Referring to the battle between the US versus Chinese models of digitalization, Marten Kaevats, National Digital Adviser of Estonia, said that both models were ‘big brother-like’ and that we needed ‘a third option’.
“The EU is pushing for this with GDPR and getting slowly closer,” he said. “At the Tallinn Digital Summit, we convened recently to talk about ‘trusted connectivity’; an agreement on how to leverage the capacity of the private sector to invest in infrastructure. Nowadays, infrastructure is not only about bricks and mortar, but it carries a digital component too and one that needs to be trusted.”
This type of framework should be established by the Blue Dot Network – the US, Japan and Australia – but should also get countries like Estonia on board, he said, adding:
“We are hoping this idea gets traction [because] we are coming to a stage where data monetization is a thing but there needs to be some trust in it as well. And coming from a small country that has so far operated with transparency and integrity regarding data handling, we want to provide for our citizens without acting like big brother.”
Where do governments’ roles end and companies’ begin?
While government intervention is generally accepted to be necessary to respect peoples’ privacy, the question of ‘to what extent?’ remains up for debate.
In the healthcare industry, questions arise around electronic heath record data, for instance, such as: Who can have access to this data? And how can it be useful?
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Meta Fact Checking Exit - Social Media
Summary
With fact-checking out and community-driven moderation in, Meta is betting big on free speech – but critics warn the move could open the floodgates for disinformation and online harm.
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Cocoacrafters: AI in the supply chain
Summary
In June 2024, at the CocoaCrafters Operating Centre, Elena Fever faced a crucial meeting with the board of directors. The discussion surrounded how to integrate Generative AI (GenAI) into the company’s supply chain strategy to enhance forecasting and simulation while maintaining ethical standards. CocoaCrafters (CC), a global confectionery leader, was renowned for its commitment to sustainable cocoa sourcing. Despite the board’s strong business acumen, they lagged on the digital agenda and for them the only success criterion was a convincing ROI. Elena’s challenges were amplified by the unknowns surrounding GenAI. Since ChatGPT’s debut, she had been urging her team to identify use cases that aligned with CC's strategic priorities and met its ethical commitments. CC’s digital transformation had begun in 2010 and was marked by phases of awareness, strategic adoption, advanced technology integration and a digital-first culture by 2020. CC’s unsuccessful blockchain project underscored the need for careful planning and ethical considerations in adopting new technologies. CC aimed to use GenAI to optimize its supply chain by forecasting cocoa yields, predicting market trends and simulating environmental impacts. However, ethical concerns about labor conditions and data manipulation persisted. Elena considered the HITL-HOTL-HOL framework for human involvement in AI decisions, reflecting on input from FMCG executives and consulting experts. Despite a lack of specific GenAI decision-making frameworks, traditional strategic basic frameworks were emphasized. Elena presented the board with strategic choices: waiting, focused phased use cases, full integration, or strategic partnerships.
Reference
IMD-7-2593
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
CocoaCrafters (Fictionalized)
Industry
Consumer Goods, Food and Beverage
Available Languages
English
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CVTrust and the Smart Certificate
Summary
When the dotcom bubble burst in March 2000, this did not stop the world from going digital, but it did poke holes in the concept of trust, especially in the digital world. David Goldenberg, a Belgian entrepreneur with extensive experience in management consulting, was confronted daily with the hassles of recruiting when information about candidates could not be validated easily. Research showed that 30% to 50% of CVs contained errors, omissions or outright fraudulent claims. Could trust in the recruitment process be re-created for the benefit of all parties? The initial idea in 2010 was to develop a solution for digitally certified diplomas, and it led to the launch of CVTrust. Through a number of iterations based on feedback from early adopters, including some prestigious European business schools, the solution evolved from Smart Diploma to Smart Certificate and a full suite of fully integrated SaaS addressing the digital certification needs of all certificate-granting institutions. By 2024, CVTrust was forced to revisit its business model, competitive advantages and routes to market for a number of reasons. These included the emergence of open standards, legislation on digital certificates and an increase in digital education in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. Was it time to pivot again to remain relevant?
Reference
IMD-7-2611
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
CVTrust
Industry
Information Technology, Information Technology Services
Available Languages
English
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China and AI in 2025: What global executives must know to stay ahead
Summary
China has set a bold objective to become the global leader in AI by 2030. By 2030, AI could potentially add $600 billion to China's economy annually. The country hosted over 4,500 AI companies in 2024, representing 15% of the global total. China i...
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Access to the Chinese market: An obsolescing bargain?
Summary
With stagnant import volumes since 2021, and import prices at levels below those suggested by fundamentals, foreign exporters face an uphill battle to convert access to the Chinese market into revenues. Notably, the volume stagnation predates the ...
