The whole world have advanced into the digital age and as a lot of appliances, gadgets, and accessories now depend on internet for their operation. These devices are designed with state-of-the-art technology so they can communicate smoothly at any time, and have now become so popular that they outnumber the human population. There are approximately 7.62 billion people around the world but surprisingly, we have 20 billion IoT devices which are all connected to the internet.
New IoT devices emerge every day; we see home automation systems, smartwatches, smart gadgets, smart vehicles and a long list of other things that makes your life easier and more fun in today’s world.
Through my work in Innovation at Gunnebo Business Solutions, I get to work on quite a few cutting edge projects to bring Gunnebo into the connected future. The GBS team strives to develop a scalable collaboration platform that supports each business units digitalization and software offering. Our main focus is actually to lead Gunnebo’s business units into the digital future of Software Services and enable product as a service sales.
I am currently working on a really exciting project with our Safe Storage Business Unit. We are working on a brand new smart-safe, which can easily be integrated into different parts of the home – kitchen, bedroom or bathroom – to store your valuables. The safe is designed to suit everyday needs and it can be used for storing valuables such as car keys, jewelry, credit card, visas, passports or any other thing important to you.
The safe is designed to be a simple and convenient solution that can be accessed by customers around the world. Anyone interested in getting the best security for their valuables would try out this option. Not only does the safe keep your valuables safe, but it’s also aesthetically appealing and made from the best technology which is only even more attractive.
As any smart device, this safe will of course be easily be connected to the owners mobile phone and send telemetry to the cloud. This is where I come in. I am working with our team in Markersdorf on merging classic and mechanical parts of a safe securely with modern IoT technlology.
To make sure that our new IoT device deliver to its potential, it is developed with state-of-the-art technology, both physically and on the firmware and software side, that makes it reliable and easy to use.
To ensure the efficiency of our operations we work with agile partners like Microsoft, 3H, Polytech Software and others to help fusing entrepreneurial spirit with professional development of the product. Through their involvement, we have been able to achieve optimal results.
As mentioned earlier, the Internet of things (IoT) is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical and digital machines. This means that it can be just anything from your television to your wristwatch. Over time, the scope of IoT devices has changed from what it used to be due to the convergence of multiple technologies, real-time analytics, machine learning, commodity sensors, and embedded systems.
An IoT device exposes its users to a number of impressive benefits which include increased interaction between devices, allows great automation and control, easier to operate, saves time, saves money, increased efficiency and time saving and so on. But it still has a few drawbacks of its own such as may easily become highly complex, may be affected by privacy and security breach, reduced safety for users and so on.
The market for IoT devices is expanding every day and becoming more popular as its number of users also increases. This might be the first IoT device from Gunnebo, but it is definitely not the last.
If you want to know how Gunnebo works with IoT in the consumer market, feel free to contact me at bjorn.nostdahl@gunnebo.com
Socioeconomics or social economics is a branch of social science that tries to understand the effect of social structures and processses on economic activity. At its basic, it studies the relationship between societies progress and local economy, or the global economy.
Efficient social structures inadvertently lead to a stronger economy. Retail is a critical structure in any society, apart from its obvious importance in economic revenue, it is also a huge platform for human interactions at all levels. Embedding technology deeply into retail to the point that it reaches brick and mortar stores and small businesses will make a more efficient retail industry, and hence, economy.
During my second day at NRF, I wanted to focus on technology and how technology empower brick and mortart stores to keep relevant in 2020.
Female Executives are Leading the Way
Specific and measurable action is required for any scalable transformation in business, retail and other industries. Talk and plans alone cannot push and motivate performance and possibilities. And when it comes to leading the way, some of the biggest moves are coming from female executives. Progressive voices from the biggest names in retail and CEO Action leaders share fresh winning strategies, successful tactics, and takeaways that are both valuable and practical.
There has always been a disparity in the treatment of female employees when compared to their male counterparts. Although informal moments are important, it isn’t quite sad that top female managers are treated different than their male opponents. This isn’t obviously not an issue common only in the retail industry, it’s a humanity issue.
What makes this difference in treatment more worrisome is that females even seem to thrive more in the retail industry since it is flexible work. Retail requires a lot of contact with clients and other entities (suppliers, producers, etc), females on average excel in such roles
Issues like this constitute some of the reasons why top management and CEOs are taking political stands more than ever. CEOs are realizing how powerful their voices are and the influence it yields. Progressive views are embraced by many top executives and they can greatly influence employees.
Visiting the Gunnebo Stand
Being a security and technology company, Gunnebo was of course present at NRF showing our cash management devices for retail. From cash management to loss prevention, there are several areas where Gunnebo Cash Management Solutions can help improve retail processes and security procedures to increase efficiencies, reduce costs and enhance the customer experience.
It was also good to meet ut with collegues I do not see that often, from Sweden, Holland, USA and Denmark amongst other.
Retail and the global social economics scene: The 2020 Vision
The business environment has effectively created space for retailers. But because of the nature of the market, new strategies are important to ensure that retailers can get the best and gain the required advantage. It is assumed that all retailers usually look to establish a fair amount of advantage. This usually ensures that the concept of globalisation is discussed in relation to the retail sector.
