IQ | Accelerating Mayo's Digital Transformation

Over 30 years ago, Insigniam pioneered the field of organizational transformation. Today, executives in large, complex organizations use Insigniam’s consulting services to generate breakthroughs in their critical business results. Insigniam’s innovation consulting enables enterprises to identify and cross into new strategic frontiers to rapidly generate new income streams. Insigniam provides executives of the world’s largest companies with management consulting services and solutions that are unparalleled in their potency to quickly deliver on strategic imperatives and boost dramatic growth. Insigniam solutions include Enterprise Transformation, Strategy Innovation and Innovation Projects, Breakthrough Projects, Transformational Leadership and Managing Change. Offices are located in Philadelphia, Laguna Beach and Paris. For more information, please visit www.insigniam.com.

Leadership, and Managing Change. Offices are located in Philadelphia, Laguna Beach and Paris. For more information, please visit www.insigniam.com.

“JUST AS RIPPLES SPREAD OUT WHEN A SINGLE PEBBLE IS DROPPED INTO WATER, THE ACTIONS OF INDIVIDUALS CAN HAVE FAR-REACHING EFFECTS.”

—Dalai Lama

EDITOR IN CHIEF

Shideh Sedgh Bina sbina@insigniam.com

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Nathan Owen Rosenberg Sr. nrosenberg@insigniam.com

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Jeff Mullican jmullican@insigniam.com

MANAGING DIRECTOR OF INSIGNIAM QUARTERLY

Natalie Rahn nrahn@insigniam.com

PUBLISHER

Gordon Locke

GROUP CREATIVE DIRECTORS

Jaimey Easler, Britta Waller Melton

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Jonathan Ball

SENIOR EDITOR

Brian Cook

PHOTO PRODUCER

Tracy James

COPY EDITORS

Sarah Lindsay, Kitty Lowrance, Karen Sommerfeld, Annemarie Tankersley

PROJECT MANAGER

Melissa Bragg

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Samuel Greengard, Laura Quaglio, Scott Steinberg

IQ Insigniam Quarterly is a thought leadership publication committed to transforming the world of business by offering content relevant to the C-suite and their executive teams at large, complex global enterprises.

IQInsigniamQuarterlyis a production of Insigniam Holding LLC and is published by Pace Communications, Inc., 1301 Carolina St., Greensboro, NC 27401, 336-378-6065, www.paceco.com (Pace Communications® Pace®)

No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior written permission of the publisher and Insigniam. Printed in the U.S.A. For subscriptions, please visit quarterly.insigniam.com Insigniam distributes this editorial magazine to share the opinions and insights of companies and their leaders on impactful global business issues. The statements, opinions, and information contained in this publication are those of the individual authors and contributors, not of Insigniam or Pace Communications, Inc. Insigniam and Pace Communications, Inc. each disclaim any responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, topicality, or quality of any statements, opinions, or information provided. Any liability claims against an author or contributor in respect of damage to persons or property caused or alleged to be caused by the use of this publication, including any statements, opinions, or information which are incorrect or incomplete, are therefore excluded. IQInsigniamQuarterly’s inclusion of a company or individual does not indicate that they are a client of Insigniam. Remuneration is not provided for editorial coverage. Individuals appearing in IQInsigniamQuarterly have done so with direct consent, or provided consent by a designated authorized agent in addition to being informed of the magazine’s audience and purpose. Both INSIGNIAM QUARTERLY and IQ INSIGNIAM QUARTERLY are registered trademarks in the United States, the European Union, China including Hong Kong, and other countries.

Copyright © 2021 by Insigniam Holding LLC

RIPPLES IN A POND

Recently, I received an email from a colleague that stopped me in my tracks. Candidly, it wasn’t so much the nature of the email, but instead it was the quote below their signature line:

“Learn how to see; realize that everything connects to everything else.”

The quote, penned by Italian polymath Leonardo DaVinci, struck a chord because it encapsulated so many of recent conversations I’ve had with partners at our firm and with executives around the world: Never before has it been so critical for leaders and organizations to understand how our work transforms different ecosystems around the globe.

From climate and financial markets to governments, economies, and industries worldwide, the actions taken by a single entity have the power to create ripple effects across various ecosystems—and often in ways that aren’t immediately recognizable. While to some extent this is true of the information age as a whole, the extent to which ecosystems are being transformed in real time is unprecedented.

One such example can be found in our cover story, featuring the first chief digital officer at Mayo Clinic, Rita Khan. For those familiar, Mayo’s dyad leadership model is not only enabling the hallowed institution to embark on a digital transformation initiative of their own—which Ms. Khan is leading alongside dyad partner Dr. Brad Liebovich—but also the capacity their work stands to impact secondary and tertiary sectors far beyond operating rooms.

In this issue, we’ll identify organizations and executives around the world transforming ecosystems and what trickle-down impacts are reverberating around the world. Most importantly, our goal is to share applicable insights that can be leveraged to transform—and be transformed—in our dynamically changing world.

As always, I welcome your thoughts and hope you’ll join the conversation in all the ecosystems beyond our print magazine—from our social media platforms to virtual conferences in the coming months. Until then, my best as always. IQ

Shideh Sedgh Bina Founding Partner, Insigniam

COVER STORY RITA KHAN

How a Mayo Clinic executive accelerated digital transformation at one of the world’s premier medical institutions. And she’s not done yet.

By Shideh Bina

YOU SAY YOU WANT A TRANS-FOR-MA-TION?

Enterprises spend a ton of money and time on transformations that often don’t work. Why do we still bother?

By Insigniam®

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

According to the authors of True Diversity: Going Beyond the Pie Graph, the time to evolve our understanding of diversity and inclusion is now.

By Jon Ball

HINT, HINT

She quit her soda habit but didn’t stop there. A Q&A with beverage industry disrupter Kara Goldin.

CHINA LOOKS WEST—AGAIN

Its ultra-ambitious Belt and Road Initiative aims to modernize infrastructure in Asia and beyond. But be patient, because progress takes time (nearly 40 years).

By Samuel Greengard

COUPANG DELIVERS

How the ambitiously clever e-tailer—some consider it South Korea’s version of Amazon—leverages customer-centricity and guaranteed next-day delivery to unlock a serious competitive advantage.

By Samuel Greengard

CRYPTOMANIA

Privacy, speed and resistance to outside compromise are helping popularize cryptocurrency. If you don’t know Bitcoin from Binance, this beginner’s guide is for you.

By Insigniam®

“At the very top levels, a company’s executives and leaders need to understand the concept that diversity and inclusion is a strategic business decision, which requires more than enrollment. It requires real conviction.”

—True Diversity co-author Nathan Hale Williams

Companies can move the needle on D&I by leveraging a new approach that goes beyond the balance sheet. Page 44

04 THE TICKER

Space cowboys; AI meets consumer lending; hybrid work arrangements.

10 NUMBERS

High-tech hijacking: Ransomware remains a growing cyberthreat.

12 BROWSER HISTORY

What it takes to shake up entire industries. Three who’ve done it.

14 HEAT MAP

Legacy automakers find a new road to profits: electric vehicles.

16 BLOOD, SWEAT & TEARS

A Medtronic executive delivers game-changing medical robotics.

20 FROM THE BOARDROOM

The future of people planning: How your board can help smooth the way

24 CEO MASTER CLASS

Lessons learned from former execs.

DEPARTMENTS INSIGHTS

BACK COVER IQ BOOST

SOFT SELL: Your customer is a marshmallow.

Rita Khan of the Mayo Clinic.

Photography by Matthew C. Meyer.

Exobase 700-1000 km Kármán Line 100km Ozone Layer 20-30km

THE TICKER

700-190,000 km

THERMOSPHERE 80-700 km

MESOSPHERE 50-80 km

STRATOSPHERE 12-50 km

TROPOSPHERE 10 km

Some experts consider this to be the actual “final frontier” of Earth’s gaseous envelope. The province of: satellites constantly in orbit.

This is where high-energy X-rays and UV radiation from the sun are absorbed, intermittently raising its temperature thousands of degrees. The province of: spacecraft.

Meteors burn up here. Also home to the coldest temperature in Earth’s atmosphere (about -130° F).

The province of: meteors

The infamous ozone layer is found here. The province of: commercial aircraft, weather/ research balloons.

EARTH 4 IQ INSIGNIAM QUARTERLY | Fall 2021 INSIGNIAM QUARTERLY COPYRIGHT © INSIGNIAM HOLDING LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. CONFIDENTIAL FALL 2021 AND PROPRIETARY. MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED IN ANY FORM, BY ELECTRONIC OR PRINT OR ANY OTHER MEANS, WITHOUT THE EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION OF INSIGNIAM. VISIT WWW.INSIGNIAM.COM FOR CONTACTS.

FIND YOUR OWN PRIVATE SPACE

Companies selling exploration and tourism are powering a host of business opportunities and futuristic innovations.

After publicly stalling out due to cost concerns dating back 10 years, America’s space race is heating up again. Only instead of NASA, it’s being spearheaded by three billionaire investors/entrepreneurs and the companies that mirror their otherworldly ambitions: Richard Branson (Virgin Galactic), Elon Musk (SpaceX) and Jeff Bezos (Blue Origin).

Expected to be a $1.4 trillion market by 2030, according to analysts at Bank of America, private space exploration and tourism are ushering in a host of innovations beyond traditional aerospace and defense realms. Here’s a brief look at the field’s front-runners.

Virgin Galactic

On July 11—just 17 years after announcing the company—Mr. Branson, founder of Virgin Group, took his inaugural trip 53 miles above the Earth’s surface in Virgin Galactic’s suborbital, rocket-powered space plane VSS Unity. Capable of holding six passengers and two pilots, the craft isn’t likely to be earthbound for very long; the company has already sold some 600 tickets for flights costing $200,000 to $250,000. As of early August, more tickets were available—starting at $450,000 each.

The first of the billionaire space company founders to reach the edge of space (depending on the definition), Mr. Branson did so thanks to myriad scientific and business innovations made by his firm, including a new high-speed aircraft design that leverages modular technology to improve flight rate and maintenance access. “Welcome to the dawn of a new space age,” he remarked during a post-launch news conference.

Unlike traditional crewed rockets, which launch from ground-based locales, Virgin’s lift off from bigger planes that drop them off in midair. It’s a highly efficient technique that consumes less fuel and reduces the need for custom launch pad infrastructure. Passengers, who can enjoy three to five minutes of weightlessness, will soon include scientists who can run experiments midflight, as opposed to mainly using traditional unmanned suborbital spacecraft. >>>

GREAT ATMOSPHERE Captured by onboard cameras during Virgin Galactic’s July 2021 flight, Sirisha Bandla — one of three employees to join boss Richard Branson — gazes back at Earth from the edge of space.

THE TICKER

EDITOR’S NOTE:

In early September, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration grounded Virgin Galactic’s rocket plane pending an investigation into whether it deviated from its clearance for landing in the New Mexico desert. The FAA said the company’s space operations are on hold until it’s determined that the wayward flight path did not affect public safety. According to a Reuters report, Virgin Galactic said it was “addressing the causes of the issue and determining how to prevent this from occurring on future missions.”

SpaceX

Tesla founder Elon Musk’s SpaceX is an all-purpose space technology firm that designs and manufactures myriad cutting-edge rockets and spacecraft. Its Dragon capsule has already proved it can cost-efficiently carry crew and cargo to the International Space Station. The company’s large-scale Starship rocket and spacecraft system is also designed to carry massive payloads into orbit and—thanks to NASA’s support—is expected soon to land the first astronauts on the moon since the Apollo program.

Not yet 20 years old, SpaceX is also focused on introducing more dependable equipment at a fraction of standard production and operating costs. Other innovations include the Falcon 9, a reusable two-stage rocket for repeatedly transporting people and equipment into space; Falcon Heavy, the world’s most powerful rocket today; and Starlink, a broadband internet service powered by thousands of satellites that has the potential to bring high-speed connectivity to remote and rural areas around the globe.

Ever the savvy businessman, Mr. Musk also sees space as a marketing opportunity unlike any other, with plans to develop high-flying billboards that feature ads, art and logos. SpaceX will reportedly partner with Canada-based Geometric Energy Corp. to send a square satellite into space by early 2022. While the messages won’t be visible from terra firma, the outside of the satellite will have a sort of selfie stick so it can film the display screen and then livestream it to digital outlets back on earth.

Blue Origin

The brainchild of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin emerged in 2000 with the mission of expanding humanity’s reach into space, fueling interstellar exploration, and powering the search for new material and energy resources. It hopes to do so by delivering low-cost, fully or partly reusable orbital launch vehicles for businesses and individuals alike.

Unlike Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin makes spacecraft that are able to cross the Kármán line—the measurement 62 miles above sea level that most countries consider to be the boundary of outer space. (The U.S. uses 50 miles as a benchmark instead.) The company’s mantra is “Launch, Land, Repeat,” a testimonial to its commitment to drastically lower expenses associated with space travel, and to the built-in proprietary vertical takeoff and landing technology that allows used vehicles to be quickly refurbished and once again take flight. Note that Blue Origin is also experimenting with oversized lunar landers designed to ferry astronauts and equipment affordably to and from the moon. IQ —Bob

Peterson

ABOVE, COURTESY VIRGIN GALACTIC; RIGHT AND FAR RIGHT, COURTESY BLUE ORIGIN

Beyond The Views: The Business and Innovation Side of the Space Race

The privatization of space travel points to companies’ growing desire to more cost-efficiently use resources and pioneer new markets by democratizing access to resources and equipment. Each of the big three players has sought to tap into a mix of proprietary and community knowledge bases, leverage new high-tech and engineering advancements to lower overhead and operating costs, and boost the accessibility of space travel. Likewise, all have looked to raise public awareness and extend potential revenue streams by finding new business applications for their proprietary solutions at every turn.

