Capecelatro in LA. Alex started his career as a research scientist for NASA, the Naval Research Lab, and Sandia National Lab. He later joined Fisker Automotive, ran his own startup, At The Pool, before creating Josh.ai, an AI agent for the home.

If, at first, you are unconvinced of Dr Fox’s biographical assertion that he is a ‘modern day wizard-rogue’, you will certainly, when presented in the flesh, be assured by his impressive beard. Bestselling author of ‘The Game Changer’ and ‘How to Lead a Quest: a handbook for pioneering executives’, Jason is a thoroughly unconventional thinker on leadership, creativity and designing 21st century work environments. We caught up in London to talk about how we might need to reimagine the idea of work, in the post-algorithmic rubble of the robot job apocalypse.

Healthcare is on the brink of a profound transformation, enabled by data, analytics and algorithms. As the health ecosystem moves from providing ‘sick care’, to an integrated, human-centric approach to helping people manage wellness - providers, payers and pharmaceutical manufactures will need to change. I spoke with healthcare analytics experts, D. Sahay and Rohan Fernando, from the global advisory group, ZS Associates, about how leaders can learn to make decisions based on data and algorithms rather than experience and excel spreadsheets.

Natalie Panek is an inspiring young innovator, with dreams of playing a dynamic role in the future of space exploration. A rocket scientist, she was recently named one of Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women by the Women’s Executive Network, a Forbes 30 under 30 2015, and “a vocal advocate for women in technology” by The Financial Post. In her spare time she has designed and driven a solar-powered car across North America, and builds space robotics.