So, how do factors such as government policies, such as tax reform, reciprocal trade agreements and monetary regulation, persist as key instruments in managing global economic health? Former US senator and Speaker of the US House of representatives, Paul Ryan joins NRF 2020 with Recode co-founder and editor-at-large Kara Swisher as expert panelists providing insights on the business impacts of recent political and policy decisions in Washington. Whether it’s tariffs, international trade agreements, tax reforms or impending Big Tech regulations, the former chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, Ryan, and tech and innovation authority, Swisher will explore and anticipate what lies ahead for consumers and the retail industry on the global stage.
It is in the interest of every retailer to embrace retail technology. All aspects of retail have some sort of software or technology that aids its smooth running. Customer tracking software can greatly improve customer experience and garner loyalty to your brand. Technology makes for a swift and clutter free way to analyze data, monitor sales and keep inventory.
POS (Point of sale), Executive Information Systems and Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) are some ways technology can help in sales, warehousing and analysis.
Technology also has tremendous applications on the executive level. With data mining and planning software, executives can delegate most of their work and focus on strategic tests, hence increasing productivity.
Technology in retail is more important now than ever. It is so crucial that NRF has transformed from a retail show to a full blown tech show for one simple reason: most of the advancements in retail are directly as a result of tech advancements.
China is the new innovator, the Chinese government is making huge investments in cooperation with private companies into AI, robotics etc. Domestic tech giants receive huge support from their government and this has yielded positive results in China’s retail sector. The almost sudden rise of Alibaba and other Chinese brands is testament to this fact. Innovation does not work in the same way in democratic countries as autocracies like China, and countries like USA can not outspend China in innovation simply because it does not enjoy the liberties of Chinese autocracy.
Another stepping stone in the path of USA retail technology is that the US does not have any laws to regulate new technology. EU has GDPR and heavy privacy legislation, but US is lagging behind. Unfortunatley the education is also lagging behind, and both modern US and EU must find ways to educate students for working with AI, not doing the same work as AI. This sort of education does not have to be costly and does not have to involve any complex learning, it should be simply focused on teaching people to make the best use of AI and expose them to how AI can increase productivity.
All in all a fresh discussion and enlightening discussion between Paul Ryan and Kara Swisher.
Cloud Computing: Paving the way for the future of retail
The retail industry is on the cusp of great change with customer expectations evolving and impacting all areas of the retail value chain. The most forward-thinking businesses recognize that they must embark on a digital transformation strategy to stay competitive and deliver innovation. And this involves the adoption of cloud computing. The investment brands in cloud computing has risen from about $4 billion in 2011 to a whopping sum of $15 billion in 2016. Retailers are looking to adopt cloud computing just like in the banking and manufacturing industries. There are numerous benefits that can accrue from the adoption of cloud computing.
Winners are retailers that transforms the fastest. The most successful retail brands are those that pursue advancement and embed new systems into their business models. Cloud computing appears to be the next major milestone in retail technology and embracing it now is the way to stay competitive.
Personalization has always been key to brand identity, preserving the identity of your brand in this age of cloud based computing should be a priority. Technology should be utilized to to help retailers optimize the efficiency of business and not totally replace identity.
Digital advisors are automated investment platforms that process the construction and upkeep of an investment portfolio for retsilers. All it takes is opening an investment account, answering some questions about goals and risk tolerance, and the platform makes the best decisions based on answers given. In addition to ease of use and efficiency, digital advisors are also tax effective.
Google works with retailers to solve pain points and shape a future vision that focuses on a set of businesses that brings to bear the very best of Google. Using cloud technologies such as application development, data management, advanced analytics, and AI/ML capabilities, Google is helping retailers unlock impending opportunities. Join Google Cloud CEO, Thomas Kurian and Kohl’s CTO, Paul Gaffney as they discuss how Kohls is infusing their business with intelligence and cloud capabilities to better serve employees and customers.
Global retail mindset: Bold moves from leaders looking to fuel future growth
Retail businesses have extended into every corner of the world. Every business leader is always concerned about the growth of his or her business but sometimes, it can be harder to achieve. This is due to the fact that many retail business owners lack the technical know-how to ensure the sustained growth of the business. A retail business will usually reach a peak after which it may seem like a herculean task to inspire any more growth. How possible is it to get the much-desired growth? Apparently, you have to learn from the techniques used by many industry experts. The insight could be the fuel that you need.
In consecutive interviews, hear from retail and brand executives with penchants for evolution who are tackling new growth challenges, reimaging core customer strategies, and living up to their “change agent” personas? Featuring leaders with bold ideas for leading enterprise transformation, each interview will examine the company’s current landscape, ideas to solve or proactively disrupt industry challenges, and each executive’s vision for future profitable growth.
After working in Sweden for 5-6 years I took the train from Gothenburg to Stockholm for the first time to attend a workshop on Customer Experience and Customer Journey Mapping. Since commuting across the country was a new experience for me, I chose to be 30min early for the train only to find the doors of the coach locked. Standing outside freezing, I took the time to find my ticket. I had received an SMS with my details a few days earlier, but to my surprise it said: “This is not your ticket”. So my customer experience with SJ prior to arriving at the Customer Experience and Customer Journey Mapping workshop wasn’t really a superb one.
While puffing and rumbling through the Swedish countryside, I had some time to prepare for the days to come. As a Product Owner it is of course imperative for me to understand everything about our product to deliver impeccable features and functionality to our customer. However in a complex market the complete customer journey has become more important the recent years and my expectations for the next two days was to gain insights of processes and tools on how to improve my work on Customer Experience and the full Customer Journey when purchasing our services.