Virgin Galactic is publicly traded, Blue Origin and SpaceX are not. However, more than 10,000 companies (42% of which are American), worth upward of $4 trillion, are pioneering space-based business solutions. Many of these firms—which are looking to tap into many fields, like telecom, tourism, artificial intelligence and robotics—are investor-friendly startups helping to further capitalize or expand upon the innovations that the big three players are ushering in. Key areas of growth for space-based business are expected to include navigation and mapping, satellite communications, cloud-based applications, manufacturing, and health care/medicine.

It’s not yet known whether billionaire-funded commercial spaceflight firms will successfully deliver on their aim to democratize space travel, or such trips will remain a prohibitively pricey luxury for most aspiring voyagers. Regardless of whether casual flights into space and stargazing business or research contracts become more commonplace, it’s clear that this nascent field has a promising future.

SPACE COWBOYS

Top: Some 53 miles above the Earth’s surface, Mr. Branson enjoys a bit of air time aboard his rocket-powered space plane VSS Unity Left (from left): Astronaut Oliver Daeman, Jeff Bezos, brother Mark Bezos and astronaut Wally Funk celebrate a safe landing last July in the West Texas desert. Below: Members of the nonprofit Club for the Future, which Mr. Bezos launched to encourage students to pursue careers in STEM.

The Future of Work: Your Next Loan Officer Could Be a Bot

espite ongoing business disruptions stemming from the pandemic, global investment in artificial intelligence (AI) technology grew to nearly $68 billion in 2020, a whopping 40% year-over-year increase, according to Stanford University’s 2021 AI Index Report. One area seeing the rise of AI and its growing role in helping a new wave of startups disrupt the status quo: consumer lending.

Traditionally, consumer lenders have calculated factors such as credit score, income and debt ratio when weighing applicants. Tomorrow’s lenders are now leveraging AI technology to upend traditional lending norms. The appropriately named Upstart—one of the first to apply AI to the credit industry—uses nontraditional variables such as work experience and educational history to rate prospective borrowers. By applying the power of data science and machine learning to analyze hundreds of nontraditional data points, companies are increasingly offloading timeconsuming tasks to automated processes, which in turn use data to unlock better decision-making.

“AI’s real strength lies in its keen ability to detect patterns and reveal new connections that make it possible to predict behavior,” says Oren Etzioni, CEO of the Allen Institute for AI. As Mr. Etzioni notes, these patterns can help tomorrow’s tech-savvy lenders reduce risk, outperform competitors and translate a shockingly wide range of insights into actionable business intelligence.

AI is “poised to transform virtually every sector of the economy, and that will be especially true of the financial industry,” says Martin Ford, author of RuleoftheRobots: HowArtificialIntelligenceWillTransformEverything “AI will increasingly be used in areas like processing loan applications, and it will do this with improved accuracy and speed [and] lower overhead costs.”

As noted in HarvardBusinessReview , AI even offers an alternative to traditional underwriting models that can make the consumer lending process fairer and more accurate. By using AI-based modeling to provide more insightful predictions, firms such as Upstart and the U.K.’s Fintern effectively aim to skirt traditional credit scoring criteria by creating their own applicant rating scorecard based on alternative variables.

Encouraged by the popularity of these ventures, artificially intelligent lending platforms such as Tavant’s Velox, Experian’s Ascend Intelligence Services and Zest AI are also now vying to disrupt the market.

Tellingly, investors are watching with interest. In the first six months after going public in December 2020, Upstart’s value jumped sixfold, peaking at upward of $12 billion. Yet some industry observers remain skeptical, with the European Union proposing a rule that would impose data-quality, testing and oversight requirements on AI providers.

Wherever you stand on the idea of machines making more lending-related decisions, it’s difficult to argue with the progress that AI-based players in the industry have been making. IQ

AI has a growing role in helping a new wave of startups disrupt the status quo in consumer lending.

Consumer lenders are adopting AI platforms to outperform the competition.

The Next Hybrid Revolution

Remote or in-office? The pandemic has forced businesses to be more flexible with employees’ work environments. Still, concerns about productivity and collaboration persist.

The typical daily commute to work in an office may soon be as outdated as the fax machine. As office workers have become used to doing their jobs from home, many prefer it. According to a Harvard Business School online survey, 81% of workers either don’t want to return to the office or prefer a hybrid arrangement. On the other hand, some surveys show that nearly 70% of companies want workers back in person, full time, according to the American Psychological Association.

“In this time in history, employees have the power,” Tsedal Neeley said during an American Psychological Association podcast about the future of remote and hybrid work. Ms. Neeley, professor of business administration at the Harvard Business School, spoke about her book RemoteWorkRevolution:Succeeding

FromAnywhere

One survey reported by Human Resource Executive magazine even revealed that employees from top companies like Google and Amazon would forfeit a $30K raise for a permanent remote work option. A possible compromise: the hybrid work model.

A hybrid—or distributed—model offers options for working outside the 9 to 5 setting, offering work-life flexibility. The Society for Human Resource Management says a hybrid model will likely become the norm. As employers grapple with determining just how many days employees should spend in the office, they must balance differing preferences with a desire for continued productivity and collaboration, according to

the Center for Creative Leadership. Here’s what Ms. Neeley says about some of those concerns.

• Productivity Thirty years of research shows that productivity actually grows with remote work. Companies such as Cisco and Sun Microsystems experimenting with remote arrangements as far back as the 1990s found significant increases in employees’ accomplishing work tasks. “We need to focus on outcomes after we equip people,” says Ms. Neeley. “So it’s not about [rear ends] in seats; it’s about outcomes, team cohesion and helping equip people to get there.”

• Collaboration and Culture Culture is defined as the shared norms, attitudes and behaviors companies uphold to get work done. It also includes mentoring, collaboration and team building. Ms. Neeley says company leaders must ask themselves: How do we now take our changed individual needs and preferences and re-create and revise cultures that meet the moment?

• Opportunities The reason productivity jumps with remote work is that people can enjoy more work-life flexibility, says Ms. Neeley. Before, people wanted worklife balance, which often seemed unattainable. Then the catchphrase became work-life trade-offs, where workers may win in some areas but lose in others.

“Today, we can talk about work-life flexibility by incorporating some remote work in people’s professional arrangements,” explains Ms. Neeley. “Remote/hybrid work can be extremely effective as long as we set the right framework, equip people and move forward with courage.” IQ Ashley

Tappan

It’s not about [rear ends] in seats; it’s about outcomes, team cohesion and helping equip people to get there.

HIGH-TECH HIJACKING

Stop! Don’t click that e-mail link until you’re sure it’s legit, otherwise you may inadvertently infect your computer, phone or other device with ransomware: a pernicious form of malware (malicious software) that restricts access to your digital resources. A favorite tool of high-tech hijackers, ransomware is capable of holding a computer system or network hostage until payment is made. Attacks can be crippling and they are on the rise—expected to cost organizations $20 billion worldwide this year. Individual consumers can also feel the sting as revealed by the ransomware incident last May that hobbled the Colonial Pipeline along the East Coast of the U.S., impacting millions of gas-seeking motorists. More than half of companies affected by these attacks say their brand has suffered significantly, with 66% of respondents claiming major revenue loss and 25% saying that their business had to temporarily shut down. While nearly three-quarters of firms say they have a plan to manage these events, many still remain highly concerned about the risk. And who could blame them?

IQ —Scott Steinberg

Primary statistical source: cybereason.com/hubfs/dam/collateral/ebooks/Cybereason_ Ransomware_Research_2021.pdf; unless otherwise stated, all figures are global.

Ransomware remains a growing cyberthreat.

BUSINESS EXPENSE

Ransomware attacks are not always reported, so the numbers could be much worse than what can actually be confirmed. In the U.S. alone last year, total business losses due to ransomware jumped 225% over the year before.

TOTAL COST OF DAMAGE ransomware is expected to inflict on businesses by the end of 2021—57 times more than in 2015.

OF ORGANIZATIONS are highly or very concerned about the risk of ransomware attacks.

Typical amount of downtime that companies experience due to a ransomware attack.

PERCENTAGE BY WHICH ransomware attacks have increased year over year in the first half of 2021 alone.

ONE OF THE LARGEST known ransomware demands paid to hackers by a company to date.

Estimated frequency of ransomware attacks hitting organizations in 2021.

OF BUSINESSES have suffered significant revenue loss due to ransomware.

Average remediation costs for an enterprise that sustains a ransomware attack in 2021.

PERCENTAGE OF ORGANIZATIONS that paid a ransomware demand that have suffered another attack.

THE TRANSFORMERS

A look from the inside at what it takes to shake up entire industries .

Overcoming Doubts & Doubters

by Kara Goldin HarperCollins Leadership

October 2020

A popular brand strategy these days is to tell a story. Kara Goldin has one that’s hard to top: “I hand-delivered the first cases to the local Whole Foods on my way to give birth to my fourth child, Justin.” And Ms. Goldin, founder and CEO of Hint Inc., has more where that came from. She created a product, originally just for herself, in her kitchen. She took on Big Carbonated Beverage. Now she leads a $150M business. She’s an active speaker, lavished with awards, and her podcast is Unstoppable.

The Exponential Age: How Accelerating Technology is Transforming Business, Politics and Society

by Azeem Azhar

Diversion

Books

September 2021

Want to brush up on your analytic geometry? No? A better idea would be moving past linear thinking to the networked curves Azeem Azhar illuminates in The Exponential Age. He’s talking about the age we live in, and the need to get past fretting over our Wi-Fi to see that not only are changes in technology moving fast but the rate of change is increasing. Mind the gap: The gap between us and crucial technologies (including AI) is widening, and those who don’t adapt will be left in the dust. That goes for companies and for nations. With 25 years in the business as a founder and an analyst, Mr. Azhar has some thoughts on vital connections of tech, societies and economies, and how to manage in this new age.

Ghosn and the Culture Wars That Upended an Auto Empire

by Hans Greimel and William Sposato

Harvard Business Review

June 2021

Intrigue. Mystery. International business deals. A man called “Le Cost Killer.” And, of course, spectacular collisions—of cultures, governments, personalities and more—in slow motion. No wonder Collision Course is 335 pages long. Its two authors, both experienced Tokyobased journalists, map with remarkable clarity the tenuous alliance of Nissan and Renault, and later Mitsubishi; how one man (temporarily) made it work; and how everything fell apart. They even interviewed the international fugitive himself: Carlos Ghosn, once applauded for his brilliance, then arrested for alleged financial misconduct. Beyond one CEO’s sensational rise and fall, a reader can ponder the difficulties to be faced when disparate global forces are brought together. Meanwhile, one takeaway: Don’t try to evade airport security disguised as a box of audio gear. It’s been done. IQ

“Don’t be in a rush. If you truly believe that you have an idea that is unique and/or disruptive, time is on your side. Put what time you have into the idea and don’t be too hard on yourself for it taking longer than you had anticipated.”

Kara Goldin Founder and CEO Hint Inc.

TAKE A HINT

What led

Kara Goldin to

create a flavored sparkling water with no sugar or sweeteners?

She

was drinking way too many diet sodas.

RECHARGING THE ELECTRIC VEHICLE RACE

As

to abandon gas guzzlers heats up, legacy automakers are finding a new road to profits.

Coming late to the party isn’t such a bad thing if you arrive in an electric vehicle.

Amped Up: Legacy auto makers must retrofit plants and redesign popular models to be allelectric ASAP.

Being a startup in the world of automakers may make it easier to jump on the EV bandwagon. Legacy companies must retrofit plants (General Motors and Ford), redesign popular models (Ferrari, Toyota, Volkswagen, Kia, Mazda, Subaru), and/or completely reinvent their platform to be all-electric ASAP (Jaguar, Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Lamborghini). Startups, on the other hand, have been growing up alongside the climate awareness that was accelerated by the pandemic. As such, these companies aren’t reinventing the wheel so much as pairing it with the latest eco-friendly technology. They can focus on the try-fail-move-forward-faster approach that drives innovation. Cases in point: Canoo, Fisker, Foxconn, Lucid and Rivian are either planning to build, already building or adding to their fairly new plants.

THE BIG NUMBERS

The Road Ahead Number of EVs expected to be on the road by 2050 (Source: Wood Mackenzie Energy Research & Consultancy)

Special Delivery Number of electric vans that Amazon has ordered for delivery from Rivian by 2024

Furthermore, recent comers have no C-suite heartstrings (or purse strings) invested in petroleum-fueled products: Their “baby” has always been electric, so no need to “sell” shareholders or one another on making a change. Plus, their reasonable IPO prices are attracting savvy investors. Tesla stock has been dubbed overvalued, and lists of “cheap” EV stocks are being offered. For now, the more established all-EV makers are leading the way in sales over mature brands: Of the top 10 bestselling electric vehicles for the first seven months of 2021, four are made by Tesla.

Is all of this to say that startups have the

WHO LEADS THE CHARGE IN MOVING TOWARD ELECTRIC MOBILITY?

+33% from 2019

The Power of Semantics

“When carmakers talk about electrified vehicles, they’re counting hybrids, plug-in hybrids, EVs and in some cases hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. And when a single model has several different electrified variants (for example, the Toyota Prius’s hybrid and plug-in models), carmakers will count each of those separately toward their electrification goals.”

Car and Driver (March 26, 2021)

Pick 6 (map): Top markets for sales of plug-in electrified passenger cars, 2020.

UNITED STATES

328,000

105,709 NORWAY +4% from 2019

the drive

advantage over legacies? Not by a long shot. As in any type of evolution, those who adapt will win the day and, as it turns out, maybe even save the whole darn planet.

