Outside In with Charles Trevail

In the corporate world, it’s evolve or die. Since 2000, 52% of Fortune 500 companies have either been acquired, merged, or gone bankrupt. Tom Siebel believes digital transformation is to the corporate world what a “mass extinction event” is to the evolution of life on Earth. That’s the thesis the tech industry icon and CEO of C3.ai lays out in his new book, Digital Transformation: Survive and Thrive in an Era of Mass Extinction. Siebel’s aim is to create a common understanding of digital transformation -- what it is and how organizations can take advantage of it. He joins the podcast to discuss how the application of a new generation of information technology -- comprised of elastic cloud computing, big data, the Internet of Things, and artificial intelligence -- will completely change business as we know it.

Listen to this podcast episode to learn:

• How “punctuated equilibrium” explains today’s massive disruption and change in how businesses operate, create and deliver products to customers

• The one thing that all successful digital transformation initiatives have in common

• How organizations like 3M, Amazon, and the U.S. Air Force are successfully transforming

• Why precision medicine will revolutionize healthcare but also open up major privacy and security concerns

• The consumer and citizen benefits -- and dangers -- of our digital era

• Common reasons why CEOs fail or succeed at transforming their company

• Tom’s advice on leadership and how to create a culture that unites and inspires a diverse and multigenerational workforce

For more information on Tom Siebel's new book: digitaltransformation.ai

Matt Wallaert believes “behavioral science can change the world.” In his new book, Start at the End, he argues that too many business leaders approach change by asking the wrong question: “What are we going to do?” The right question is, “What do we want to happen?” and then how do you build backwards towards that behavior change? Wallaert is a behavioral scientist, author, speaker, entrepreneur, and Chief Behavioral Officer at Clover Health. He joins the podcast to talk about why companies need to put behavior at the center of everything they do.

Listen to this podcast episode to learn:

• Why advertising and marketing should focus on behavior change rather than just attention and presentation

• What M&Ms vs. Snickers can teach us about “promoting pressures” and “inhibiting pressures” on human behavior

• Why market research needs to be forward looking and, possibly, split into two primary functions

• The value of a behavioral statement and why companies should articulate one

• Why every company needs (but likely doesn’t have) a Chief Behavioral Officer

• More from Wallaert’s book about his process for creating behavioral change

Fore more information: mattwallaert.com

Stories are the great unifier. When told well, they create a powerful connection to the human experience. No organization knows this better than The Moth. Since 1997, the nonprofit has shared more than 30,000 true personal stories in front of live audiences around the world. The Peabody Award-winning Moth Radio Hour airs on more than 500 public radio stations, and The Moth Podcast is one of the world’s most listened-to podcasts. There’s even three critically acclaimed Moth books, the most recent of which debuted at #12 on The New York Times bestsellers list.

Kate Tellers is a master storyteller, host, and director of MothWorks at The Moth, a program that’s worked with companies like Google, Nike, and Ford to teach employees and executives how, through personal stories, they can communicate better, celebrate shared values, and connect with each other. Tellers joins the podcast to talk about the principles of Moth storytelling and why a great story can make us understand ourselves and empathize with others.

Listen to this episode to learn:

• The origin of The Moth and how this female-led organization has become such a beloved platform for storytelling

• Why vulnerability, authenticity, and transformation are the essential elements in a powerful story

• Why “specificity breeds universality” and other practical tips you can use to craft your next story

• Avoiding “And then, and then, and then…” and other storytelling don’ts

• How leaders like Melinda Gates and Al Gore effectively use stories to create change

• False vulnerability, misleading your audience, and whether we can avoid the “dark side” of storytelling

For more information: themoth.org

Follow MothWorks on Instagram: instagram.com/mothworks97/

Photo by Jason Falchook

Wharton School Professor of Marketing Peter Fader sometimes wishes he never used the words “Customer Centricity” in his first book, Customer Centricity, and his latest, The Customer Centricity Playbook. Because, to him, it’s not about THE customer, or even all customers. Rather, it’s about using data to figure out who are your most valuable customers. Those are the ones to center around. Fader joins the podcast for a discussion about the quantitative (or math) side of customer centricity and why we should all be celebrating “customer heterogeneity.”

Listen to this episode to learn:

• Why CMOs should be thinking like CFOs and embrace customer-based corporate valuation and customer lifetime value (CLTV)

• The actuarial science of predicting customer behavior and “buy till you die” models

• Why many companies are paralyzed with fear that they might suffer a viral customer service mishap and become the next “United Breaks Guitars”

• How the valuations of IPOs like Lyft, Slack, Blue Apron, and Uber look different when you filter them through the customer lens

• The one piece of advice Fader would give to marketers and executives

For more information: petefader.com

How does anything become popular? And what are the influences that dictate our decisions – whether we’re conscious of it or not? Wharton School Professor Jonah Berger is a world-renowned expert on social influence, consumer behavior, and why things spread or go viral. He’s also written two bestselling books: Contagious: Why Things Catch On and Invisible Influence: The Hidden Forces that Shape Behavior. Berger joins the podcast to explain why, at its core, word of mouth marketing is about understanding your audience’s needs and motivations. While you “can’t cheat the system” with word of mouth, you can create it and get people sharing and talking about your stuff.