The workshop kicked off with an introduction of the participants and their roles, following a thorough explanation of what Customer Experience and Customer Journey Mapping is. The workshop was divided into six parts, all aiming to make content customers and employees: Strategy, Insights, Design, Measurement, Management and Culture.
The way to interact with customers and the focus on customer experience has significantly changed during the last 100 years. Back in 1913 when Woodrow Wilson was president, and USA went through the Progressive Era the focus was mostly on the product itself. However in the 1950’s the focus moved more towards the american dream and a very strong brand focus and transitioning into stronger customer relations through the 1970’s and 1980’s.
The focus on Customer Experience as we know is today started for real around the millennium, where new technology became available to both understand and interact with the customer. Also the consumers matured and expected more than just a product, introducing terminology like retailtainment and entertainmerce.
At its core, Customer Journey Mapping is a methodology that enable insight and understanding of customer’s with the aim of developing products or services that support innovation and business development through earning the satisfaction and loyalty of your customers. In a nutshell, I would call it a form of result oriented customer service.
The workshop was tailored to serve a wide range of people, specifically people responsible for customer experience, others were business managers, business developers, support and customer service managers, marketing managers and marketers, strategists, and product owners. Learning about Customer Experience together availed is the opportunity to create connections and offer each other insights relating to our various fields.
Customer Experience Management is a strategy, methodology and process to manage a customers exposure, interaction and transaction with a corporation, a product/service and a brand. The discipline that is about developing service and business models that prioritize the customer in all of the company’s business processes, thus creating favorable conditions for growth. One of the fundamental aspects of CX is taking time to understanding the customer’s experience and contact points with your company. It involves careful documentation and recording of all forms of contact between a customer and the company to the extent that at a glance the customer’s journey can be visualized and understood easily; A Customer Journey Map if you will, which is a documentation/mapping of all the customer’s contacts with you as a company.
During the course of the two-day workshop on learning about Customer Experience, we created a Customer Journey Map for a fictitious company and integrated the results into our respective businesses. We started off by understanding Customer Experience as a business discipline and it’s concepts, what makes up a customer experience and how to understand it. We then proceeded to Customer Journey Mapping, creates models with the aid of working methods, practical steps and guidance. A large part of the workshop was focused on “learning by doing”.
We moved onto Persona and Empathy mapping, gathering customer insights, customer needs and behavior, contact points and channels. This part was more about how to appropriately gauge a customer’s response and feelings when they make contact with our business. We were also taught how to effectively record these to facilitate these to facilitate business growth modeling. Happy customer = better business!
Our knowledge on the workshop was then put to the test by presenting us with practical exercises on creating Customer Journey Map and how to measure the progress of our services linked to Customer Journey Mapping.
The final part of the learning curve was the most delicate: Business development and business management with CX and how you can introduce change to our business specifically. We were made to understand that without actual measurable growth, the aim of the workshop would not be met. So in essence, all CX and Customer Journey Mapping should lead to measurable growth.
Attending the two day workshop armed me with a lot of new skills in dealing with customers and I learnt basic understanding of Customers and experience as a business discipline. What I consider to be the most vital lesson learnt is understanding how an empathetic approach to customers can create an atmosphere that encourages sustainability and profitability in business for your company.
With all these exciting business models, I’m quite ready and anticipate implementing Customer Experience work plan!
Thank you to Camilla Lif and Johan Sjöström for a great workshop. If you enjoyed reading about the Customer Journey or have any questions or great ideas, feel free to reach out at bjorn.nostdahl@gunnebo.com 🙂
I had the opportunity to attend the Norwegian Trade Conference in Oslo 24th September featuring some of the most interesting retailers in Norway, and even a couple of international speakers. The focus for this years conference was BOPIS + BORIS = True, but some of the keynotes also focused on traditional retail and omnichannel.
Trade is never a dying concept but rather a constantly changing industry. This rapid change and advancement bought in two e-commerce acronyms to the market. This is none other than BOPIS which is abbreviated for buy online and pick up in-store facility and BORIS which is bought online and return in-store. So what does this give your business? How does it support customers to have a better shopping experience? These are the questions we intend to answer by the end of this article.
These new purchasing behaviors have widened the scope of shopping gives more flexibility and convenience to your business. Let’s dig in deeper and see what advantages these new Omni channels provide you with.
From apocalypse to renaissance?
Trade would never reach an apocalypse. Rather, it gives new beginnings just like the renaissance. So, it can be related to it as well. There is one question that many have in mind when it comes to engaging consumers and maintaining relationships with them further with regards to trade and business. Is trade all about customer experience or it solely based on price?
Old rusty cash register on the floor of an abandoned store in Pripyat – Chernobyl nuclear power plant zone of alienation.
Recent statistics that mainly focused on Norwegians show that Norwegian shoppers who shopped in physical brick and mortar stores in Norway increased by 16% from 2012-2018 and those who shopped abroad in physical stores increase by 76% in the same time frame.
On the other hand, Norwegian shoppers who purchased from Norwegian online stores increased by 101% and purchasing from international stores increased by 146% from 2012-2018.
It also revealed that 50% of consumers preferred physical stores whereas 20% preferred online stores. However, 30% did not really have a particular preference.
Therefore, these facts show that customer service is not just a department or a small fraction in the trade industry. It plays a bigger role as the main purpose is to build a loyal member and focus every aspect of keeping the customer in the center. Simply said, the customer is the boss! Not to forget while the store is 50%, delivery is equally important and takes about another 50% nowadays.