Well-established companies have many things startups lack, including industry relationships, ample capital and huge R&D teams. Many carmakers are following the lead of Big Pharma, which partnered with frenemies in 2020 in pursuit of vaccines and therapeutics to fight the pandemic. Joining corporate forces against a global catastrophe is not only good business, it’s great PR. A Harris Poll showed that more people had a favorable

394,943 GERMANY UNITED KINGDOM

185,719 FRANCE

175,082

1,246,000 CHINA

opinion of drugmakers (62%, up from 32%) after their COVID-19 collaborations.

Earlier this year, Japan’s Honda—the world’s largest engine maker—announced a partnership with GM to build Honda EV crossovers (including one under Honda’s upscale Acura badge), with GM supplying its Ultium battery platform. Honda also shifted its former head of R&D, Toshihiro Mibe, into the role of CEO to accelerate the revolution. Other new dance partners include German Volkswagen AG and Ford, and the French PSA Group (aka Peugeot S.A.) and Italy’s Fiat Chrysler, which are now called Stellantis.

Representatives of Ford, GM and Stellantis—half of each of the three pairs— were literally standing behind President Biden in August as he stated the goal of having EVs compose at least 50% of U.S. car sales by 2030.

The world is rushing to install the charging stations needed to spark real consumer change. Meanwhile, GM is using gas-guzzler sales to fuel innovation. “When you look at our internal combustion business, we are in a place where we can be investing more in electric and autonomous vehicles,” GM’s Mary T. Barra, the industry’s first female CEO, told The New York Times. “We think we can grow as we make this transition.”

Tesla is taking a different route, offering free installation and maintenance of its Superchargers on commercial property as a lure for well-heeled consumers and a means of sparking proprietary plug-in sites.

Still, as scientists have long said, the time is now. As of July 2021, China was cornering the global supply chain for electric vehicles and their batteries, and the European Commission had announced an outright ban of the internal combustion engine by 2035. Automakers had best put the pedal to the metal if they hope to stay in the race. IQ

EXECUTIVE MINDSETS

A true idle threat: “At the national scale, idling in the United States consumes more than 6 billion gallons, adding up to more than $15 billion each year.”

Motor Trending: Japan’s Honda is partnering with American icon GM to build Honda EV crossovers.

A driving force: “

—Plug In America

Co-founder Chelsea Sexton

ISTOCK, ABOVE, PRAETORIANPHOTO; BELOW, AZATVALEEV

Panelist Patricia Weikersheimer at the 2020 Sustainable Fleet Technology Virtual Conference

Women popularized EVs in the first place, and are still playing key roles as both EV purchasers and leaders within the movement.”

WHAT HAS TO BE TRUE?

How

By Insigniam®

Noted French laureate Antoine de Saint-Exupéry was a seminal renaissance man: poet, aristocrat, journalist, pioneering aviator, and beloved author of The Little Prince—one of the best-selling and most translated books ever published.

Yet, for all this acclaim, few would ever associate Saint-Exupéry with the field of surgical robotics. Surprisingly then, his words

HELPING HANDS

one simple question enabled Medtronic’s Megan Rosengarten to deliver a game-changing surgical robot.

Surgical robotics play a minor role in procedures worldwide, yet they can offer greater precision, faster recovery and reduced pain.

serve as an endless source of inspiration for Megan Rosengarten, president of surgical robotics at Medtronic, a global medical technology leader with a $180B USD market cap in a field that didn’t exist 77 years ago when Saint-Exupéry disappeared while on a reconnaissance flight over the Mediterranean.

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather, teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea,” proclaimed Saint-Exupéry.

Although stirring, it’s this very quote that keeps Ms. Rosengarten up at night.

“I consider this often,” she says. “How do you inspire amazingly talented people toward a common goal—and generate enthusiasm for uncharted possibilities—while simultaneously creating an environment that affords them the freedom to determine the best tactics to achieve success?”

For Ms. Rosengarten, the answer also comes in the form of a question—one she

poses to her team before launching any largescale strategic initiative: In order to achieve our intended goal, what has to be true?

“It’s a simple question that doesn’t require people to give up or challenge their current thinking,” she says. “Instead, my goal is to shift focus toward identifying what is possible. For instance, what is the end result or desired state we’re hoping to achieve? By approaching strategic conversations from this perspective, people can hold onto their current beliefs while moving toward a state of imagination.”

Imagination and inventiveness were exactly what Medtronic needed most when Ms. Rosengarten was tapped to lead the company’s surgical robotics division as president.

At the time, two distinct market forces were at play: industry analysts were projecting good things for the soft-tissue surgical robotics market—worth roughly $5B USD today, it’s projected to triple by 2030. And, competitively speaking, there was blood in the water. >>>

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather, teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.”

—Saint-Exupéry Author “The Little Prince”

INSIGHT BLOOD, SWEAT AND TEARS

Tactile Opportunities

As an industry, surgical robotics account for just 3% of surgeries worldwide, yet they can offer greater precision, faster recovery and reduced pain for patients. However, since its debut in 1999, the field had been cornered by just one product: the da Vinci robot from U.S.–based Intuitive Surgical. New competitors quickly began clamoring for ways to capture part of a market that had been dominated by a single player for two decades.

The market opportunity was not lost on Medtronic either, which, as a global leader in surgery for nearly 60 years and a pioneer of minimally invasive surgery technology and training, began developing a surgical robot around 2012. In 2019 the company previewed its new flagship soft-tissue surgical robot during a corporate earnings call: the HugoTM Robotic-Assisted Surgery (RAS) system, a modular, multi-quadrant platform designed for a broad range of surgical procedures.

Hugo’s design brief focused on addressing what surgeons and hospital leaders worldwide resoundingly reported to Medtronic: cost and utilization are the biggest barriers to adoption and expansion of RAS. Medtronic’s robot combines the precision of wristed instruments with the flexibility of independent robotic arm carts and best-in-class 3D visualization technology on an open console. Also, the system is compatible with Medtronic’s Touch SurgeryTM Enterprise software, a cloud-based video capture solution—powered by artificial intelligence—that lets surgeons record, analyze and share Hugo case footage.

But, perhaps most importantly, it was Hugo’s “future proof” design and modularity that positioned it as an innovative gamechanger. “Traditionally, there have been physical barriers, as well as cost constraints, in surgical robotics,” says Ms. Rosengarten.

“Robotic-assisted surgery should be an option for every patient, no matter where they live. “By combining a modular system

FOLLOW THE LEADER

Ms. Rosengarten has been described as “an incredible leader who is able to challenge people to think differently.”

with components that can be used in robotics and traditional laparoscopic procedures, an ergonomic open console, an upgradeable platform that can evolve as technology advances, and Medtronic’s expertise in surgical instrumentation, we believe Hugo will provide flexibility that allows more hospitals and surgeons to leverage robotics.”

The Superconductor

In 2008, Ms. Rosengarten—a Duke alum with several years of experience as a product director in Johnson & Johnson’s consumer products division—joined Coviden, an IrishAmerican maker of healthcare products, to focus on driving minimally invasive surgery in the U.S. market. By 2013, she was vice president of global marketing and involved in launching an incubator project to develop a robotic-assisted surgery platform.

Medtronic acquired Coviden in 2015, and, after a stint as vice president of global marketing at Hologic, Ms. Rosengarten rejoined Medtronic in 2018 as vice president and general manager of surgical robotics.

By the time she was leading the robotics division, Hugo had gone from an idea to a full-fledged R&D program. Internally, teams faced challenges that slowed their ability to bring the project to market.

“When you have teams, programs and projects like ours that are highly technical, it can be easy to get deep into the weeds and test different hypotheses via a scientific approach,” says Ms. Rosengarten. “In many ways this can be beneficial, but from an operational standpoint, it risks paralysis by analysis.”

In order to align multiple stakeholders in several departments, Rosengarten had to create and communicate an inspiring vision for success across the enterprise, then work to engage scientists, researchers and product engineers in developing a new way forward.

“Megan excels at demanding results without being demanding,” says June Zeringue, an

Insigniam Partner who applauds Ms. Rosengarten’s human-centric leadership style. “She’s an incredible leader who can challenge people to think differently by unhooking from the past and embracing a new future.”

Emergent Behaviors

To catalyze potential breakthroughs and enhancements posed by Hugo, Ms. Rosengarten had to ensure teams didn’t lose sight of the goal. But it wasn’t timelines or the transformational nature of the work that was the biggest challenge. She realized teams had to release old mindsets that stifled progress in order to empower and trust themselves.

“It is easy—and human—to shut down when something goes wrong, or when there’s [great] uncertainty,” she says. “My approach was to move people into a more manageable mental state by relinquishing outdated concerns and identifying key building blocks for project success. Only then could we articulate our intended future state.”

In order to accelerate her team’s progress, Ms. Rosengarten never avoided hard conversations and focused energy to communicate a shared vision across the enterprise.“I often ask my teams, what’s stopping us from doing something today? Instead of having another meeting to explore the same conversation, if we can achieve a particular result now, let’s do it.” By aligning the organization on a common track, she can

balance vision and pragmatism, advising leaders to invest time to reveal limitations so you can move forward. Such advice, says June Zeringue,“captures elements needed to catalyze breakthrough results.”

Inspiring Results

In June, Medtronic announced the first patient procedure with Hugo: a robotic prostatectomy done by urological surgeon Dr. Ruben Olivares at Clínica Santa Maria in Santiago, Chile.

Less than a month later, UC Christus in Santiago, Chile, joined Medtronic’s Partners in Possibility Program, in which hospitals can be among the first to use the system in support of the Hugo system global patient registry. Soon after, Pacifica Salud Hospital in Panama City, Panama, used Hugo for both urological and gynecological procedures.

“With the Hugo RAS system, we are entering a new era of robotic-assisted surgery, improving how we deliver high-quality health care to our patients,” says Ignacio San Francisco, M.D., urological surgeon and specialist in minimally invasive uro-oncology surgery at Red de Salud UC Christus.

Endless Immensity

Leading such a project would be enough to hang a career on, but Ms. Rosengarten is looking ahead, embracing a fondness for SaintExupéry’s philosophy of empowering others.

“We, as leaders, often default to taking control and directing activities when projects and initiatives face uphill challenges. But the best advice I can share is to believe in your teams and make it your job to inspire, not instruct. I’m filled with pride every time someone on my team feels like they accomplished something they didn’t think was possible.” IQ

“I’m filled with pride every time someone on my team feels like they accomplished something they didn’t think was possible.”

Megan Rosengarten President Surgical Robotics

THE FUTURE OF PEOPLE PLANNING

Boards can help smooth the way by making smart shifts in strategic thinking.

By Jennifer Zimmer

People are an organization’s most important asset. But recruiting and retaining top talent remains a persistent challenge for businesses in every field. The result: a global talent shortage. Despite many job postings returning to pre-pandemic levels, a lack of skilled labor worldwide means that more than 85 million positions could go unfilled by 2030, costing organizations $8.5 trillion. Faced with looming shortages, corporate giants like JPMorgan Chase, Walmart and DuPont have established charters and talentplanning committees to help offset potential loss of human capital. As Harvard Business Review concludes in no uncertain terms, to

stay competitive, your board needs a people committee as well.

Following more than a year of remote and at-home work, however, employees’ priorities, career goals and basic working rhythms have also fundamentally shifted, even as COVID-19 remains an ongoing concern, according to The Wall Street Journal. Even with the emergence of new committees designed to help enterprises adapt to an age of growing flex work and drive greater cultural accountability, these paradigm shifts raise pressing questions. For example: How can today’s boards effectively interface with and keep management focused on creating a sustained long-term talent advantage? And, for that matter, how can directors help identify better and more

cost-effective ways to attract and hold on to tomorrow’s top performers? The answer to successfully attracting and retaining the workforce of the future lies in helping organizations embrace more forwardlooking approaches to business strategy and governance.

In effect, human capital has quickly shot to the top of a board’s priority list. Credit the pandemic and resulting socioeconomic changes that have quickly depleted this asset—which, like any other valuable corporate asset, must be managed well. Likewise, directors are increasingly recognizing the potential impact that they can have by working to better understand and assess the health of a company’s culture. It’s becoming critical for boards

It’s becoming critical for boards to do more than simply engage in annual talent review activities.

INSIGHT FROM THE BOARDROOM

to do more than simply engage in annual talent review activities, note executives at W.W. Grainger, a Fortune 500 industrial supply company with more than 3 million customers worldwide. Directors also need to make a regular habit of staying abreast of and putting talent- and workforce-related concerns first on their agenda.

“Forward-thinking organizations and boards purposefully make a point to think about people planning and help set the tone for tomorrow’s talent management strategies,” says Chris Zimmerman, senior analyst with market research firm FutureProof Strategies. “The workforce of the future will be radically different from that of today, as will the skills that employees need to succeed.”

It’s also important to maintain an international focus and to keep a diverse workforce’s needs in mind. For example, a hard-charging focus on productivity might not play as well in European nations, where they value work-life balance more than the U.S. You might think about focusing on working smarter, not harder, and being more productive while also prioritizing employee health and well-being and making a point to give them more time off to recharge.

Shaping Tomorrow’s Workforce Today

Competition to recruit and retain top talent is becoming increasingly fierce. More employees—especially younger generations — are motivated by corporate mission, individual recognition and opportunities to do good in their industry or a community more than by a paycheck. At the same time, work-life balance, employee experience, and leadership and learning development have become the new top strategic priorities for HR leaders, according to surveys by Future Workplace. Boards should be aware of these concerns as they think about how to help drive workforce

INTERNATIONAL APPEAL

Work smarter, not harder, and be more productive while also prioritzing employee health and well-being.

strategy in the coming months.

