The Four Shifts: Implications

This is the second of a series on The Four Shifts that are revolutionizing every aspect of society and business1 Technology Shifts AI 5G Biotech and Blockchain2 Power Shifts From Center to Edge From Institution to Individual Consolidated to Fragmented3 Boundary Shifts OfficeHome boundaries Blurring of behaviors Mongrelized and MultiDimensional Companies4 Mind Shifts Generational Differences Reevaluation of Work and other institutionsThe first of the Series which describes each of these shifts can be read hereThis second post discusses just some of the implications on Government Education and BusinessGovernment New Models of Governance EmergeMost institutions at the national and international level were designed over five decades ago post WorldWar IIToday two countries India and China with nearly three billion people account for over 1 in 3 citizens of the world And by the end of the decade Africa will contain 40 percent of the Worldamp8217s peopleIf you fly globally you will find yourself landing and taking off in the middle of the night in many Asian and African countries because landings and takeoffs have been optimized for United States and European travelers since these arrangements were written when air travel was primarily western which is no longer trueThe Internet reshapes borders in its own way and creates amazing opportunities and wealth as well as significant legal challenges when companies and the Internet are global and laws are local A company like Google has nearly 1000 in house lawyers and multiple outside legal firms since it and other companies like Meta have become a form of government and impact business and society everywhere Current discussion on how to ensure Chinese ownership of TikTok is not leveraged against the West is an indicator of how the Internet is rewriting the rulesIt is not just the rise of the East and the Internet that is roiling governance but also modern healthcare and gene therapy As modern medicine can extend the quantity of life but not the quality of life many want new rules on deciding when to exit With every major country aging fast this is just one of the issues we will grapple withThe future will not fit in the organizations and governance of the past where we need to grapple with AI Ethics Climate Change Gene Technology Data Privacy an AfricanAsian future and Space JunkWars and much more We needed new rules for an Industrial Age since the rules of an Agricultural Age were no longer relevant Similarly the legal and institutional frameworks of the past cannot get us into the futureIn time this might give rise to what Balaji Srinivasan has named The Network State The book asks that while Technology has enabled us to start new companies new communities and new currencies can we use it to start new cities or even new countries This book introduces the concept of the network state a country you can start from your computer a state that recruits like a startup a nation built from the internet rather than disrupted by itEducation A Revolution Is RequiredFive shocks have descended on Education in the past decade driven by The Four Shifts1 COVID19 made some parents question what they were paying for and it also deeply set back learning in many places particularly public schools which are now losing significant students and funding2 Collegeamp160Debt has become an anchor for millions and a hot political issue3 Alternate Credentialsamp160New certification programs from companies like Google for software and other developers are now available to individuals who no longer need advanced degrees to get a job at these companies4 Politicization of Campuses and Schoolsamp160From masks to whether certain speakers have the right to address campus have changed the world of education often turbocharged by social media The University of Chicago has issued The Chicago Statement which emphasizes that free speech and thinking are key to an education and now nearly 100 universities have adopted this perspective5 Technologyamp160In a world of Search and now ChatGPT with more advances coming down the line the key issue that is arising is not how one teaches but what one teachesWe are living in a world where technology is putting a premium on ability Without an education geared to ensure that we learn to work with and alongside modern technology society will face great challengesEducators need to be educated about how to educateAnd most importantly in a world of change education needs to be continuous and not something done early in oneamp8217s career The halflife of most learning is decaying quickly and education infrastructure developed to be a luxury good that teaches irrelevant things at the wrong times to too few people is ready for a revolutionEducation will be the key differentiator between how countries and individuals prosper and we will see not just governments but businesses and many others reimagine and rethink the core competency of learningBusinessCompanies are the ground zero where the four shifts are creating seismic changeFive forces that few leaders had to deal with a decade ago are now critical to manage and lead1 ReThinking Business Modelsamp160Globalization demographic change technology is shortening how long a company succeeds Companies today remain in the Fortune 500 for less and less time The threats to any company tend to now come from outside its competitive set Newspapers were undone by Google Auto companies challenged by Tesla and Uber Kodak by InstagramThe ability to reimagine and recast a business becomes job one among leaders and the ability to shape shift becomes critical for talent The need for rethinking business models has risen in importance due to the rise of distributed and unbundled work which is not only allowing companies to hire from anywhere but plug and play with a plethora of cloud and other based marketplaces and talent pools This weekamp8217s story in the Economist Magazine on the quotfuzzy corporationquot reveals that distributed unbundled work is accelerating the boundary shifting of where and what a company is2 Talent Management Power increasingly is moving to talent Technology distributed work declining working age populations new mindsets and expectations are focusing companies on the reality that they work for talent as much as talent works for themPurpose Values Connections Freedom Story and Growth are significant factors today in attracting talent and managing cultures and it is not just Money Fame and PowerAs companies reimagine what they do they are also reimagining how they workOne of the most dramatic upcoming shifts is the increased emphasis on becoming educators and sources of upgrading skills for the future which companies are investing in because the formal education systems are not turning out the skills they need or not providing the flexibility to augment the workplace versus having employees pause work to upskill Enhancing talentsamp8217 mental and skill operating systems is now a key source of competitive advantage3 Government Relationsamp160Whether it is ESG Environment Social Governance or DEI Diversity Equity and Inclusion or lobbying every business is intertwined with politics whether they want to or not This is for a multiple number of reasons from Financial Institutions like Black Rock calling for ESG and others attacking this as green washing or quotwokequot employees looking for management to take a stand eg Disney or the Four Shifts changing legislation and rules and the rise of Union power eg StarbucksThe Four Shifts are changing the rules of the game and government makes the rules of the gameIncreasingly the governance in ESG is not just internal governance but working with government4 Technology Expertiseamp160Every company is a technology company As the current downturn sees talent reduced at the big Tech companies they are rapidly being hired by the Walmartamp8217s and State Farms of the world The power of a Chief Technology Chief Platform Chief Data and Chief Growth Officer almost all new titles have grown significantly as the DNA of companies now beat to metronome of AI and Networks and Chips5 Open and Connectedamp160The Four Shifts have put a premium on openness and connectedness in the mindset and working styles of companies Microsoftamp8217s resurgence under Satya Nadella was driving by becoming a cloud based Linux aligned and partnering oriented organizationCompanies like Procter and Gamble and others adopt open innovationWe are living in a connected world of diverse people new technologies and increased acceleration Being able to partner being open to different perspectives and mindsets is one way companies will bend and morph versus crack and break under the tsunami of changeRecently even China has realized that itamp8217s economy and society cannot live isolatedNext Week How do we as individuals grow and thrive in the age of The Four ShiftsClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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Rishad Tobaccowala

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