From apocalypse to relevance
Peterson was the speaker of the year during “The Big Show” in New York in January and has about 30 years of experience as a retailer, strategist, and speaker. His innovative approaches to modern retail and strong expertise in cultural trends are his specialty.
Lee Peterson – EVP: Thought Leadership & Marketing – WP Partners
It was pointed out that retail closures were more than openings in the USA and the sole reason was shoppers were looking for more facilities than just shopping. Whilst shopping, they looked for eating spots and food halls are a great technique. They also look into children’s play areas, fitness centers, green spaces to relax, farmers’ markets, places to buy household items and other facilities. For example, farmers’ markets have 3985 in 2014 to 9027 in 2019 as buying fresh fruits and vegetables has increased over the years and a consumer on average spends about $16 per visit.
Therefore, many shoppers looked for an all-in-one place to get all that they need. Therefore, incorporating this concept shows that shopping is not dead yet, but rather the way shopping is done must be changed. This is where BOPIS and BORIS become two famous traditions that are followed these days for customer convenience.
BOPIS and BORIS
BOPIS
Unlike earlier days, people are less patient and expect instant gratification. Thus, BOPIS is very useful for people who are stuck in workplaces or traffic and do not really have the time to choose items in shops. Through this, they get the option of choosing the goods they need online and picking it up on the store. This saves time for people with busy schedules to smoothen their shopping. On the other hand, when customers pick their goods, 75% of them also purchase additional items while in-store.
Looking at the near future, the use of technology will be more heavily incorporated into shopping. For example, having 3-D views of products and being able to visually shop their stores and getting it delivered.
BORIS
This is another option where you could buy online and get it delivered. However, if you want to exchange or return to a physical store, you can do so. So the hassle of return shopping is eliminated and is a convenient service. The benefit of it is that when customers visit the store to return goods, there is a high chance that they might exchange or even buy additional goods.
But these innovations won’t mean it is the end of shopping centers because having physical stores gives delight to people which virtual stores cannot give. People like to touch, feel or smell which online stores cannot give because those sensations can induce spontaneous purchases.
The line between physical stores and online stores will get thinner and thinner day by day and a new concept will come known as a physical store which will create a fluid web-to-store system with a smooth customer experience. Therefore, many different methods will be used with different approaches to reach different audiences.
How to create total seamlessness between the web and the store?
As Hauk Landsverk, Digital Director of Elkjøp expressed, to create a seamless integration between web and physical store is through these omnichannel approaches like BOPIS and BORIS to create a link between physical stores and mobile, telephone or computer devices. Through these, customers will enjoy the benefits of technology which will simultaneously cater to their needs as well. It will be customer-centric rather than product-centric where it is based on the customer’s journey and experience which is a fundamental factor.
It speeds off the web
Siv Heleen Grødem, entrepreneur and owner of the Suser i Sivet highlights certain strategies to enhance the shopping experience such as instead of selling individual clothes, you sell a full costume. Apart from that other factors like social media promotions by stores, online presence and personal services like cash on delivery are a few aspects that also enhance the shopping experience.
Suser i Sivet also won the prestigeous award for retailer of the year: “The winner is the result of hard and planned work over many years, a willingness to invest and dare to try out new things and excellent marketing in social media. The result is a modern, forward-thinking business that masters the demanding art of combining online sales and physical store in an excellent way.”
Different industries, same customer – how to meet future customer needs
Ingjerd Blekeli Spiten, Executive Vice President of PersonMarked highlights modern payment options like mobile banking and paying online as new developments that make purchasing more easier and convenient. Most banks and online payment gateways are trustworthy and reliable where almost 90% of people trust their banks and 20% of the people trust global payment systems like PayPal. There are few others as well that rely on social media payments, IT companies or mobile companies.
Keeping up with the consumers – how Zalando aims to become the starting point for fashion
David Hejgaard, Regional Lead Nordics of Zalando reflects on Moore’s law stating evolution is much faster than ever where customers tend to shop anywhere at any time of the day. Most physical stores have partnered with virtual stores where people can choose the color and size of what they need. If this is available in the virtual warehouse, they can purchase it.
How to prepare for a different future?
Truls Fjeldstad, Director of marketing and business intelligence at NorgesGruppen is a charismatic guy who mainly focuses on sustainability. He believes that classical stores where you pick and pay will continue to exist and never halt. Thus, to prepare for this, new features and services must be introduced to support the traditional brick and mortar stores. These include personal assistants, IoT, automation, and delivery as well.
How to leverage customer data and not just collect it?
Anton Nytorp, Head of CoopX at Coop Norway is a firm believer in heat mapping. This is a great technique to understand customer’s purchasing behaviors in the store. These analytics show actions and what your customers usually like. It is a good way to record data in a way that can be interpreted rather than just merely collecting it.
Furthermore, placing similar products of different vendors is another great technique so consumers have many options to choose from if they don’t like a particular product type or brand. This also shows and helps identify which products are more likely to be bought. Having an unmanned- store in Norway is also on the bucket list as it will show what customers actually want and not forced or induced to buy sales representatives.
Symbolic consumption and self-concept
Siv Skard, Associate Professor at Kristiania University College researches consumer behavior. She highlights that people are always concerned about how others look at them and judge them. This is a great point that can be taken advantage of from a business perspective. People are self-centered and if they notice that they are being watched, you can promote concepts like ‘go green’ or ‘go healthy’ which people tend to buy.