Topics like returning to the workplace, how much flexibility you plan to provide your staff, and even your base working model can now be sources of differentiation and competitive advantage. More than half of employees want to work remotely, over 80% don’t want to return to the office fulltime, and three quarters would quit their job if a role with increased remote work were offered by a competitor. Noting this, board oversight needs to include considering how a firm’s talent strategy is evolving, and its policies are changing, to remain competitive.

“Challenging as today’s labor shortages are, it’s just a hint of what’s coming as enterprises work to boost data literacy and proficiency with digital technologies,” says Tim Rosato, president of trend forecasters Silver Lion Group. “It’s vital to provide greater oversight surrounding workforcerelated issues and think harder about talent recruitment and retention.”

Promoting Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Future workforces will be the most diverse ever. As insight and inspiration can now come from anywhere, the importance of applying the lens of different backgrounds and perspectives to innovation and corporate strategy cannot be overstated. Boards are advised to broaden their vision when helping companies integrate DEI initiatives across recruitment, development and advancement efforts. Boards should challenge themselves to ensure that their makeup incorporates more diverse constituents. Executive succession planning best practices also need to be reexamined to ensure that myriad groups present in the workforce are well represented and that diverse candidates are being considered for leadership roles.

It’s important to keep a diverse workforce’s needs in mind. In other words, your work culture must also account for differences in international culture.

Nurturing a Positive Corporate Culture

Remote-working employees often feel disconnected from their employer and their peers. To maintain a sense of teamwork and togetherness, it’s also important for boards to help organizations consider how to promote effective ways to collaborate. But productivity isn’t the only dimension to consider when shaping corporate culture. As managers often can’t be looking over workers’ shoulders, it’s critical to think about how to instill a sense of ownership, leadership and accountability in hires as well. Board directors can use tools such as employee engagement surveys, customer feedback, exit interviews and other sources of information to understand which HR and talent strategies are working— or spot worrying trends. Driving cultural accountability is among a peopleplanning committee’s most important responsibilities.

Transforming Organizations to Meet Tomorrow’s Challenges

“The pandemic has sparked a massive shift in strategic priorities in the workplace,” Fred Foulkes, faculty director of the Human Resource Policy Institute, recently told Human Resource Executive magazine. Taking this transition into account, and the growing need for corporate oversight and governance, it’s clear that boards’ strategic priorities should be evolving by several orders of magnitude as well.

Back in 2020, companies’ primary focus for workforce management efforts was around training tomorrow’s leaders. Today, top objectives are hinged to supporting workers’ mental health and well-being while also ensuring that all staffers enjoy a positive working experience. Successfully addressing these topics means having to remake corporate culture with more attention to employee-first thinking and initiatives. IQ

A Fresh Approach to Strategic Thinking

As both directors and the organizations that they serve are becoming increasingly aware, the future of work looks radically different from the present day. Here are a few key takeaways that boards should be aware of as they challenge organizations to rethink talent management and workforce-retention strategies.

• Boards need to build out a sustainable and diverse pipeline of potential CEO candidates, and leverage operating and talent review processes to gain deeper insight into key leaders’ capabilities.

• Directors should be putting a premium on helping shape organizational culture, principles and values, and holding executive teams accountable to these values.

• People-planning committees flourish when they’re chartered to oversee evolving workforce demands and ensure that workforce training and development are in line with future industry evolutions and trends.

• Board members can be more effective by planning around two strategic dimensions in coming years: Keeping management focused on long-term talent management priorities and promoting strategic people-planning efforts across every level of the organization.

• Organizations greatly increase their odds of successfully adapting to the future of work when board members structure their thinking on changes along three axes: working models, workplaces and workforces.

INSIGHT CEO MASTER CLASS

ICONIC FORMER CEOs ADVISE TODAY’S C-SUITE

Among other topics, Michel Landel (Sodexo Group) and Bill Boisture (Hawker Beechcraft) discuss their leadership style, the importance of evolving as an executive, and keeping the workforce happy.

By Jon Ball and Brian Cook

To help modern chief executives reflect on their path forward and the possibilities ahead, the stories in our CEO Master Class series share lessons learned and frank advice from some of the world’s most accomplished business leaders. For this second installment, we sat down with Michel Landel, former CEO and board member of Sodexo Group, and Air Force veteran Bill Boisture, former chairman and CEO of aviation icon Hawker Beechcraft.

“It is very critical to know yourself well, and this is something that you have to work on. It’s not obvious. Also, never overestimate yourself. That’s my conviction. You really have to be who you are. The CEO is not a role, it’s a job.”

Michel Landel, former CEO, Sodexo

Insigniam Quarterly: As you’re hoping to influence future executives, how did your leadership style evolve over the course of your career?

Mr. Landel: I think today people expect different things from their CEO than they expected when I started my career. You lead by example, not by making decisions. You lead because you ask the right questions, you create the right team, you put the right people around the table and you try to leverage the collective intelligence of the company. You have to make decisions sometimes, but most of the time people can make their own decisions and find the way. This is the most difficult thing to do, but it’s the role of the CEO for me. I think the other thing that makes you change is the fact that you know yourself better. You’ve learned from your mistakes. You have had very, very different experiences—that’s how you evolve.

Mr. Boisture: Well, that’s a good question. Early on with SimuFlite, Skyworld and Butler Aviation, those were highly dependent on being able to articulate change based off just a knowledge of the functions, and being able to get people to understand what needed to be changed and how we were going to do that. Somewhere in there I started to develop the whole idea of one of the central value propositions in the enterprise. How do you articulate those, first of all, to your people and second, to your customers? How do you begin leading not only on functional expertise, but on having an idea about where you want to take the enterprise? >>>

“The aerospace industry requires that when you place a bet, it’s got to be a five- or 10-year bet that you’re setting the company up for success, and that the product you’re investing in will be unique enough to sustain the competitive enterprise.”

Bill Boisture, former chairman and CEO, Hawker Beechcraft

COURTESY: MICHEL LANDEL, BILL BOISTIURE

INSIGHT CEO MASTER CLASS

JUST ASKING

“Too many times we make mistakes because we believe we know. CEOs don’t make decisions as much as they ask the right questions.”

IQ: You’ve undoubtedly seen plenty of examples throughout your career of peers or colleagues who maybe had challenges evolving with the times, or just didn’t have the same level of self-awareness that you do about needing to adapt and evolve. How would you emphasize to leaders who are growing into their roles the importance of being flexible?

Mr. Landel: I would say that it is very critical to know yourself well, and this is something that you have to work on. It’s not obvious. Also, never overestimate yourself. That’s my conviction. You really have to be who you are. The CEO is not a role, it’s a job. You can’t play your role. I’ve seen many, many executives playing roles.

You have to do this because it’s part of the job. I think it’s being yourself and just being consistent, coherent, very focused on your purpose and accepting that you can make mistakes. But that’s why the team is here, because you have people who are better than you in many instances, and they can make the decisions. The worst thing to do is to play a role. You have to be who you are and to be authentic; it’s one of the most important things you can be when you’re a leader. Have the humility to say, “I made a mistake.” I think when you’re a boss, you have to be able to say, “I’m sorry, I don’t know. I don’t have the answer to that question, so let’s make sure that together we find the right person to answer it.” Too many times we make mistakes because we believe we know. CEOs don’t make decisions as much as they ask the right questions. Obviously, as you gain experience, you know the better questions to ask, or maybe even the critical question to ask to get the answer. That’s a fantastic leadership model: forcing people to come up with the answers themselves.

Mr. Boisture: Actually, innovation in aerospace is dramatic when it happens, but its long leads and cycle time change because

there’s so much complexity and because of the regulatory environment. Things come out of the future slowly. But you have to adapt to it and decide whether the technology that is being developed is going to really add value, or is it just not applicable to the aviation enterprises that you’re working on. There’s a mix of both.

I think it’s a fairly easy industry to keep up with what’s changing or what’s new. If I think about some of the other industries— the digital world or pharmaceuticals—it seems like you can wake up one day and be years behind. What the aerospace industry requires is when you place a bet it’s got to be a five- to 10-year bet that you’re setting the company up for success, and that the product you’re investing in will be unique enough to sustain the competitive enterprise.

IQ: Tell us about the success you’ve achieved that others point to, that perhaps defines your career. What success means the most to you as a person, a leader—that left you with the greatest sense of satisfaction as you look back?

Mr. Landel: During a career of CEO or leader, you don’t always have the right team. It’s very complicated to have the right team at the right time, perfectly aligned behind the goal and the purpose. It’s very rare, but when you have the right team, the results are good. The people are well managed and happy, and when people are happy, generally, we have happy customers and good results.

This combination of finding the right talent, the right balance within a team, is very complex. I think it’s the most difficult thing to do when you are a leader, to build your team, because it’s very fragile. It can change overnight. Having this balance was the biggest success. It was fun, motivating and extremely engaging. We also made a lot of mistakes, but the success is when you have more success than mistakes. Sometimes you have tough times.

“Never overestimate yourself. That’s my conviction. You really have to be who you are. The CEO is not a role, it’s a job. You can’t play your role. I’ve seen many, many executives playing roles.”

—Michel Landel

Mr. Boisture: Things that we started around the Gulfstream product when I was there have stood the test of time and allowed Gulfstream to become essentially a preeminent maker of large-cabin, long-range airplanes. We started doing two fundamental things. Instead of just building the air frame and letting a third party complete it with the interior and the paint and everything, we decided to invest and to do that ourselves. So we had control of the quality and the integration of the entire product.

The second major innovation involved our very small service operation. Service and support were not core to the company’s business in the early ’90s. We decided to make it so. We started to be protective of our technical data and pay attention to the levels of spares and parts that we carried so we could support the fleet. That grew from probably a half-million-dollar business in ’95

to close to a $2 billion business today. You learn from those you work with.One of the things that an early mentor showed me was the value of intense listening. He was a Socratic leader in that he taught by asking questions. And those were two fundamental things that I thought really made effective leadership. I think that affected my style for a long time; I didn’t have any of the particular technical depth of the disciplines that we were involved in, but I had an overall understanding of how they fit together. So learning to listen to the experts in various fields and then balancing or integrating the input into something we could work with, seemed to be an important leadership trait.

IQ: What are some things that you can’t appreciate or learn until you’ve sat in that CEO seat? >>>

Mr. Landel is a former CEO and board member of Sodexo Group, a multinational food services and facilities management corporation based in Paris, with a presence in 80 countries and nearly half a million employees. Under his leadership, Sodexo’s revenue grew by more than 70% (2020 revenue was roughly US$22 billion).

He started with Sodexo in 1984; later in his career, over a period of 17 years, Mr. Landel established the brand’s North American footprint. He worked for the company a total of 34 years. Prior to joining Sodexo, he was a factory director for a French building materials company and also worked as a financial analyst for Chase Manhattan Bank.

Learn more:

https://www.linkedin .com/in/michellandel/

Michel Landel

INSIGHT CEO MASTER CLASS

Mr. Landel: I don’t know if it’s just a question of being the CEO, but when you’re in the top job, sometimes you’re alone and you have all these responsibilities. At one point you go, “Oh, my God. What am I going to do here?” It’s important to have a network of businesspeople you can talk to in different parts of the world, and I think it’s fundamental because you are very often confronted with these situations. The circle of trust, if you will, gets smaller the higher you rise in your career. Trust is very fragile. The important thing is to have confidence in yourself, and this confidence is built in when you know yourself.

Mr. Boisture: You don’t realize, first of all, how much you are served and how much people pay attention to what you do, what you don’t do, where you go and where you don’t go. So there’s a fishbowl aspect of it that you’re not prepared for. You have to really become aware of it. It’s very important to large groups of people because they don’t necessarily have daily contact with you and they’re looking for clues about what’s going to happen as a company.

That’s something you don’t really know about until you’ve experienced it. That was particularly true during Hawker Beechcraft’s run-up to filing Chapter 11 and doing a preplanned bankruptcy. That’s a very disconcerting time for any workforce and any employee. So they really do look to the leader to assure them somehow that we’re going to get through this, and they watch what you’re doing pretty closely.

IQ: Are there personal skills or qualities— such as perseverance and resilience— that you have to call on, especially when you’re going through something like a [bankruptcy] and taking care of the people that, as you said, could be very concerned about the future?

Mr. Boisture: Focus. I probably couldn’t tell

NOW HEAR THIS “You learn from those you work with. One of the things that an early mentor showed me was the value of intense listening. He was a Socratic leader in that he taught by asking questions.”

you what else went on in the world in 2012 and 2013. So you focus. You have to explain to the court what you want to do with the enterprise, and you’re trying to make sure that the picture you paint is one that the people in the company understand and can execute. And you actually begin executing the restructuring and the recovery well before you come out of court protection.

You have a period of time where, as the leader, you have to articulate day in and day out: It will work and here’s why. You’re really focused, and there’s a hard-headed perseverance because there are setbacks along the way. In the early stages, people all want to read the last page of the book. You can’t do that, but you have to start writing the book and be clear about what’s going to happen.

IQ: What happens to the culture of a company when it’s going through an event like [bankruptcy]? How are you pulling the levers to keep people focused on the tasks at hand when there’s this big existential threat that they’re worried about all the time? Mr. Boisture: The process causes you to evaluate across a broad spectrum of activities—in our case because we were building many different kinds of airplanes. Evaluate the potential of your various products that can actually be manufactured and supported profitably post-bankruptcy. Then paint a picture of what the emerged company will look like. Do it with enough clarity and real understanding of the markets, the products and the competition so the people in the company say, “Well, I may not like all the decisions you’re making, but I understand them.” In our case, we had a union involved. It was necessary to articulate to them the number of jobs we expected to have when we emerged from protection of the court, what our relationship with them needed to be and what our wage structure needed to look like in order to be competitive

“You don’t realize how much you are served and how much people pay attention to what you do, what you don’t do, where you go and where you don’t go. So there’s a fishbowl aspect of [the CEO job] that you’re not prepared for.”

