Keynote presentation slides, for the 'Time for a Change' conference, Haywards Heath, September 2015

1. Steve Hearsum @stevehearsum
May 2015
ARE YOU DIGITALLY DELUDED?

3. What I am going to talk about
1. Digital
2. Social & historical context
3. Implications for leadership (and organisations)
 Think about

5. What is the most important aspect of creating and
developing the Digital DNA of your organisation;
is it knowledge of the customer experience path or is it
stakeholder relationship management?
or perhaps you think that it is the technical coding
capabilities of the organisation or even knowledge of M2M
solutions.
Digital Leaders
Said Business School July 2015
‘Digital DNA’

6. Digital: definition
1. (Of signals or data) expressed as series of the digits 0
and 1, typically represented by values of a physical
quantity such as voltage or magnetic polarization.
Often contrasted with analogue.
2. Relating to, using, or storing data or information in the
form of digital signals: digital TV a digital recording
3. Involving or relating to the use of computer
technology: the digital revolution
Source: Oxford Dictionaries

7. Digital: definition
“Digital is not a technology,
it’s the speed at which
things happen”
“Digital isn’t software, it’s mindset”

8. OD Network Europe
Workshop
Participant, May 2015

9. Leading in a Digital
Age Programme, July
2015

10. Clients often start with the question: what is digital? And it
always depends on who is asking.
A better question is: what are the consequences of digital?
What do we have to do differently?
What do you understand
by ‘digital’?
Richard Gold, Associate Director at Transform

11. Management Agenda 2015
 61% of respondents agreed that “digital technologies
and social media are changing the way I do things in
my organisation”
 66% of respondents agreed that “my organisation
needs to recruit or develop new leadership capabilities
to take advantage of digital technologies”
Management Agenda 2015
Authors: Dan Lucy, Meysam Poorkavoos and Julia Wellbelove

12. Technology is changing five times
faster than management
Mark Stevenson, Meaning 2014
McKinsey & Company

13. “Technology is accelerating five times
faster than management”
Mark Stevenson, Meaning 2014
McKinsey & Company

14. Acceleration or
amplification?

15. #ReutersReplyAllGate

16. It’s been ever thus…

17. Societal Trends
 Demographic
 Expertise
 Attention
 Democratic
From Emmanuel Gobillot’s
Leadershift: Reinventing Leadership for the Age of Mass Collaboration

18. Definition: delusion
An idiosyncratic belief or
impression maintained
despite being contradicted
by reality or rational
argument, typically as a
symptom of mental disorder
Source: Oxford Dictionaries

19. Digitally Deluded Leaders: Two Extremes
“All Hail Digital!”
 Pace (Fast)
 Omni-channel
 Customer / User at all costs
 Transformation programmes
 Flat / flexible structures
 Mixed teams
 Decision making (risk taking)
 Digital mindset
“Nothing’s changed, really”
 Same thing / way but faster
 Same channels
 Serve our needs first
 Change programmes
 Hierarchical / rigid structures
 Silos
 Decision making (risk
adverse)
 Analogue mindset

20. Shifts required
 Clarity to Simplicity
 Plans to Narratives
 Roles to Tasks
 Money to Love
 The Elvis Fallacy
From Emmanuel Gobillot’s
Leadershift: Reinventing Leadership for the Age of Mass Collaboration

21. Polarities
 Swift and mindful
 Individual and community
 Top-down and grassroots
 Details and big picture
 Flexible and steady
Pulley & Sessa (2002)

22. When hiring a CDO… we’ve found it’s the ability to lead
transformation across an organization that is the true
indicator of likely success in the role, and that requires a
combination of hard and soft skills. Hard skills include the
ability to articulate a strategic vision, the means to take on
problems by identifying root causes across functions and
making the tough decisions necessary to resolve them,
experience in “pure play” digital and larger company
transformations (typically in the consumer and technology
sectors), and the managerial ability to lead and see
programs through to fruition.
Transformer in chief: The new chief digital officer
McKinsey & Co, September 2015
Implications for leaders and leadership

23. The importance of soft skills should not be understated:
some CDOs estimate they spend 80 percent of their time
building relationships. In our experience, successful CDOs
have the patience to navigate the complex organizational
structures of large businesses; additionally, they collaborate
to get buy-in across functions and are able to diplomatically
challenge the status quo and solidify relationships with a
broad group of people.
Transformer in chief: The new chief digital officer
McKinsey & Co, September 2015
Crucuially

24. Learn to dance

25. Questions that matter
 What does digital mean to you, individually, collectively and
organisationally?
 What is the question you are answering?
 What do you want to be the Same & Different?
 How are you going to answer it, with whom?
 What behaviours, skills & competencies does your organisation
require more (or less) of?
 How do will you attend to the gap (technology & social
processes)?
 What is an appropriate pace?
 How will you maintain and attend to trust?

26. Questions

27. www.roffeypark.com
STEVE HEARSUM
Development Consultant
steve.hearsum@roffeypark.com
T : +44 (0)1293 854008
M: +44 (0)7917 130409
@stevehearsum
https://uk.linkedin.com/in/stevehearsum
http://www.linkedin.com/company/roffey-park-institute
MELISSA GREEN
Business Development Manager
melissa.green@roffeypark.com
T : +44 (0)1293 854055
M: +44 (0)7801 616281
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/melissa-green/6/74a/494
http://www.linkedin.com/company/roffey-park-institute