How to create results online from the first click?
Rune Kjeldsen, General Manager at “Hekta på Tur” began his first business at the age of 22 which was sold to a Dutch company. He then began an online store called Hekta Pa Tur which has steady and stable growth. Today it is a leading profitable store.
Thus the moral of the story is when the wind of change blows, you must build a windmill if you’re a winner because losers will build wind-shields instead.
The customer experience is what will differentiate you from the competitors in the future.
Always keep in mind that customer experience is far more important than having a good customer service system. Thus, to ensure smooth and efficient customer experience, it is necessary to indulge in profitable and sustainable business models inclusive of Omni channels like BOPIS and BORIS. These strategies are what gives customers a better overall experience.
Sveinung Jørgensen, Associate Professor at INN and Lars Jacob Tynes Pedersen, Associate Professor at NHH research on sustainable and profitable business models working closely with Norwegian and international companies. They have published a book together called ‘RESTART 7 Roads for Sustainable Business Models’. You can read more about them at www.JorgensenPedersen.no.
There are a few ways to enhance the customer experience. You can Redesign the business model and approach focusing on a customer-centric fashion model as it is important to see through the customer’s eyes.
Controlled experiments is another process of understanding customers and to see their issues beforehand. You can see the usability of the products, how well people can use and their overall experience and impression of the particular product or service.
Another method is Circular processes whichare usually adapted by product-oriented companies who have sought ways to give in a service and benefit from it. For example, you purchase a washing machine and pay in a cycle whereas the manufacturer will ensure that it works properly and service it when needed. Service logic is quite similar to a circular process and is relatively new which focuses on exchanging services than just goods.
Alliances are equally important to engage with your customers and communicate with them throughout their shopping journey. You can get information such as feedback, their experiences. Knowing these you can adapt means to ensure customer’s expectations are met. Another important aspect is Results that are obtained by different analysis will help you identify loopholes and fix any issues to enhance the overall customer experience. The three dimensions of customer experience are segregated into three elements. The first is a success where the customer is able to get what he/she requires and also see if the interaction was successful or not. An effort is analyzed to see how much effort the customer had to personally put to get a successful interaction. Lastly, emotion is whether the overall interaction left the customer delighted or disappointed.
The changeover process in the green shift
Anita Sørlundsengen, Retail Director and Øyvind Andreassen, Senior Region Manager at ST1 Norway highlights the importance of the green shift in the modern century. Gas stations have now transformed into energy stations with new concepts constantly developing. See how ST1 / Shell at retail director Anita Sørlundsengen and retailer Thommas Landsem have created the energy station of the future with special emphasis on good customer experiences.
From market leader to challenger
Lars Kristian Lindberg, CEO / Managing Director at Gresvig emphasized that Gresvig was in need of a change or an advancement from a strong national brand to a more profitable international brand. Ole Sauar, Founder and CEO of Jollyroom stated that social media and influencers are a great method to grow your business in an international platform. Also having playing zones is another key idea.
Also keep in mind that nordic countries who balance between socialism and capitalism have better economic efficiency and growth and thus, investors must carefully consider this aspect as well.
The key is to hit the emotional muscle
Sondre Gravir, CEO of the SATS group which is a leading fitness center chain in the Nordic region highlights that rather than focussing on getting in participants to the gym, the focus must be on getting the customer to the gym.
New business models
Emilie Stordalen, daughter of Peter Stordalen and part owner at Strawberry Group is a charismatic and down-to-earth personality. She currently works to develop and operate digital platforms. The specialty about her is that she focuses on individual people such as Amanda, who is young and modern to Anders, who is a bit aged and classical which gives a more personalized experience to customers.
Another strategy used is that they tend to use low-quality locations such as basement rooms and give high-quality experiences like LED walls where you feel like you have woken up in a rainforest. These minute details are very important to create a positive image about your services or goods to the customers.
If you are interested in hearing more about the future of retail and IoT, feel free to contact me at bjorn.nostdahl@gunnebo.com 🙂
May 29th, Satya Nadella CEO of Microsoft invited Nordic customers and partners for a small conference in Sweden, putting forth his ambitions for the future. This was Nadella’s first ever visit to Sweden, since stepping into the shoes of the company’s CEO. He touched upon issues of today’s tech world, but most importantly made Swedish people aware of his company’s firm belief in global digitization and describe what the future holds in store.
Self-discipline & excitement-seeking are two pillars of Satya’s personality, which has made this Indian-origin techy an intellect worldwide; from Asia to Europe we all treat him with the warm welcome.
Dinner with Microsoft’s ISV Team
A day before the Nadella’s address, I was invited for dinner and socializing hosted by Joanna and Martin from Microsoft. ISV stands for Independent Software Vendor and present individual or companies those who develop, market and sell software running on third-party hardware and software platforms such as the Microsoft.
The term ISV is prominent in the tech world, used by most tech companies including Microsoft. To understand this from a layman’s term, when Microsoft was in the pursuit of developing windows, its partnerships with numerous companies/individuals to take their project forward both on the technical and non-technical front.
Next Morning, I had the opportunity to see some of the companies that has implemented their solutions on the Microsoft platforms at hotel Berns. There we received a pep talk to Microsoft and partners on the future and what efforts we need to put to make sure it is heading the right direction.