—Bill Boisture

as a restructured company. You have to articulate all those things to different audiences within the company. And in our case, that meant bringing the company together around its legacy name and products, which were Beechcraft products. And the employees all knew with a great deal of pride that they were well-made products and that the market liked them. So it was a way for them to see that that made sense.

IQ: How do you find top talent and assemble high-performing teams? When you’re looking to bring talent into an organization and really cultivate these teams, what are the benchmarks you use to make sure you’re putting the right person in the right role?

Mr. Landel: I think the first thing is to have people who share at least similar values. That doesn’t mean not being different. Diversity is fundamental within a team, whether it’s

diversity of gender, of thinking, whatever. You must have the right balance between men and women, between people of different countries and cultures. After that it’s talent, but it’s also the ability of these people to live together and to respect each other. Sometimes you have brilliant people who can never adapt to a team. I also believe that to create the right team, you have to know people, so it takes time.

IQ: Any recommendations or advice to share with CEOs growing into their career, or folks who aspire to that level of leadership?

Mr. Landel: Being a CEO is not playing a role. Being a CEO is being yourself—with your strengths, your weaknesses, your doubts, your questions, being respectful of others. Your role is really to leverage the intelligence of the company. You need the right people in the organization who understand that. IQ

Bill Boisture

Mr. Boisture has had a storied career in aviation and aerospace, currently working as an operating partner with AeroEquity Industrial. Perhaps his most high-profile job was that of chairman and CEO of Beechcraft. He has also held positions with NetJets, Gulfstream Aerospace and British Aerospace Corporate Jets, among others, and worked as a senior advisor in aerospace/ defense for global private equity firm The Carlyle Group. Mr. Boisture piloted fighter jets during an 11-year military career after graduating from the United States Air Force Academy.

Learn more: https://www.linkedin .com/in/bill-boisture -b9713210/

BY GREG TRUEBLOOD AND JON BALL PHOTOGRAPHY

BY MATTHEW C. MEYER

THE TRANSFORMING ECOSYSTEMS ISSUE

UNIQUE PARTNERSHIP

“Aligning two individuals with extremely diverse but complementary abilities and knowledge can make outsized impacts,” says Ms. Khan.

How Rita Khan and partners are accelerating digital transformation at Mayo Clinic.

her office at Mayo Clinic’s headquarters in Rochester, Minnesota, Rita Khan’s seasonal allergies are doing little to stifle the beaming enthusiasm she radiates when discussing the not-for-profit’s investment in digital health care.

“When I think about the future, not only am I incredibly optimistic about the opportunity digital health affords a worldclass organization like the Mayo Clinic, but also how it stands to influence and impact health care ecosystems worldwide.”

As the first chief digital officer in Mayo Clinic’s 132-year history, Ms. Khan leads the Center for Digital Health (CDH), which was established in 2020. Her leadership charter is to establish a strategy to guide the $14B enterprise with 65,000 employees as it prepares for transformative changes in the digital space. Yet when colleagues ask what digital transformation means for Mayo Clinic—already recognized as one of the world’s premier health care centers— Ms. Khan is quick to clarify that it’s less about transformation and more about “digital acceleration as a conduit to enhancing patient care.”

Her perspective hints at something subtle yet palpable, felt by leaders across the health care industry: The field has become a series of systems dominated by cost structures and paradigms that seek to achieve profitability and generate shareholder value. When profit comes first, health care is only a means to an end. For Ms. Khan, this is incompatible with a devotion to patient care where the needs of the patient must always come first.

“Our focus is always centered on improving patient outcomes, especially in complex, difficult situations,” she says. “We think about digital health more broadly than virtual care, remote patient monitoring or diagnostics—which are incredibly important. At a macro level, our goal is to harness and unleash the power of data across multiple health ecosystems to support improved patient outcomes—and we have a bold strategy to accomplish this.” >>>

“Our focus is always centered on improving patient outcomes. We think about digital health more broadly than simply virtual care, remote patient monitoring or diagnostics.”

—Rita Khan, CDO, Mayo Clinic

KHAN-DO SPIRIT

For the Mayo Clinic, the dyad model offers a best-of-bothworlds operational structure.

Digital Dynamos

When Ms. Khan joined Mayo Clinic, she brought 20 years of experience in retail and e-commerce at Best Buy, Target and Macy’s. Additionally, she already had an established track record leading successful digital transformation as an executive at United Healthcare. The one thing she didn’t bring—and didn’t need, coincidentally—was a medical degree.

“I understand consumer behaviors, the digital landscape and technology, yet I’m fairly new to health care,” says Ms. Khan, who most recently spent three years designing seamless experiences for United Healthcare’s members, providers, brokers and employer groups as executive vice president of their consumer digital division.

“Part of the challenge transitioning from payer to provider is that the payer side is focused on affordability, commercial relationships and preventative care. On the provider side, it’s all about positive outcomes for patients.” Ms. Khan also notes that provider-side transformations tend to be slightly more complex.

“We’re not just leveraging technology and transforming how we provide care, but internally, how are we enabling clinicians to deliver their highest-value work, which only

a human can do? By reducing administrative burdens and cognitive complexities, we can actually enhance the joy felt by physicians and care teams, who’s primary focus is always on the patient.”

To generate results on the provider side, Ms. Khan recognized that she needed a partner who fully understood the clinic’s integrated model of care. This is an area where the clinic has an inherent competitive advantage woven directly into its DNA: the dyad leadership model.

Dyad leadership, in its purest form, is a partnership between an administrator and a physician that forms a best-of-both-worlds operational structure. Mayo Clinic pioneered this system more than a century ago when Dr. William Worrall Mayo enlisted banker Harry Harwick to help manage his growing practice. Their partnership allowed Mayo Clinic to set the gold standard for physician-led patient care and to grow the infrastructure that supported that care. Sincethat innovation, 77% of health care leaders reported using some form of physician and administrator team model, according to a 2019 study by the Medical Group Management Association.

Within this framework, physicians assume primary responsibility for the clinical vision while administrators operationalize that vision. And perhaps no one was better suited to realize a shared vision alongside Ms. Khan than Dr. Brad Leibovich, chair of the Department of Urology and medical director for the Center for Digital Health.

“No one expects me to be a data scientist,” Dr. Leibovich says. “Rita is the expert at digital transformation and understands how to elevate an organization through leadingedge tools and technologies. I bring a vision for what I think health care can and should be, as well as a sense of what is wrong with the industry right now. Together, we can solve complex challenges.”

Dr. Leibovich, a 25-year Mayo Clinic veteran and winner of the 2015 Distinguished Mayo Clinician Award, still spends most of his time caring for patients. Not only is he the namesake of The Leibovich Scoring System—an algorithm for predicting a patient’s risk of developing certain cancers following kidney surgery— but he also has insight and perspective on navigating Mayo Clinic’s culture and spurring

“Prior to the CDH, Mayo Clinic had not experienced a consumer push for digital transformation, which allowed us to take a proactive stance.”

Rita Khan

success within the dyad partnership model, having been part of several such working groups in the past.

“My initial exposure to working in a dyad model was during my first true leadership position at Mayo Clinic,” says Dr. Leibovich. “I worked with a very seasoned administrator and learned how to take an idea and extend it by working with hyperspecialized, cross-functional teams to make it happen.”

A Different Dyad

To understand Mayo Clinic’s approach to the dyad, we must first understand what makes its business model unique, and how it creates an advantage for patients.

All professional staff members are salaried, and the clinic does not offer incentive pay structures for either physicians or administrators. This ensures alignment between both groups and alleviates concerns about one profiting from the other. This is a direct contrast to the incentive framework in most health care enterprises.

This compensation structure allows for an operating margin to be set aside and reinvested in order to meet long-term financial and strategic needs. This includes reinvestments in Mayo Foundation, as well as research initiatives, which are funded based on merit, not projected revenue.

The Mayo model seems to work. In addition to being considered the world’s No. 1 health care system, its financial performance has remained strong despite pandemic-related disruptions and costs. The clinic’s 2020 financial report indicates total revenue was $13.9B, 1.5% more than in 2019. Its overall operating margin was 5.2%.

But what differentiates Mayo Clinic’s dyad while also creating an advantage for patients is that the clinic is inherently physicianled. This is not to suggest that physicians manage operations, but rather that they are accountable for what happens throughout the institution. This ensures the clinic is aligned with the interest of patients, which is core to their business model and mission.

“It used to be that all of our administrators grew up within the system,” says Dr. Leibovich. “Now we’re evolving, and we bring in people who have never worked in a model like ours. We’ve had to evolve mindsets to meet this shifting dynamic,

which often means identifying and dispelling any potential misconceptions.”

Dr. Leibovich recalls an early conversation with Ms. Khan where he sensed she was concerned about imposing. “I know she was being considerate by trying to protect me,” he says, smiling. “But once people adjust to our model, we then unlock opportunities to leverage the other’s abilities and spark real innovation.”

It didn’t take long for the two to sync—even in a remote environment due to pandemic safety protocols—and align toward achieving a mission greater than the sum of its parts.

“Dr. Leibovich unlocks the best knowledge across our domain expertise,” Ms. Khan says. “He’s an incredible catalyst who can impact and accelerate our work to move us toward achieving our vision.”

Accelerating Transformation

The Center for Digital Health was established in order to bring structure and a comprehensive strategy to the discipline.

“Prior to the CDH, Mayo Clinic had not experienced a consumer push for digital transformation, which allowed us to take a proactive stance,” says Ms. Khan. “As Dr. Leibovich and I came together to lead digital acceleration across the enterprise, >>>

“It used to be that all of our administrators grew up within Mayo’s system. Now we’re evolving, and we bring in people who have never worked in a model like ours.”

—Dr. Brad Leibovich, Chair of the Department of Urology and medical director for the Center for Digital Health

we first had to consider what transformation meant to an organization like Mayo Clinic.”

For Ms. Khan and Dr. Leibovich, it meant considering how to broaden access to the clinic’s world-class services by leveraging technologies and virtual solutions that seamlessly complement in-person care from anywhere in order to achieve better patient outcomes. “The future that Mayo Clinic is designing for the patient, the caregiver, the families of patients, and the clinicians is one that is not only inspiring but is destined to create better outcomes and even joy to the stakeholders,” says Shideh Sedgh Bina, Insigniam founding partner. “The leaders and executives of CDH have had to come to terms with pushing themselves to innovate and execute on out-of-the-past programs while also bringing along the esteemed Mayo Clinic’s internal stakeholder.”

“Our goal was to explore and identify simple ways to engage patients and provide care navigation that adjusts as the needs of the patient change,” says Ms. Khan.

The CDH’s Advanced Care at Home and Remote Patient Monitoring programs use machine learning and predictive models to find areas where enhanced patient outcomes could be had, exceeding the clinic’s quality measures. This enabled Mayo Clinic to scale beyond its already robust physical footprint.

“People travel from around the globe to get here, which is especially challenging when dealing with serious, complex illnesses,” Ms. Khan says. “Now, our digital platform can transform that experience by enabling patients to interface with physicians online and schedule in-person visits with providers who may visit you at home. It’s a more convenient, cost-effective experience for many, especially during the COVID era.”

While the ongoing pandemic wrought a multitude of challenges for all health care providers, it forced Mayo Clinic and the CDH to evolve rapidly in order to provide a safe experience for those in need of care.

“The CDH is also focused on bringing joy back into the practice of care,” notes Ms. Khan, “so that our physicians can spend more time with patients. By automating many lowvalue tasks, providers can focus on the human aspect of their job. From our perspective, it’s not about technology, it’s about people.”

Evolving Ecosystems

While the impact of their work will be felt for decades at Mayo Clinic, the CDH also stands to transform global health care.

“Our work aims to shift the health care ecosystem far beyond Mayo Clinic,” says Dr. Leibovich. To address concerns that digital transformations may leave some patients behind, he says, it could greatly lower barriers to quality care, where a simple smartphone could be a game changer.

“While it’s true that not everyone has broadband access or a smartphone, it most likely won’t take long for payers—Medicare, Medicaid or private insurers—to figure out that subsidizing or providing these tools for free enables less costly, higher-quality care, especially if they’re supported by robust digital health care platforms.”

For Ms. Khan, the dyad model has enormous potential to transform ecosystems—within and beyond health care—if adopted broadly.

“Why does a leader need to be singular? In my time at Mayo Clinic, I’ve recognized the value that comes from aligning two individuals with extremely diverse but complementary abilities and knowledge to make outsized impacts,” she says.

Despite being masters of different domains, Ms. Khan, Dr. Leibovich and the Mayo Clinic are firmly aligned where it matters most: supporting the needs of the patient.

“We have a shared goal and mission,” she says. “I’m thrilled that together we have the power to leverage meaningful data to enhance patient experience and improve outcomes in order to serve what matters most: people.” IQ

“Our work aims to shift the health care ecosystem far beyond Mayo Clinic. If done correctly, it could alleviate concerns about inequity in health care.”

—Dr. Brad Leibovich

American chemist Linus Pauling—one of the 20 greatest scientists of all time, according to New Scientist —is synonymous with his namesake Pauling Principle, which states, “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” As one of only two people ever to be awarded two Nobel Prizes in two different fields (the other being Marie Curie), Pauling knew a thing or two about great ideas.

Moreover, the Pauling Principle is rooted in science. Research suggests that if you list 100 ideas on a given subject, the most innovative ideas are in the second half of the list. Quantity, therefore, truly does yield quality.

So how can we apply the Pauling Principle to create richer, more compelling products and experiences for our customers— whoever they may be? At Insigniam, we start by utilizing design thinking and its six-step framework.