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
External Copyright
Available Languages
English
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NTT at a crossroads (A): Quest for growth
Summary
NTT Corporation, Japan’s information and communication technologies (ICT) leader since 1953, was the first to commercialize internet usage on mobile phones in the 1990s, which resulted in NTT achieving much success in Japan. However, by the end of the 2000s, Japan faced challenges with an aging population and a stagnant economy. Recognizing disruption in the ICT sector, CEO Satoshi Miura understood the need for the dominant players in the ICT industry to integrate emerging business domains beyond their existing frameworks. To secure leading global positions in ICT and the new paradigm of cloud computing, Miura needed to make strategic choices to revive growth. Case A provides information on NTT, its rivals, the global market and cloud computing disruptions. The case ends with NTT’s CEO exploring strategic growth options to prepare NTT for the future.
Reference
IMD-7-2351
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone
Industry
Services, Telecommunications;Information Technology
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
NTT at a crossroads (B): Mapping growth options
Summary
Building on NTT (A), the case starts with NTT’s CEO having narrowed down strategic growth options with the board to prepare NTT for the future. Past international investments in AT&T Wireless and KPN to tap into foreign markets had resulted in billion $ write offs and stopped international acquisitions. However, after reviewing the disruptive changes facing the ICT industry and considering the shareholders’ views, CEO Miura committed to internationalization. The B case details NTT’s growth strategy focused on internationalization, while considering the need for new capabilities and technologies. It provides more insights into NTT, its opportunities and the Japanese experience with M&As and ends with Miura’s determination to quickly grow through international expansion to prepare NTT for the future.
Reference
IMD-7-2352
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone
Industry
Services, Telecommunications;Information Technology
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
DBS (A): “Damn bloody slow” to best digital bank in the world
Summary
Since becoming DBS Bank’s CEO in 2009, Piyush Gupta led its transformation to become a standard setter globally for digitalization and customer centricity in financial services. This transformation started with fixing the basics (2009-2014), in which DBS implemented consistent systems and processes across the bank and used five-day process improvement events to fix customer journeys. DBS then began benchmarking with tech leaders (2014 onwards), which led it to build a middleware layer on top of its core banking platform to allow it to develop and launch new products rapidly, implement straight-through processing so that most transactions could be completed digitally and instantly, and move data and applications to the cloud. The next phase of the transformation was two-in-a-box (2018 onwards). DBS reorganized its businesses and key functions into 33 platforms to become more agile. Platforms were organized based on key businesses or key shared or support functions. Each platform was co-led by a business lead and a technology lead who were empowered to do what was required to achieve the desired outcomes. As Gupta looked back in early 2021, he was pleased with the progress that DBS had made since 2009. At the same time, he knew there was no room for complacency. This was especially true in Singapore where its two major local competitors had upped their game, and the government had issued digital banking licenses to potentially formidable new competitors. The bank’s executive committee resolved to do whatever was necessary to further enhance the bank’s customer centricity. It considered the three classical avenues for doing so: organizing around customer segments, implementing new ways of working using agile teams and a horizontal organization and focusing on culture and principles. Making the right choice would be crucial to the bank’s continued success.
Reference
IMD-7-2633
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Development Bank of Singapore
Industry
Finance and Insurance, Banking
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
DBS (B): Managing through customer journeys
Summary
To stay ahead of competitors, DBS knew it needed to continue to innovate and improve customer centricity. To do so, it decided to move to a horizontal organizational structure, an approach it named Managing Through Journeys (MtJs). This involved bringing together representatives from all functions that touched the customer journey from the beginning to the end. This would allow DBS to deliver a more seamless and integrated customer experience. The bank introduced a few pilot MtJs in 2021. By 2024, more than 60 MtJs were in operation, accounting for over 60% of the bank’s revenues. The MtJs had nine elements, which collectively led to a new way of working. Three foundational elements provided the initial momentum and specified how to measure impact. These were performance cells, cross-functional teams focused on a specific product or customer segment; performance management architecture, which specified the common set of KPIs for each performance cell; and performance development and compensation, which enabled MtJ members to be evaluated and rewarded for their contributions. Six interconnected elements created a flywheel effect for continuous improvement. These were the value map and control tower, which mapped the relationship between levers, drivers and outcomes; customer obsession, which drove customer research; experimentation using a structured approach; artificial intelligence/machine learning to create faster feedback loops; innovation using a structured approach to accelerate the ideation and production process; and workflow workbench which ensured information flowed seamlessly across all performance cell members. The move to MtJs allowed DBS to stay on top of the customer service rankings in Singapore’s banking sector The operational improvements from the bank’s transformation improved the bank’s business performance significantly. The bank’s leadership knew that keeping the customer front of mind would need to be an ongoing priority.
Reference
IMD-7-2634
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Development Bank of Singapore
Industry
Finance and Insurance, Banking
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
How a single capital market would unlock Europe’s potential
Summary
It has become conventional wisdom to view Europe as an economic powerhouse past its prime, overshadowed by the steady advance of the US and meteoric rise of China. Critics cite Europe’s shrinking share of global GDP, excessive regulation, and slug...
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