How to Survive – And Thrive in a Hyper-connected World

Covid-19 didn’t change the way we live and work. It just speeded things up. What’s changing everything is the digital first default status of the world. But are we, and our businesses, ready for a hyper-connected world, where people, machines, devices and networks are increasingly linked?

A recent Bloomberg Opinion article suggested ‘We Must Start Planning For a Permanent Pandemic’. Essentially, the writer suggests that the coronavirus is mutating faster than we can develop effective vaccines, and we may never go back to ‘normal’. My first reaction? This can work.

Fact is, we already live in a highly-connected society. Fibre and 5G connectivity are booming across Africa. The World Bank aims to achieve universal affordable and good quality broadband access on the continent by the end of the decade, adding nearly 1.1 billion new users to the continent's network. And it’s not just people that are connected: our machines, devices, networks and apps talk to each other all the time. Welcome to the Internet of Everything.

Most of the businesses I speak to nowadays have made tremendous strides in changing the way they operate in the past 12 months. They’re more customer-focused, more resilient, and more effective. With nearly 15 months of experience of working from home, many have been contemplating fundamental changes to the way they, and their people, work forever. In our company, TransUnion, some of our people will never go to the office again – instead, permanently working from home, remotely as part of a hybrid operating model.

But here’s the thing. We’re not changing in response to a pandemic. The pandemic is speeding things along. What’s driving sustained change is the advent of 5G, advanced networking, and the spread of hyper-connectivity. And as much as we talk about the benefits of this increased digital maturity, and the ability of African businesses to provide ‘blended experiences’ that combine the digital and physical worlds, I’m not sure we realise the magnitude – and finality – of the new era we’re entering.

Are the machines coming for our jobs?

As far back as 2013, the Oxford Martin School at the University of Oxford published a ground-breaking paper, The Future of Employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation? The study suggested that as many as 47% of US jobs were at risk from automation over the course of the next two decades.

Let’s be crystal clear on this. That doesn’t mean half of all jobs in America – or Africa, for that matter – will be replaced by robots or machines by 2030. It simply won’t happen. But the point is that half of all jobs are theoretically automatable – and that’s something we as businesspeople need to be thinking about.

Whether we like it or not, certain jobs are going to cease to exist because of technology in the coming years. They have been for ages. Mid-skilled factory workers have been losing their jobs to robots for decades already. It’s not just data entry clerks and dishwashers, either: jobs like paralegals and even accountants could find increasing portions of their jobs automated.

The challenge is, what will they do instead? What are we doing to drive reskilling of our workforce? What are the new jobs we can train people for? We don’t need the answers immediately. But we will need them sooner rather than later, as they will affect our ability to operate as effective businesses in this brave new world.

So how do you enable a hyper-connected reality in a business? Here are four ways.

Find ways to start automating your business

Trying to pretend that things haven’t changed won’t work. Approach your business with a digital-as-default mindset. There are immense possibilities that technology and automation offer to put your customer at the centre of your business, break down the siloes within your organisation, and reinvent yourself for success in the coming decades.

Embrace the shared economy more than ever

‘Learn how to see. Realise that everything connects to everything else.’ Leonardo da Vinci had this right back in the late 1400s. More than 500 years later, this isn’t something we should still be battling with. There are opportunities for the sharing economy everywhere: start thinking about how you could capitalise on your assets and spare capacity, and find new revenue streams.

‘Reboard’ your employees

If you haven’t already, prepare your people for life in a new world of work. Reimagine the employee experience, from how you on-board new starters to how you help existing employees meet the unique challenges of working from home. Ask yourself: how do you create culture and performance in hybrid models, where you haven’t seen your colleagues for 15 months or longer?

Lego-fy yourself

In this hyper-connected world, we’re increasingly being asked to do business wherever someone has a browser. That’s why I talk about the importance of a composable digital enterprise, that allows businesses to be able to set up operations like Lego sets according to where and what they’re needed for. We’re not talking siloes: we’re talking mini-operations that use automation, micro-services, APIs, and the cloud. This way, businesses can pivot beyond their core competencies and traditional marketplaces to thrive in this new world.

There’s no doubt that hyper-connectivity comes with huge challenges – but it also brings with it transformative opportunities. It’s up to us to not squander this potential.

What plans do you have in place to help your business thrive in an age of hyper-connectivity? What are the biggest challenges you’re facing? What opportunities do you see?