The first step is to understand the challenge at hand. Second, observe how it impacts customers . By understanding and observing, we can move to the third and fourth stages, which are to strategize a needs-focused approach in order to begin ideating on a solution

But here’s where things get interesting: step five, prototyping

By definition, a prototype is something tangible that conveys an idea. The prevailing attitude inside many organizations is that a prototype should be an attempt at perfection. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Ideally, prototypes should be relatively inexpensive and easy to evolve. Quantity doesn’t just yield quality during ideation. It’s also critical during the prototype phase.

With that in mind, how can we leverage prototyping to better

IQ

serve our customers? The simple answer is to begin with the customer in mind and work backward.

Consider the Marshmallow Challenge. Maybe you’ve seen this used as a team-building exercise. The rules are simple: build a free-standing structure using spaghetti sticks, tape, string and a marshmallow—the last of which must be placed atop the structure before time expires.

It’s common for teams to review the rules, observe the progress of others and plan for architectural perfection. Yet in the final moments there’s always a rush to put the marshmallow atop said brilliantly designed structures—which is when they collapse. Interestingly, when children do the same exercise, they start with the marshmallow. Why? Because it’s most important.

Your customer is the marshmallow

It’s critical to understand that prototyping is a highly iterative process. The goal is not to validate your best idea, but to observe and learn how your customers use (and sometimes misuse) it. The more—and sooner—the better, since testing is the sixth and final step within the design thinking framework.

By taking a quantitative approach, we have a better chance of making customers feel like they designed the solution. Not only can this speed adoption once a product goes to market, but it boosts the odds of delivering something truly innovative that creates new value.

When we put the customer at the center of all we do and shift our thinking about what a prototype needs to be, we can leverage the full power of design thinking to improve customer experiences. IQ

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leveraging an enrollment team comprised of one or more individuals from within this group, teams would have a higher probability of winning hearts and minds in order to move toward action.

The final aspect is to align the efforts of leadership coalitions and enrollment teams on a keystone project. A keystone project represents a commitment to critical business results that are achievable only in the framework of transformation. It is the bull’s-eye on which all associated efforts are focused and from which transformation flourishes. Once agents in an enterprise are truly enrolled in the strategy and tactics set forth by the leadership coalition, an organization can feel confident about its journey toward transformation. Whereas a lack of momentum can often derail many transformation initiatives, enrollment teams are able to sustain commitments needed to achieve transformation.

Most importantly, many companies take a top-down approach to transformation. Our methodology allows people across an enterprise to own their commitments to keystone projects and to serve as the catalysts responsible for creating what was once an unimaginable new future. IQ

According to the prevailing views in most management literature, transformation is simply “big change.” Not only is this misunderstanding harmful, but it also robs companies and organizations of significant opportunities to achieve real competitive advantages and organizational success.

For authors Jesús Leal and Nathan Hale Williams, the time to evolve our understanding of diversity and inclusion starts now.

BY JON BALL

THE TRANSFORMING ECOSYSTEMS ISSUE

According to a slew of recent studies, 98% of U.S. corporations—as well as 86% European and nearly 60% of APAC corporations—have formally instituted programs to boost diversity and inclusion. However, when polled, a quarter of U.S. workers who identify as women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ community indicate they receive little if any benefits from these programs. That’s a huge delta, especially when U.S. companies alone spend roughly $8B annually on diversity programs.

What accounts for the breakdown between adoption, investment, and results? According to Jesús Leal and Nathan Hale Williams, authors of True Diversity: Going Beyond the Pie Graph, corporations traditionally approach D&I from the wrong perspective.

“Companies frequently view the concept of diversity based solely on race and gender in order to easily illustrate that data on a pie graph,” says Mr. Leal, a Cuban immigrant and pharmaceutical industry executive whose inclusive worldview was shaped by seminal moments throughout his early life and career. “Unfortunately, checking numbers on a box seems to be the prevailing way to approach this concept, which is woefully one-dimensional.”

In their book, Mr. Leal and Mr. Williams seek to challenge conventional wisdom based on their concept of True Diversity, which is multidimensional and cannot be simply captured on a page or in a pie graph. In addition to race and gender, True Diversity views organizations through a diverse lens that accounts for dimensions of time (when someone was born), space (where someone was born) and something the authors call the Diversity Quotient, or “DQ.”

“We created a DQ fraction where the denominator captures factors affecting who you are, such as time, geographical location of where you were born, where you have lived, where you currently live, your socio-economic status, politics and policies that affect your day-to-day life, and other environmental factors that impact your worldview aside from race and gender,” says Mr. Leal. “In the

ALL INCLUSIVE

From left: True Diversity authors Jesús Leal and Nathan Hale Williams; HBA President Susan O’Connor.

numerator, you only include those factors where you experienced a direct interaction with and/or were significantly influenced by those factors.”

Ultimately, the authors’ goal is to expose inherent weaknesses in current models and to motivate companies to move beyond the graph.

According to Mr. Williams—best known for his Cannes award-winning film, 90 DAYS, as well as a two-time NAACP Image Award nominee—companies can move the needle by leveraging a new approach to diversity and inclusion that goes beyond the balance sheet.

“One of the interesting things about True Diversity is that it accounts for diversity of thought, which normally isn’t captured on a pie graph,” says Mr. Williams. “For instance, a company could hire 10 women, but if they all represent that same socioeconomic background, or if they were all recruited from a small pool of Ivy League institutions, there’s actually very little in terms of real diversity that can be catalyzed.”

Top Down Diversity

For Mr. Leal and Mr. Williams, companies that aren’t moving toward a progressive and aggressive approach to diversity will find themselves left behind. Yet, in order to shift mindsets and begin conceptualizing an approach to building truly diverse teams that accelerate organizations forward, change starts at the top.

“The single most important factor in building an effective diversity strategy is the commitment of the leadership,” says Mr. Williams. “At the very top levels, a company’s executives and leaders need to understand the concept that diversity and inclusion is a strategic business decision, which requires more than enrollment. It requires real conviction.”

As chief executive officer of the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association (HBA), a nonprofit organization advancing women in healthcare, a sense of conviction permeates Susan O’Connor’s words.

“Diversity is a business imperative,” says Ms. O’Connor. “From my global C-suite

“True Diversity recognizes that these standard methods of measuring diversity in an organization have actually become constraints against identifying and fulfilling the power diversity offers.”

—Shideh Sedgh Bina Insigniam Founding Partner

experience at Pfizer, the best practices to advance the corporate diversity strategy are through employee resource groups (ERGs), executive team sponsorship and data-driven accountability through incentives. There is a foundational organic culture of diversity that goes beyond the numbers and the pie chart.”

ERGs of like-minded colleagues, with common values facing the same challenges, mutually support and develop one another at a grassroots level to overcome systemic barriers for promotion. Employee resource groups “mirror society and collectively engage in community-based initiatives that drive real impact,” says Ms. O’Connor.

The HBA’s Gender Parity Collaborative— formed in partnership with 15 corporate entities—was created to drive data-driven accountability from a healthcare industry perspective. Analyzing data globally and regionally by level and function helped each partnering company develop actionable plans to advance women. Companies in the collaborative gained insights and compatible data that led to unprecedented breakthrough results. From 2018 to 2020, representation of women at VP level and above grew by 27% versus a broader industry decline of 9%.

By letting go of the prevailing pie-chart mentality, Ms. O’Connor also envisions many positive ripple effects across the global healthcare ecosystem.

“A unique example in the gender equality space is The Women in Global Health collaboration with the WHO and the French government, which addresses underlying inequities in various systems to help women achieve their full potential,” she says. “This is a great illustration of where a holistic approach

can spur meaningful solutions, both within healthcare and beyond.”

Catalyzing Cultural Intelligence

One of the most impactful ways to catalyze the strengths of D&I is to create culturally intelligent (CQ) management teams and workforces who can align with increasing cultural diversity of consumers and clients.

“By ingraining DQ into the hiring process, we can begin to develop teams with high CQ, which has been shown to boost corporate reputation, achieve better results in crosscultural organizations and allows the company to adapt quickly to different environments,” says Mr. Leal, who is quick to offer examples of companies who “get it right.”

“One company that I see getting it right is Johnson & Johnson,” says Mr. Leal. “Their D&I focus is driven from the top by CEO Alex Gorsky, and in the company’s credo, J&J makes it clear that diversity is a must and employees must feel free to communicate their ideas. The language itself is powerful, and it also leaves no question about J&J’s focus on creating an inclusive work environment where each person must be considered as an individual.”

Leal says D&I-focused businesses like Johnson & Johnson, Marriott and Mastercard not only seek to utilize diversity for innovation, improved market share and a competitive advantage, but also focus on building a workforce that reflects the diversity of the company’s customers.

But most importantly, both authors agree the time for action is now. “Gradually growing into a truly diverse workforce is a thing of the past,” says Mr. Williams. “Be active. Be aggressive. Be inclusive.” >>>

“Companies frequently view the concept of diversity based solely on race and gender in order to easily illustrate that data on a pie graph. Unfortunately, this concept is woefully onedimensional.”

Jesús Leal Author True Diversity

The Diversity Quotient

Note: (t) = bound by the same timeframe

At zero, an individual would have to be totally insulated from the world around them. At 100, the individual would have to be fully impacted by every single event occurring in real time. Both extremes are virtually impossible to achieve. IQ

Authors Leal and Williams created a DQ fraction to measure

amongst individuals:

THE TRANSFORMING ECOSYSTEMS ISSUE

TAKE A HINT

HOW KARA GOLDIN QUIT SODA AND SHOOK THE BEVERAGE INDUSTRY IN THE PROCESS.

TASTEMAKER

According to Goldin—a selfdescribed “accidental entrepreneur”— curiosity and passion have fueled her success.

A REFRESHING NEW BRAND

HINT

Founded:

2005

Number of employees: approx. 300

Annual revenue (ttm) (2021): $220M (up from $150M in 2020)

Headquarters: San Francisco, CA

Vertical:

Non-Alcoholic Beverages

Tagline:

It’s Water—Just Tastier

In 2005, Kara Goldin just wanted to break her soft drink addiction. Fast forward to today and Goldin is founder and CEO of Hint, a $220M (USD) beverage producer of fruit-infused waters and lifestyle goods that offers a healthy alternative to sodas and artificially sweetened drinks.

IQ sat down with the former AOL executive and current “accidental entrepreneur” to get her insight on what it takes to start a successful business from scratch, and her advice for other dynamic female executives and would-be entrepreneurs.

IQ: You call yourself an “accidental entrepreneur.” When you began laying the groundwork for Hint, what did that process look like?

Goldin: The short answer is that I just started. I think being an accidental entrepreneur and accessing diverse points of view go hand in hand in founding any company. Coming from the tech industry, I didn’t have the network in the beverage industry to help me figure out how to launch a beverage. I was an outsider, but I didn’t let that stop me.

I talked to anyone who would speak to me about my idea. I found that many people would open up their networks to me as well, especially ones that were in the food and beverage industry.

I also realized early that while people had opinions about what I was doing, they were only opinions. If I wanted to make Hint happen, I needed to focus and not let the doubters get in my way.

IQ: You made a huge splash with Hint despite, as you said, not having a background in the beverage industry. How did you rely on diverse points of view to inform your marketization strategy?

Goldin: We were creating a new category within the beverage industry, so in fact the established brands were the ones with the blind spot. Big soda and beverage companies didn’t believe that consumers wanted an unsweetened flavored water. And the seasoned

executives in the industry mostly dismissed my idea because they were used to drinking their own Kool-Aid so to speak. I once had an encounter with a major executive in the soda industry who shared his thoughts about “the” consumer. It was then that I realized just how different “the” consumer that I was in contact with was, and who was purchasing Hint.

My commitment and Hint’s commitment to getting consumers healthy was the goal. And the people who joined me to build Hint from the beginning were mostly from outside the industry who could also see how badly the industry needed a healthy change. I don’t believe this company could have been built any other way.

IQ: I’ve read that you’ve said, “Large companies aren’t great at innovating—they’re good at continuing what they do.” How do you catalyze innovation at Hint?

Goldin: When you are launching a product in the beverage industry focused on real health versus healthy perception, that’s innovation. I realized early on that the goal in the industry to date was primarily to get the consumer to believe that something was healthier than it was. Our competitive advantage has always been our product, our delivery to the consumer and our supply chain.

IQ: How impactful was it to have access to direct customer feedback in your early days at Hint, especially coming from AOL’s B2B environment? Goldin: First off, I was “customer service” at Hint. We printed an email and phone number on every bottle—still do. Customers reached out from day one of being on the shelf to share their story and thank us for developing a product that they appreciated.

Every one of those inquiries and “thankyou’s” connected me to the problems that the consumer claimed were being solved for them by enjoying a product like Hint. Challenges like type 2 diabetes or chemo treatments. Each of those communications and conversations helped me and shaped my understanding of the Hint consumer. And it still does today.

“Big soda and beverage companies didn’t believe that consumers were interested in buying an unsweetened flavored water.”

—Kara Goldin

IQ: What advice would you share with other emerging female leaders who seek the same level of success?

Goldin: Starting a business is really difficult, no matter your gender. Same with leading a company. Expect that many people (even your closest friends and family) will resist your idea because they don’t want to see you take risks. You will likely face skepticism along the way, but either way, your ability to start and keep moving forward is up to you. Remember that their thoughts are just their opinion. And often an opinion starts with their own fears. If you believe in what you are setting out to do, figure out the steps to go and try. And be willing to pivot along the way, so pay attention.

There’s a saying about mindfulness: “You can’t control the waves, but you can learn to surf.” When you’re in charge of a business, there will be difficult times when those waves will get real choppy. Criticism and bad news will crash down on you hard. So my advice is: Learn to surf.

IQ: What are the qualities you see in the strongest leaders, and how do they translate to success when it comes to creating dynamic and diverse teams to achieve success?