The Microsoft tech show commenced in style with the tunes of Sweden’s most renowned DJ and Saxophone artist Andreas Ferrronato. His soul-soothing set the mood 🙂
The Volvo Group Digitizing its Operations
Hillevi Pihlblad from Volvo Group talked about how employees hate change and across the globe it is not easy to adapt to changes. Further, she illustrated how the Volvo Group has translated the changes into something positive and made people understand why embracing change can make their lives convenient.
The H&M Group And The Use of AI To Serve Their Customers The Best
A senior executive and business leader of the H&M Group, Arti Zeighami talked about how the company is investing in Artificial Intelligence technology to tailor store offerings. Heading the Advanced Analytics and AI function, he gave a presentation on how H&M Group is implementing advanced algorithms to scrutinize sales an returns. Further, helped them more efficiently predict the needs and demands of their customers.
Satya Nadella, The Man of the Moment Taking The Center Stage
Then, finally came the moment when Helene Barnekow introduced Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadella. He was treated with great warm claps from the tech people present.
Nadella who took over the job role of CEO from Steve Ballmer in 2014, is globally renowned for his dynamic leadership and a true passion for technology innovations. Prior to being the company’s CEO, Nadella was Microsoft EVP of the cloud and enterprise group.
His journey as a CEO has transformed Microsoft in terms of technology, also accentuating the company’s business model and corporate culture. His emphatic leadership abilities steered Microsoft from struggling smartphone strategy to focus on other technical aspects such as the Augmented Reality and Cloud Computing.
He was also responsible for the purchase of Linkedin, a network of professionals for around $26.2. Did you know since taking over as CEO, company’s stocks have increased by 150%?
The theme of the address by Satya Nadella was how communities and companies are uniting together for the digitized future of Sweden. This speech was largely about Microsoft’s own digital products and services, and how they can drive the world forward.
On his address to the tech people of Sweden, he threw light on various segments of technology-the Artificial Intelligence, Digital Transformation & Innovation. The American giant was in Stockholm to make a big announcement about setting up data centers in the country.
“We have the ambition that the data centers we build in Sweden should be among the most sustainable in the world, this is another step in strengthening our position as a long-term digitization partner for Swedish businesses”
Key Highlights from Nadella’s Address
“It would be wrong for me not to talk about trust. Because in the end, it is something that will be very important to us – not only to create new technology but to really assure that there is confidence in the technology that we create” he says on stage and continues “We need to create systems that handle personal data and security as a human right.”
Satya Nadella talked about the recent investment his company is making in Sweden. Among all the tech things, Microsoft two centers to be built in Gävle and Sandviken, they will be the most sustainable in the world.
“We will use one hundred percent renewable energy. They will also be completely free from operational emissions. We set a new standard when it comes to the next generation data center. It starts here in Sweden,” said Satya Nadella.
Apart from the data centers, Satya Nadella also highlighted the recent key partnerships during his speech at the China Theater. He further talked about company collaboration with Kiruna, this city makes use of Microsoft Hololens and AR to plan the city’s underground infrastructure.
Microsoft in Sweden
Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s CEO Put Forth Examples of Company’s Interest in the Country;
”There have been huge breakthroughs in the last three years, regardless of whether we are talking about object identification or voice recognition. This must be translated into infrastructure. Here we invest heavily.”
“Take Spotify who has a new very cool podcast tool. It lets anyone do their own podcast and they use our speech recognition to convert speech into text. The most interesting thing they do is that for anyone who wants to modify their podcast, they can enter and edit in writing and that the podcast then automatically changes. It shows how to use AI to make it more efficient”
Ending the Visit on a High
Later in the day, Nadella visited the Samhall innovation Days, a hackathon with the aim of “creating the conditions for people with a diagnosis within the autism spectrum to come into operation”, in the company’s press release.
Last summer, Microsoft announced two data centers in Norway to take their cloud computing services to entire Europe.
“By building new data center regions in Norway, we facilitate growth, innovation and digital transformation of Norwegian businesses – whether large companies, the public sector or some of the 200,000 small and medium-sized companies that together create the future of Norway,” said CEO Kimberly Lein-Mathisen in Microsoft Norway when the Norwegian plans became known.
Nadella declared that both the data centers will run on 100% renewable energy, so this project is in the welfare of the country, creating an ocean of newer opportunities for the locals. He also talked about his company’s association with the tech companies/communities in Sweden; one is the Kiruna city and other being the Sandvik Company.
The address at the China Theater in Stockholm by Microsoft’s top boss, Satya Nadella was like a pep talk. He gave his viewpoint on a variety of technology aspect. Most importantly, he announced the company’s program of building two data centers in this Nordic country.
Finally the day is here, and it is time for another InnoTown in my beautiful hometown Ålesund. Ålesund’s Art Nouveau architecture is known far and wide. The myriad of turrets, spires and beautiful ornamentation are like something from a fairytale.
The InnoTown Conference, arranged over two decades has brought speakers that have skilfully entertained the audiences with their unique stories. Their talks contain a rich blend of deeply motivational personal journeys and exceptionally practical business cases. They leave us energized and confident to capitalise on new ideas beyond the tried and tested. Ålesund is also the centre of one of the most innovative and dynamic regions in Norway, with a long history of groundbreaking innovation.
Photo: InnoTown
This year Monica Parker moderated and narrated the event. Monica is an ex-homicide investigator, organisational behaviorist, speaker, author, workplace nerd, status quo challenger and founder of HATCH Analytics guiding businesses through change.
