TrendWatchTrendWatch

Trends that will transform the corporate environment in 2014 and beyond

Natalie L. WoodThe Thought Net, LLC

We live in a world that is going through a period of profound transformation...

Facing complex environmental challenges...

...whose solutions will require unprecedented global cooperation

Despite efforts to turn the tide, we are facing a period of substantial environmental upheaval

Source: Globalwarming.org

Source: Columbia University

...and upheavals are not limited to the environment: Economic power is shifting from West to East...

with Asian and Latin American economies showing increasing economic drive, entrepreneurial spirit and innovation

...while debt-ridden developed nations struggle

with anemic economic growth or stagnation

The USA will lose its position of dominance in technology and innovationto be eclipsed by countries such as China, Korea and Taiwan

Source: National Science Board, 2010

Asia is taking the lead in the global green technology racesupported by effective collaboration between enterprise and government

2.3

2.6

3.3

4.3

7.4

10.4

10.8

11.2

18.6

34.6

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

India

Italy

Canada

Germany

Brazil

Spain

EU-27

UK

USA

China

Clean Energy Investment - in $Billion2009

(Source: Pew Charitable Trusts)

In our personal and business lives, online and offline worlds will increasingly converge...

As smart systems begin to disrupt industries with multitudes of sensorswhich will turn into ‘smart dust’ in the not too distant future...

But humans are in many ways the best sensors of all...

All of it and more generating zettabytes of data...(a zettabyte is 1 trillion gigabytes)

...to be stored in the ‘cloud’and to optimize all types of systems and processes

...such as the smart grid...

...smart cities...

Masdar, Abu Dhabi Songdo City, South KoreaMasdar, Abu Dhabi

Smart phones and their apps might be the biggest drivers of the convergence of the offline and online worlds...

...augmenting reality...

...turning into multi-purpose tools, touching many aspects of our lives...

...including mobile commerce...

And, oh yeah, mobile use...

We will increasingly access the Cloud via our mobile devicesBut then, we have been using the Cloud for years without being aware of it...

Corporate reputations will be defined by external stakeholderswho will demand authenticity and transparency

Businesses are having to become social...

..with customers driving innovation and becoming evangelists...- if there is the corporate ability to listen and engage -

All of this creating the need for collaboration and listening toolswhich will leave Intranets in the dust…

Some of these collaboration tools are based on game technologyoptimized to engage audiences

Powerful tools will be required to make sense of the data explosion...

...but the data tsunami will also increasingly bring up privacy issues and security concerns...

Cyberwars will become common, and be fought in the shadowsThe Stuxnet worm is a harbinger of things to come

Time will finally be ripe for a paradigm shift in educationshifting course from being standardized to personalized

Healthcare will also be transformed by technology advancesmoving towards personalized, patient-centered care

What are some of the implications for business?

Forget about controlling the messagefocus on transparency in your communications instead

Make ‘social’ part of the corporate DNAhaving a Twitter or Facebook account is just the very beginning…

Explore new marketing tactics around mobile technologymobile will be one of the ‘waves of the future’ you cannot afford to miss out on

Push customization to the limittechnology can make this a reality now

Enable collaborationefficient communication will become one of the critical keys to corporate success

Invest in data management and strategic listening tools they are now more important than ever

Consider game technology to engage your audience…and we’re not necessarily talking about Zynga or Second Life here…

Re-think your security strategystandard procedures will no longer be sufficient

Capitalize on the knowledge and intelligence of the organizationby transforming it into a thought leadership position for your firm

Thank You

360°°°° Comprehensive Thought Leadership Programs Leveraging New Industry Trends

The Thought Net, LLCPhone: 415.425.7124

Contact:Natalie L. Wood, email: natalie@thethoughtnet.com