Goldin: Two qualities I see over and over: curiosity and passion. When I came into the beverage industry, I had so many questions. I realized that leading with curiosity, and being able to ask questions versus being afraid to show others what you didn’t know was the way to build confidence. By letting my curiosity guide me, I also found myself understanding what I enjoyed doing, which better defined my passions. When you are clearer about what drives you, you can help others understand that about themselves too. I have always been one to say that once you understand what you not only enjoy, but also what you are good at, you can hire people to fill those gaps. Always understanding the roles that you don’t choose to do, allows you to hire people that do too. And when you understand someone’s role, and have an appreciation for their work, that allows you to lead toward success. IQ

BY SAMUEL GREENGARD

THE TRANSFORMING ECOSYSTEMS ISSUE

How the Middle Kingdom’s $7.1T infrastructure project could transform global commerce for decades to come.

PIPE DREAMS? The BRI promises to modernize infrastructure in Asia and other parts of the world. Work is expected to take nearly 40 years.

Official name:

Belt and Road Initiative

Established: 2013

Target completion date: 2049

Number of countries:

140

Languages: 53

GDP: $7.1 trillion per annum by 2040

Social impact:

If completed, BRI could lift 7.6 million people out of extreme poverty.

Economic impact:

Trillions of dollars in infrastructure financing for Asia, Europe and Africa. If fully implemented, BRI transport projects could increase real global income by 0.7% to 2.9%.

Environmental impact:

BRI transport infrastructure may increase carbon dioxide emissions by an estimated 0.3% worldwide—and by 7% or more in some countries.

Economic fortune has always been predicated on building systems and infrastructure that make trade easier. Whether it’s the ancient Silk Road that allowed people to move food, spices and fabrics or modern high-speed digital networking that carries packets of data, the ability to build paths to progress separates the winners from the losers.

China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is the latest in a long history of efforts to gain a competitive advantage. The initiative, which aims to modernize infrastructure in Asia and other parts of the world, focuses on constructing buildings, rail routes, roads, bridges, tunnels, dams, seaports and other projects. Funding for all of this falls between US$50 billion and US$100 billion annually.

At the center of BRI is a basic but profound concept. “It’s designed to facilitate trade, connectivity, economic cooperation and relations with countries around the world,” says Rebecca Nadin, PH.D., director of global risk and resilience at Overseas Development Institute in the U.K.

Indeed, the initiative, which could boost world GDP by $7.1 trillion per annum by 2040, promises to reshape the world. “It’s an enormous framework of commercial and political agreements, both legally and nonlegally binding.”

Not surprisingly, BRI is generating waves that ripple around the world. As the initiative rolls out and gains momentum— it isn’t slated to end until 2049—it’s impacting everything from global financing and politics to digital systems and nextgeneration technologies. It also has spurred counterinitiatives, such as the Blue Dot Network, for which the U.S., Japan and Australia banded together to blunt the impact of BRI.

Says David Dollar, a senior fellow in foreign policy, global economy and development at the Brookings Institution, “In reality, BRI is more than an initiative that spans the old Silk

Road from China to Europe. It’s global in scope. It’s best to think of it as a brand.”

The New Silk Road

Any discussion about the Belt and Road Initiative starts with a recognition that it’s an intentionally vague framework that ties together a vast array of projects. It’s fluid and constantly evolving. When Chinese president Xi Jinping formally announced BRI in 2013, it set in motion the largest and most ambitious infrastructure initiative in the history of the Eurasian region. The stated goal of the Chinese government is to loosely follow the old Silk Road, both on land and at sea, to drive economic development throughout the region—and beyond.

At present, 140 countries and 30 international organizations are involved in BRI in one form or another, with thousands of projects—on the drawing board or in progress—under the umbrella of the initiative. That’s a lot of moving parts, subject to changeable circumstances. Mr. Dollar says that the scope of BRI has expanded globally, including lending to countries such as Brazil, which has no natural connection to the Silk Road.

The stated purpose of BRI is to build infrastructure across two primary tracks and six main corridors. There’s a Silk Road Economic Belt with projects across various parts of Asia and into Europe. There’s a 21stcentury Maritime Silk Road, which aims to spur development in Southeast Asia, Oceania and Africa. Key projects include high-speed rail lines in Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland and Germany, and upgraded ports in Asia and Africa. BRI also encompasses many smaller projects, such as mining operations, electrical grids, factories and industrial parks.

China has also pushed the scope of the initiative into the Arctic. Its Ice Silk Road project, a partnership with Russia, aims to establish maritime routes through the Arctic region. As ice caps melt and new trade routes

BEEN THERE, DUNE THAT The Gobi Desert, which the original Silk Road traversed. The new version will link China with the rest of Eurasia.

open up between Asia and Europe, the two nations hope to gain economic advantage. Likewise, both recognize that vast and rich mineral resources, including precious metals, lie under the Arctic surface.

A Path to Progress

Although 2013 saw the official birth of BRI, the roots of the initiative extend back to at least the early 2000s, when China began to focus on building its economy and extending its reach globally. Around 2006, with a ballooning trade surplus and reserves near US$1 trillion, the country began to invest globally but found that returns weren’t particularly high.

As a result, it soon pivoted to the idea of lending money to other developing countries to build infrastructure, Mr. Dollar says. “Many of the pieces that formed the BRI were in place years before, and this initiative simply brought all of them together,” Dr. Nadin says.

China describes BRI as “a bid to enhance regional connectivity and embrace a brighter future.” Beyond these lofty and idealistic words lies an initiative that’s far more ambitious and expansive in scope and ideology. Besides an extensive and growing economic footprint, China believes that

BRI will deliver benefits through cultural exchanges, mutual understanding and trust among member nations. This will result in “an innovative pattern of capital inflows, talent pools and technology databases.”

BRI, originally called “One Belt, One Road,” was added to the country’s constitution in 2017. Not surprisingly, as China has changed over recent years, so has BRI. It is increasingly focused on high-quality development, which reflects the nation’s overall path. China also has stated its desire to open the platform to all countries and investors. President Jinping promotes the idea that, like the original Silk Road that spread economic wealth, cultural understanding and ideas from the second century BC to the AD 15th century, BRI will blaze a trail further into the 21st century.

Despite all the optimism, the initiative raises nagging questions, particularly about developing nations taking on debt and about the environment. “Achieving the ambitions of the Belt and Road Initiative will require equally ambitious reforms from participating countries. Improvements in data reporting and transparency—especially around debt—open government procurement, and adherence to the highest social and environmental standards will help significantly,” writes >>>

Says David Dollar, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution: “In reality, BRI is more than an initiative that spans the old Silk Road from China to Europe. It’s global in scope. It’s best to think of it as a brand.”

The BRI: Constructing the “Digital Silk Road”

THAT’S A LOT OF DIRT | At present, 140 countries and 30 international organizations are involved in BRI in one form or another, with thousands of projects—on the drawing board or proceeding—under the umbrella of the initiative.

Banking on Debt

It should come as no surprise that the Belt Road Initiative has been met with both optimism and anxiety. As the World Bank noted in a 2019 report, Belt and Road Economics: Opportunities and Risks of Transport Corridors, “Many who see new business and trading opportunities from the initiative have touted its benefits for growth and development. Others have urged caution, noting significant risks.” This includes concerns about developing countries that might buckle under BRI-related debt.

The World Bank pointed out that while BRI transport projects are likely to expand trade, increase foreign investment and reduce poverty, the costs of new and upgraded infrastructure could in some cases outweigh the gains. Even successful projects could boost public debt, increase carbon emissions,

promote corruption, displace communities and fuel social risks, it reported. Concerns have also surfaced about China exporting its environmentally costly and destructive development model.

To be sure, the initiative is somewhat contentious, particularly in the West. “The controversy is fueled by a lack of transparency that makes it difficult to get reliable information on the financing, as well as the specific projects and their terms,” Mr. Dollar says. In fact, some even call the BRI “debt trap diplomacy.” The concern is that smaller, less developed nations could wind up heavily indebted to China—and, presumably, under Beijing’s sphere of influence.

While some countries are more vulnerable to debt issues, Mr. Dollar says that these same countries are often attracted to China for two key reasons. “The U.S. and EU don’t do much public infrastructure financing anymore.” Second, Western firms can’t compete with Chinese firms on project pricing.

“The U.S. and EU are the gold standard

Ceyla Pazarbasioglu, vice president for Equitable Growth, Finance, and Institutions at World Bank Group.

Silk Road Economic Belt Maritime Silk Road Initiative

the EU

public infrastructure

Chinese firms on project pricing.”

for labor and environmental regulations,” Mr. Dollar explains. “A lot of developing countries welcome China, even if it’s riskier, because the overhead isn’t desirable at their stage of development. They’re also more comfortable working with the Chinese because the way they approach projects is similar.”

Meanwhile, David Scissors, a senior fellow at The American Enterprise Institute, uses the term “overhyped” to describe the BRI and many of the associated controversies. “Arguments that China is attempting to displace the U.S. as the global hegemon are not realistic,” he says. “There’s a certain amount of hysteria that China will lock out the West. They are simply pushing for more influence within the existing system.”

Riding the Silk Wave

As China’s economic influence grows, a realignment of global business ecosystems will emerge. Dr. Nadin says that it’s important to cut through the rhetoric and the political filter that’s often used to view—and sometimes disparage—China. She suggests that businesses take a broad and expansive view of the initiative. For example, BRI isn’t only about concrete and steel; it’s also about 5G cellular, fiber optic cabling and emerging digital technologies such as artificial intelligence, along with gaining a foothold in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

The initiative is also “evolving on the green energy front,” she adds. In September 2021, President Xi Jinping informed the UN General Assembly that China would not build any coal-fired power stations abroad. Although it’s tempting to believe that Chinese businesses will be the sole beneficiaries of BRI, the reality is that all the various projects will generate economic activity around the world.

Businesses should stay tuned as the initiative unfolds—and look for openings and opportunities, Dr. Nadin says. “BRI is going to have different impacts on different

sectors—and the initial infrastructure projects are only a starting point. In many cases, these projects will support additional business activities and trade,” she explains.

Mr. Dollar agrees that while that most of the projects are heavily tilted toward Chinese contractors and that few direct supply opportunities exist—the focus is heavily on Chinese equipment and steel—it’s crucial to take a broader view.

Mr. Dollar would like the focus to shift to greater transparency and a focus on human rights while the U.S. and other nations work to establish new and deeper trade agreements that would improve the investment climate for developing countries. This includes reducing red tape around infrastructure projects and offering more generous finance terms, including debt relief when and where it’s needed.

The Council on Foreign Relations suggests that the U.S. concentrate on enhancing its diplomacy and offering high-standard alternatives to BRI, as well as offering technical support to BRI countries. Other ideas include strengthening the World Bank, promoting U.S.-based digital transformation alternatives to the developing world, and expanding U.S. immigration for researchers, scientists and engineers.

In the end, one thing is clear: The Belt and Road Initiative will reshape global economics. According to the World Bank, success will ultimately hinge on policy reforms that increase transparency, expand trade, improve debt sustainability, and mitigate environmental and social risks, as well as the risk of corruption.

If China can check all the boxes, then BRI will be a gain for the world. If not, it could wind up as just another attempt to grab influence and power. Either way, BRI will make its mark. Says Mr. Dollar: “There’s an old Chinese adage: ‘To get rich, build a road.’ China is taking the concept into the 21st century.” IQ

( Not a complete list. )

China

The Central Asia-China Gas Pipeline passes through central Uzbekistan and southern Kazakhstan and ends in China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region.

Kenya

Mombasa–Nairobi

Standard Gauge Railway: 480 kilometers (roughly 300 miles)..

Cambodia

Dam and hydropower facility with a total capacity of 2.715 billion cubic meters (7.172 billion gallons).

Russia

Yamal Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). US$27 billion project producing 16.5 million metric tons of natural gas annually.

Indonesia

142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed rail connecting Jakarta and Bandung.

Pakistan

Gwadar International Airport. US$246 million to build a new modern airport.

Hungary/Serbia

The $2.89 billion, 350-kilometer (217-mile) Budapest to Belgrade high-speed railway modernizes an existing rail line and connects the capitals of the two countries.

“The U.S. and

don’t do much

financing anymore. Second, Western firms can’t compete with

ABOVE, MICROVONE/ISTOCK

BY SAMUEL GREENGARD

Mention “e-commerce” and it’s likely that the first company that comes to mind is Amazon. The retailer’s reach extends far and wide—and the company continues to grow at a breakneck rate. In a world where innovation and disruption are the norm, there’s a new global star on the rise: Coupang.

The South Korean tech company, founded in 2010 and now listed on the New York Stock Exchange, is a major force in Asia. Since its start in e-comerce, Coupang has expanded into everything from grocery delivery to video streaming, and is pushing the accelerator on customer innovation on all fronts while posting numbers that are nothing short of breathtaking. A March 2021 initial public offering at $35 per share raked in $4.6 billion. In Q2 2021, Coupang announced that it reached $18 billion in revenue on an annualized run rate basis. Coupang customers can buy fresh food, electronics, cosmetics, clothing, exercise gear, toys, daily necessities, pet supplies and much more. They can even make payments >>>

THE TRANSFORMING ECOSYSTEMS ISSUE

How the South Korean e-tailer leverages customer-centricity to unlock a competitive edge.

“It’s no exaggeration to say we are in nearly every apartment complex and every apartment building at least once a day.”

—Bom Kim, Founder & CEO

REASON TO SMILE

Since founding Coupang in 2010, Bom Kim has led the company through a period of astonishing growth. Coupang has expanded into everything from grocery delivery to video streaming.

and watch streaming video on Coupang. But all of this is not what makes Coupang special. Customers nationwide can order from millions of affordably-priced items by midnight, which will be delivered to their doorsteps by 7:00 the following morning.