Photo: InnoTown
Monica has fifteen years experience in understanding the influence of environment and processes on human behavior. Monica specializes in an evidence-based approach to change, using social scientific methods of data collection grounded in a pragmatic and commercial foundation.
“I have always been interested in human behaviour, my background as a homicide investigator in the U.S. gave me an analytical mind and a broad understanding of behavioral psychology.”
What is Creativity?
Fredrik Haren talks on creativity, innovation and idea generation – and on how to develop a global mindset and build a truly global company. His speeches help the audience understand how valuable it is to think in new ways and how difficult this is to achieve. He also speaks on business creativity and human innovation, on embracing disruption and change, and about the importance of having a global, human mindset. Fun fact about Fredrik is that he owns three private islands and he invited the InnoTown audience to join him there 😎
Creativity is the act of turning new and imaginative ideas into reality. Creativity is characterized by the ability to perceive the world in new ways, to find hidden patterns, to make connections between seemingly unrelated phenomena, and to generate solutions. Creativity involves two processes: thinking, then producing. Creativity is a combination force, it’s our ability to tap into our ‘inner’ pool of resources, knowledge, insight, information, inspiration and all the fragments populating our minds that we have accumulated over the years just by being present and alive and awake to the world and to combine them in extraordinary new ways.
Photo: InnoTown
Talking more on creativity, Fredrik spoke about how great nations have been able to remain relevant with amazing ideas. Over the years, USA have come up with grand and great ideas and creative innovations such as Tesla, SpaceX, Microsoft, Apple.
For Japan, creative small incremental changes have been key. All of these incremental changes add up, and make a significant positive impact on organizations. One approach to continuous incremental improvement in japan is called kaizen. In business, kaizen refers to activities that continuously improve all functions and involve all employees from the CEO to the assembly line workers.
China economy find it’s niche in mass manufacturing, and this lead to huge market of copying in Chinese economy. China, copy and copy right has led to a lot of good products and huge revenues for China.
Mongolia nomadic mindset has been very important for the development of such a small nation. The Mongolian people belong to one of the oldest nomadic cultures in the world and still highly regarded as a major part of the fabric which is Mongolia and commercial success of Mongolia. They move to where the business is.
Iceland is probably the most improved nation in Europe this century, and they have gone about this by simply getting out and getting inspired in all facet.
Philippines creativity became widely known in 2010 when inmates in Cebu prison were recorded dancing to Michael Jackson’s thriller. The dance performance took place in a prison on the Filipino island of Cebu and the purpose was to showcase the island’s proud dance tradition
The value of travel, let go of parts of your identity and embrace other cultures and mindsets. That way you might become a fountain of ideas.
He concluded by saying in order to put in the hard work to acquire a skill, you need to believe that the activity really is a skill you can learn. When you believe the activity is a talent then you don’t bother to work hard at it, because you attribute any limitations in your performance to your lack of talent.
Sustainable Energy
What are the structural changes that are needed in the financial industry to align the business models with the Paris Climate Agreement and United Nation Sustainability Goals? Sustainability has become the fundamental to resilient business. It is about trust and the ability to provide long term value creation. Sustainable energy is a form of energy that meet our today’s demand of energy without putting them in danger of getting expired or depleted and can be used over and over again. Sustainable energy should be widely encouraged as it do not cause any harm to the environment and is available widely free of cost.
This energy is replenishable and helps us to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and causes no damage to the environment. If we are going to use fossil fuels at a steady rate, they will expire soon and cause adverse affect to our planet
Thina Margrethe Saltvedt is a senior advisor Sustainable Finance at Nordea Bank. Before joining the Sustainable Finance group in January 2018, she worked as a chief analyst macro/oil for 10 years. Thina is a member of the Minister of Climate and Environment’s Climate Council.
Sustainable development gained traction after the Brundtland commission definition statement, created on behalf of the United Nations in 1983 to reflect about ways to save the human environment and natural resources and prevent deterioration of economic and social development: “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
Also the Norwegian Pension Fund focuses on a sustainable investment profile and how they seek to reduce financial risks associated with the environmental and social practices of companies in their portfolio.
Thina spoke about how Sustainable energy management is a key issue for companies today. She said long-term strategic thinkers and energy entrepreneurs must be closely involved in these practices. They must play an important role in helping their organizations make more sustainable energy choices. Energy entrepreneurs must support energy consumption reduction efforts with their in-depth knowledge of energy costs. And they help steer management towards the right decisions for using renewable energy. She reiterated that sustainability is a business approach to creating long-term value by taking into consideration how a given organization operates in the ecological, social and economic environment. Sustainability is built on the assumption that developing such strategies foster company longevity.
As the expectations on corporate responsibility increase, and as transparency becomes more prevalent, companies are recognizing the need to act on sustainability. Professional communications and good intentions are no longer enough. Also, investors today avoid taking on climate risks. Making short term decisions in the wrong direction might involve costs and risk for the investment.
A Missed Opportunity for the Maritime Community
The super yacht Industry! How did this Norewgian-born end up designing custom motor yachts for an international clientele? What is the super yacht market like and what does this mean to Norway?
Espen Oeino first involvement in yacht design is the popular ECCO yacht, and he hasn’t looked back since then.
