Room to move
What if it’s the senior leaders who are holding back a company? Specifically, what if they’re failing to embrace a digital mindset or to comprehend what current technology can make possible? Vanessa Gavan, founder and managing director of leadership development consultancy Maximus, says this is a major challenge of digital disruption. “Executives feel they should understand but they don’t know where to start,” she says. “Unintentionally sometimes, CEOs are blocking technological development. They see it as risky because they don’t understand it and they have preconceptions about the cost and time required to build prototypes.” Early last year, Maximus began offering executives a one-day, hands-on boot camp at its Sydney offices or in startup workspaces. The idea is to provide digital fabrication tools, such as laser cutters, milling machines and programming tools, as well as areas devoted to artificial intelligence and virtual reality, giving executives a safe place to experiment with the technology and learn how it could be relevant to their world. For example, they might use the latest manufacturing and prototyping equipment to quickly build an underwater camera, create and teach an AI chatbot or don VR goggles to simulate what it feels like to experience discrimination. “A lot of executives don’t have time to play but making space for that in business is really important,” says Gavan. “The whole premise of our program is to make the technology accessible and for them to take that mindset back into their business.” An ethical lens is also applied. Gavan says the two biggest issues leaders face are “humanistic” questions around ethics and behaviour and technological disruption. “It’s not just about embracing, adopting and navigating technology, it’s also about having an ethical lens on top of it.”