Listen to this episode to learn:

• Why social currency makes people feel like insiders

• The impact of word of mouth, and why it happens less online than you think

• How triggers like “peanut butter and…” or the Snickers “Hangry” ad campaign can serve as reminders for brands and products

• How emotions (both positive and negative) can motivate us to share, or hold us back from sharing

• The brand strategy behind “same, but different” – or, why “optimal distinctiveness” has been so successful for companies like Apple, Chobani, and others

• A preview of Berger’s next book about how to change anyone's mind

• Will the “royal” baby name Archie catch on, and how long until it falls out of fashion?

For more information on Jonah Berger:

jonahberger.com

Innovation. It’s the most overused buzzword in business. It’s also a catalyst for growth. But is it possible for big companies to be truly innovative? Or are they destined for creative destruction? Gary Pisano, Professor and Senior Associate Dean at Harvard Business School, has spent his career studying and working with innovative companies. His book, Creative Construction: The DNA of Sustained Innovation, unpacks the three pillars of innovation: strategy, systems, and culture. He joins the podcast to bust the myth that “big is ugly” when it comes to innovation. And he explains how even the biggest companies can be designed and led in ways that turn them into forces of transformative innovation.

Listen to this episode to learn:

• The unique challenges larger companies face when it comes to innovation

• Why culture is the “software of the organization” that drives innovation

• The importance of “absorptive capacity” and the influence of the outside world on innovative organizations

• Underestimating the value of improving an existing technology when threatened by a disruptor

• How every employee in an organization can be innovative, impact culture, and create value for customers

• The problem with “innovation fatigue”

More information on Creative Construction:

gpisano.com/book/creative-construction/

Is Hudson Yards the future of urban living? New York City’s newest neighborhood is now home to L’Oréal, SAP, Blackrock, Time Warner, and Coach, just to name a few. Famous chefs are opening restaurants. There’s residential space, public art, green space, retail shops, and a huge arts center called The Shed. Jeff Blau is the CEO of Related, the company behind Hudson Yards. He joins the podcast to talk about what went into the 10+ year process of planning, designing, and “curating” the world’s most ambitious real estate project.

Listen to this episode to learn:

• How Related built “critical mass” by designing areas that complement each other

• The thinking that went into the Vessel, the beehive-looking experiential art piece you’ve seen on Instagram

• How Jeff and his team pivoted from their original marketing strategy after learning the top priority of hundreds of CEOs

• Why brick and mortar retail is alive and well

• The insight that inspired the first-ever Equinox hotel, and why it’s primed to disrupt the hospitality industry

• What’s next in Related’s pipeline, including new developments in London, Chicago, Silicon Valley, and Boston’s Seaport neighborhood

Understanding what makes humans “human” is an essential question for any company today. Especially the ones embarking on a digital transformation -- or any tech initiative. This is the subject of Kate O'Neill’s book, Tech Humanist: How You Can Make Technology Better for Business and Better for Humans. O’Neill, an author, keynote speaker, and strategic advisor, joins the podcast to explain why we need a new type of leader: the Tech Humanist. And why human experience, perspective, and empathy are the best guides for digital innovation.

Listen to this episode to learn:

• What Best Buy, Starbucks, Apple, and Southwest Airlines get right about customer experience

• Why the act of “creating meaning” is so important to designing digital experiences

• The trade-offs between convenience and data privacy

• Why we need “benevolent business,” not “benevolent robots”

• Why measuring a company’s success based on profit alone is inherently one-dimensional

• The flaws and risks in taking a tech-led, rather than a research-led, approach to digital transformation

More information on Tech Humanist: www.koinsights.com/techhumanistbook/

David Bowie sang about one. Star Wars had an Alliance of them. James Dean portrayed one. Why is it that we admire rebels? Is there value in breaking the rules? Harvard Business School Professor Francesca Gino has studied rebels past and present, hailing from all walks of life, all around the world. She even wrote a book about it: Rebel Talent: Why it Pays to Break the Rules at Work and in Life. In our first-ever live recording at the Interbrand Academy Masterclass, Gino explains why nonconformity and rule breaking brings more joy, creativity, and meaning into our lives – professionally and personally.

Listen to this episode to learn:

• The five defining characteristics of a rebel talent

• The difference between constructive rebelliousness and toxic arrogance

• What rule breakers like three-Michelin-star Italian chef, Massimo Bottura, Captain Sully Sullenberger, and other rebellious leaders teach us about the value of perspective

• How embracing novelty frees us from the grinding routines we blindly follow at work and in life

• Why fearless curiosity and reconnecting with childlike questions of “why?” are the ultimate rebel moves

• How to be a rebel, even in companies and cultures where breaking the rules is discouraged

More information on Rebel Talent: www.rebeltalents.org

How bright or dark will our future be with artificial intelligence? Who will control it? Amy Webb is a quantitative futurist and author of the book, The Big Nine: How the Tech Titans and Their Thinking Machines Could Warp Humanity. She joins the podcast to describe how AI is being controlled by just nine companies. In the U.S., the “G-Mafia”: Google, Microsoft Apple, Facebook, IBM, and Amazon. In China, the “BAT”: Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent. Webb explains why the future depends on courageous leaders, informed citizens, and collaboration on a global scale now...before it’s too late.

Listen to this episode to learn:

• What AI is -- and what it isn’t

• The two developmental tracks of AI -- one in China driven by the government, the other in the US driven by markets -- and the consequences of each

• China’s “Social Credit System” and the potential deleterious impact it could have on the world

• What Amazon’s Alexa-powered microwave can tell us about the future

• The importance of every consumer to have an AI education (that means you!)