Photo: Staale Wattø / InnoTown
For over twenty years Espen Oeino has been hard at work. The world recognized designer, founded his technical and design office specializing in yacht design, naval architecture and engineering related disciplines in Monaco. With a multicultural and multi disciplined staff of 20, based in the yachting capital of Monaco, the studio has left a significant imprint on the new build market and is today considered one of the world’s leading design studios for large bespoke motor yachts.
Espen Oeino talked on the world of interior superyacht design and how it has been largely dominated by a small specialized group of yacht stylists, interior designers and architects. He also gave opinions on the mindset of the yacht designers.
Espen Oeino also gave an honest opinion on yacht designers offering both exterior and interior design, explaining that some clients prefer to entrust their yacht’s interior to a different designer.
Initially, your designer of choice will want to find out your ambitions for the yacht where you’ll sail, who with, and what you plan to do aboard. This information will inform their designs, and these discussions will often involve reference boats other yachts you have admired, and showcase vessels you have seen at boat shows around the world, or in the designer’s portfolio. For constructing each Superyacht up to 1.000 people can be employed for up to four years.
Finally, he gave an insight to how yachts are constructed explaining that no yachts are built from A-Z in the Nordics, even if the competence is there.
The Generation Gap
For the first time in history we have four different generations competing in the workplace and marketplace, all with separate ways of working, communicating and expectations of these relationships. Forget the outdated emphasis on Millennials, the biggest challenge facing business now is how to manage and maintain a multi-generational and diverse workforce and consumer-base. The Generation Gap is becoming an increasingly difficult issue for business. It is a difference of opinions between one generation and another regarding beliefs, politics, or values. In today’s usage, generation gap often refers to a perceived gap between younger people and their parents or grandparents.
Dr. Paul Redmond specializes in ‘Generational Intelligence’, helping companies and services navigate the complex generational developments within politics, society and the workplace.
Paul educates companies on long-term generational trends on how business can adapt, not only for Millennials and Gen Z’s needs, but crucially across the generations. His aim is to smash some of the misconceptions and generalisations that come with speaking about the generations.
Dr. Paul Redmond talked on how Generation Gap is Caused by Collectivism and Individualism: Whether in non-western countries or westerns countries, when there are changes in politics and societies, families and individuals are affected greatly. In many non-western countries such as China, Japan and Korea, collectivism is considered as one of the most significant values in the cultures, whereas in western countries such as the United states, individualism is emphasized. However, from the middle of 19th century, a great number of Asian people immigrate to the United States.
He mentioned how the generation gap is growing for each generation, and every generation has its own approach to life and work. At the risk of stating the obvious, the interactions between generations have profound effects on families and their businesses. Today, Boomers are mostly in charge and getting hit with the new wave of change brought in by the Millennial generation, born between 1982 and 2004.
Change and how to Embrace it..
Monica Parker, the moderator, comes back to talk about change and how it can positively impact lives. Change is a big part of being successful. Not only is change good, but it’s accelerating at an increasingly rapid pace.This means that you need to keep adapting. It’s both a survival skill and a success skill
Monica Parker the moderator talked about change and how it never stands still in real life. It’s not like the movies where characters can freeze-frame and the writer takes the viewer on some tangential story. In real life, change happens constantly. You can fight it or welcome it. It’s your choice. Change will occur regardless.
Monica explained how all companies are tech companies today in the age of IoT. The total installed base of IoT connected devices is projected to amount to 75.44 billion worldwide by 2025, a fivefold increase in ten years.
She told the story of how China uses AI to monitor people and India use AI to reunite orphans with their family, and in 2018, the Chinese government has installed close to 200 million surveillance cameras across the country, which amounts to approximately 1 camera per 7 citizens.
Monica also gave an insight on how change is going to affect employment rate, explaining how Kids growing up today will have 17 jobs in 5 different industries according to a research from McKindle.
She rounded up by explaining how the decisions to vote Trump and Brexit is a backlash for globalization.
What are you Great at?
René Carayol is back and this time he shares the magic and simplicity of the SPIKE philosophy. Spike is the product of some 30 years of supporting the growth and development of individuals and businesses of all shapes and sizes. The vital and essential ingredient of the Spike methodology is that absolutely everyone has at least one inherent strength.Sometimes, it’s hard to see these things in ourselves. Our natural abilities/talents/gifts come so naturally to us that we often don’t even notice them! We tend to assume that our gifts come just as naturally to everyone else, therefore, they aren’t special or unique, nor are they particularly useful. But that assumption isn’t accurate because we allhave multiple gifts and something to offer the world it’s just a matter of getting clear on what those things are so that we feel confident in sharing what we have to offer.
Rene gave his opinion on humanity. According to him, humanity is plural, not singular. We embrace the diversity of humanity and all it brings to innovation. Because the best way the world works is everybody in and nobody out.
Finally he spoke on the concept of “Challenge up, support down”. “Challenge up” is when people honestly disagree with ideas and policies that come from top management. Once final decisions are made, they “support down” by standing behind the decisions and making them work in the department and the community. This philosophy is important for greatness.
Carayol is one of the world’s leading business gurus specialising in leadership, culture and transformation, drawing from his own unique experiences on the boards of the biggest British and American organisations. He has had the privilege of working closely with some of the world’s prominent leaders; from former US President Bill Clinton to the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan, former US Secretary of State Colin Powell and Sir Richard Branson.
Read more about InnoTown here: InnoTown Read more about Ålesund here: Visit Norway