“It’s no exaggeration to say we are in nearly every apartment complex and every apartment building at least once a day,” says founder and CEO Bom Kim. As a result of its laser focus on customer-centricity—and how the company has intertwined this philosophy into its business model—Coupang is fast gaining a reputation as perhaps the most innovative retailer on the globe. By building upon the most successful aspects of other leading companies—like Amazon, UPS, Walmart and DoorDash—Coupang is pushing digital commerce into new territory.

Reinventing E-Commerce

When COVID-19 took hold in early 2020, it lit a fire under e-commerce. Amid lockdowns and a desire to remain safe, e-commerce’s share of global retail trade rose from 14% in 2019 to about 17% in 2020.

Coupang was ready to pounce. The company has engineered one of the world’s most advanced and innovative logistics and delivery systems. Its end-to-end network includes a fleet of 15,000 directly-employed drivers and more than 100 fulfillment and logistic centers in more than 30 cities across South Korea. Remarkably, 70% of Koreans live within seven miles of a logistics center. Not only can customers receive millions of affordably-priced items on their doorsteps only a few hours after ordering them, they’re able to place returns outside their door and have them picked up and credited instantly— and without a box or printing a label.

On the retailer’s website and app, a seemingly endless array of columns and rows display a mind-bending array of products along with colorful graphics. It’s a bit like an old Sears

catalog adapted for the modern-day web. Like Amazon, the site offers a robust search function and detailed product information. It leans heavily on discounts and promotions. Icons offer hot deals for different types of products, from kitchenware to sporting goods.

The company’s growth has been nothing short of dazzling. As the most widely used shopping app in South Korea, Coupang has posted 15 consecutive quarters with over 50% year over year constant-currency growth, and the total number of active customers increased 26% year over year to 17 million in the quarter ending June 30, 2021. During the pandemic, it was the only shopping app in South Korea to gain significant market share. It currently controls about one-quarter of the total e-commerce market in South Korea.

And it appears there’s no end in sight. Coupang, which had a market cap of just over $54 billion in September 2021, has watched revenue per active customer zoom upward by 36% in recent months. Meanwhile, small and medium-size businesses (SMBs) sales ballooned by 87% year over year. Today, Coupang has more than 50,000 employees, and in mid-2021, it kicked off its global expansion with successful launches in Japan and Taiwan. It also has offices in Beijing, Los Angeles, Seattle, Seoul, Singapore, Shanghai, Mountain View (California), Taipei and Tokyo.

Packaging Success

The 42-year-old Mr. Kim was born in South Korea and educated in the U.S. He earned a bachelor’s degree at Harvard University but later quit the MBA program at Harvard Business School.

In 2010, Coupang launched as a Grouponstyle promoter of products. The business later morphed into an eBay-inspired framework that tapped a third-party marketplace. All of this was enticing enough to attract US$3.4 billion in venture funding from

“Was the model we built, were the products and services we were providing, making consumers’ jaws drop? The reality was ‘no.’ If we wanted to provide an experience that really mattered to customers, we had to go through an enormous amount of change.”

—Bom Kim, Founder & CEO

Sequoia Capital, Softbank, BlackRock and others. Within three years, Coupang had reached US$1 billion in revenue and was heading toward an IPO. However, Mr. Kim opted to withdraw the stock offering and focus on building the company further before going public.

As he explains, “We had to be honest with ourselves. Once you go public it’s much harder to change your direction. Was the model we built, were the products and services we were providing, making consumers’ jaws drop? The reality was ‘No.’ If we wanted to provide an experience that really mattered to customers, we had to go through an enormous amount of change.”

After all, world-class innovation doesn’t occur by happenstance. The company was reimagined as an end-to-end shopping experience that would span devices and the customer journey. South Korea was the perfect fit, because it’s among the top 10 largest e-commerce markets in the world— and growing rapidly. As a result, Coupang established its own logistics company, Rocket Delivery, which improved upon industry and technology best practices from the likes of UPS and Amazon through its own innovations. In a country with a postal system known for slow and sometimes chaotic performance, Coupang’s idea was to amaze customers and revolutionize their perception about shopping. More than 99% of Coupang orders are delivered within 24 hours.

Like Amazon Prime, Rocket WOW

offers unlimited free shipping and deliveries with no minimum, free returns, exclusive discounts, same-day delivery and the Dawn Delivery service that gets packages ordered by midnight on doorsteps by 7:00 the following morning. This includes products as diverse as lobsters and personal computers. “It’s magical,” Mr. Kim says.

This distinctive customer experience is made possible through the billions of dollars invested in technology, infrastructure and processes. For example, Coupang leverages machine learning to forward deploy inventory closer to customers in anticipation of demand. And dynamic orchestration technology predicts and assigns the fastest and most efficient path for every order out of hundreds of millions of combinations of inventory, processing, truck and route options within seconds of the order being placed.

By all accounts, Coupang has succeeded wildly. The company has emerged as the most popular online retailer in South Korea, preventing the likes of Amazon or Alibaba from having a meaningful stake in the region. As it sets its sights on global expansion, Coupang is replicating this success in new markets by doing what it does best—performing faster and better, and by placing the customer at the heart of all they do. IQ

Headquarters: Seoul, South Korea

Founder and CEO: Bom Kim

Employees: 54,274

Revenue (Q2 2021): US$18 billion

Market Capitalization (Sept. 2021): $54 billion

Active Customers (2021): 17 million

Annual

Growth Rate: 91%

Online Market

Share: 15.7%

Age of most likely users of the platform: 50 and older

Percentage of orders delivered within 24 hours: 99.6

With more than 10,000 types of cryptocurrency now available even as the market recently topped $2 trillion in value, it can be difficult to pick preferred options. Can’t tell a Litecoin from a Polkadot? Join the club:

Unfamiliar with this nascent destination on the digital highway? Here’s a cheat sheet.

BY INSIGNIAM®

With more than one in three cryptocurrency investors equally perplexed, although 46 million Americans already own at least a share of Bitcoin, you’re in good company. But, by George, this Cryptocurrency 101 guide will help you crack the code. >>>

CRYPTO CURRENCY

is a heavily encrypted form of digital asset. It’s powered by and traded over a decentralized network of computers that maintain closely tracked ledgers of transactions known as blockchain technology, thereby providing added privacy and security. These virtual currencies—which are not issued by a central authority such as a government, and are therefore heavily resistant to third-party manipulation—are enjoying ever-increasing popularity due to their privacy, speed and resistance to outside compromise. Experts expect them to continue revolutionizing the field of digital finance over the coming decade.

Helping legitimize cryptocurrency and make it even more mainstream: its acceptance by PayPal. CoinDesk.com reported that after years debating whether to offer crypto services, the behemoth of e-commerce payment platforms decided last spring to allow users to buy and sell select cryptocurrencies directly. It’s viewed as a huge win for the digital-assets industry, although crypto assets stored on PayPal cannot be used to pay merchants or buy goods. Not yet, anyway.

To make things simpler, here’s a cheat sheet for the wild world of crypto that may help you achieve serious results for your business.

Coins vs. Altcoins vs. Tokens

Here’s the first lesson in Cryptocurrency 101: Three different types of digital currency commonly fall under the heading of cryptocurrency: coins, alternative cryptocurrency coins (altcoins) and tokens. These are primarily differentiated by the underlying technology that powers each one and the specific use case that each of these currencies is designed to support.

• Coins Cryptocurrencies built with monetary transactions and trades in mind (e.g., Bitcoin) are generally referred to as coins because they’re intended to facilitate payment or the transfer of value.

• Altcoins These are cryptocurrencies that come with their own blockchain attached. The term refers to forms of crypto that came after Bitcoin, the original cryptocurrency (i.e., all alternatives to it, such as Litecoin), and/or those that represent variants to or improvements upon Bitcoin’s underlying open source blockchain software (e.g., Ethereum or Bitcoin Cash).

• Tokens These are built on top of another blockchain, and—although technically exchangeable or tradeable assets in nature (able to take the form of customer loyalty points, airline credits, etc.)—they aren’t actual monetary currencies. For example: Many applications piggyback on the blockchain that powers Ethereum to create and manage tokens that are designed for use with their software.

How Cryptocurrency Trading Differs From Trading Stocks

Unlike stocks, which bestow ownership of shares of a company upon purchase (and possible voting rights, recompense on bankruptcy, etc.), cryptocurrencies only grant you ownership of a virtual coin or token— a critical Cryptocurrency 101 tip. Purchase one, and you’re effectively trading a single form of currency — real-world or otherwise

— for these digital assets.

Capable of being traded 24/7, though, unlike stocks (generally traded weekdays for a seven-hour period), cryptocurrency is also largely unregulated. In other words, a governing body does not verify crypto providers’ credentials, and much financial information surrounding them remains private.

While investing in stocks or in cryptocurrency is an exercise in risk and can generate unpredictable results, stock investments also tend to rise and fall based on company performance. By contrast, cryptocurrency prices—which can be hugely volatile—are often extremely speculative in nature and can be influenced by something as seemingly innocuous as one of Mr. Musk’s tweets. Cryptocurrency is typically purchased through a crypto exchange, such as Coinbase, though some brokerages such as Robinhood may allow users to purchase through their systems. For tax purposes, cryptocurrency is often treated in similar fashion as a capital asset (e.g., stocks) versus cash, and subject to capital gains tax on the sale of these assets. In other words, make more on the sale of cryptocurrency than you paid for it, and you’ll owe taxes on any remaining difference.

Predictably Unpredictable

Uncertainty is the only certainty when it comes to cryptocurrency, given the nature of these highly speculative investments and ongoing market volatility. “Stablecoins”

(whose value is tied to another asset class, such as gold or government-issued fiat currencies, in order to stabilize price) offer investors a shelter against price fluctuation. Add the sample options here to your Cryptocurrency 101 notes—they offer exposure to crypto with an eye to minimizing risk:

• Tether: stablecoin investors favor

• Diem: proposed by Facebook

• USD Coin: powered by Ethereum

• Binance: pay bills, trade on platform

• Dai: stablecoin tied to U.S. dollar

Key Takeaways for Business Leaders

Cryptocurrency has revolutionized the world of finance and investment in just over a decade. Thanks to a steady flow of new technologies and market entrants, the industry continues to evolve at a blistering clip. Embraced by the world’s largest businesses and the general public alike, its footprint is rapidly expanding, and underlying high-tech DNA is quickly finding its way into a host of new distributed and networked applications. Here are some Cryptocurrency 101 lessons that business leaders can take from the rise (and occasional rollercoasterlike dip in price) of the crypto market:

• Innovation is often as much about user experience and convenience as new technology.

• Ease of use, speed and accessibility can be sources of competitive advantage.

• Constant reinvention and experimentation are vital to maintaining growth.

• Both evolutionary change and revolutionary change can power winning results in business.

• Strategic partnerships can help you quickly scale your efforts to grow and advance in the marketplace.

• Making complex topics simple and actively providing public education is important to driving new technology adoption.

• Leveraging preexisting solutions and piggybacking on trending business needs can help you cut costs and accelerate growth. IQ

Helping legitimize cryptocurrency and make it even more mainstream: Its acceptance by PayPal , which decided last spring to allow users to buy and sell select crypto currencies directly.

BITCOIN

Market Cap:

$615 Billion

Original cryptocurrency’s price topped $50,000 in just over a decade.

Highly secure, it runs on a blockchain whose transaction ledger is added to by solving cryptographic puzzles.

ETHEREUM

$235 Billion

Monetary uses aside, Ethereum enjoys huge support among software developers looking to design sophisticated business applications. Its technologies can power nonfungible digital collectibles.

TETHER

$62 Billion

Popular with investors due to its consistency as a so-called “stablecoin” backed by governmentissued currencies such as the Euro or the U.S. dollar. Traders often look to it as a hedge against volatility.

BINANCE

$47 Billion

One of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges: Its Binance Coin can not only be used to pay bills or trade on the platform, but it can also be swapped for other cryptocurrencies.

COINBASE-ICS

Cracking the code on Cryptocurrency

CARDANO

$41 Billion

Uses “proofof-stake” technology to speed transaction processing, minimize energy usage and streamline validation by doing away with the problem-solving techniques similar to Ethereum’s.

XRP

$28 Billion

Leverages the power of Ripple’s blockchain (a money transfer network that’s designed for financial service providers) to facilitate payments, currency exchanges and other transactions.

DOGECOIN

$26 Billion

Originally started as a joke to mock Bitcoin. Based on the Doge (dog making silly comments) viral Internet meme, it’s acquired a dedicated community of fans—including billionaire Elon Musk.

USD COIN

$26 Billion

Backed by the U.S. dollar, as the name suggests, and powered by the Ethereum blockchain, USD Coin is designed with an eye toward delivering 1 USD for 1 USDC. Usable for transactions worldwide.

POLKADOT

$14 Billion

Sometimes referred to as the “blockchain of blockchains,” this Swiss open-source protocol enables software developers to connect various blockchain solutions to form a single cryptocurrency network.

UNISWAP

$11 Billion

Decentralized crypto exchange runs on the Ethereum blockchain. Uses an automated liquidity model to help manage trading. In effect, transactions aren’t aided by a bank or broker but instead by smart contracts.

Bitcoin’s increase in value in less than a decade.

Number of digital wallets expected to be in use by 2023.

Recent increase in rate of crypto theft in less than six months.

Largest Market Cap for cryptocurrencies to date.

Share of adults in the U.S. who now own Bitcoin.

Share of millennials worldwide who see Bitcoin as a safer investment than gold.

Number of Americans likely to invest in crypto in the next year.

Total number of Bitcoins mined since the currency’s launch in 2009

TOP 10 CRYPTOCURRENCY EXCHANGES | To trade cryptocurrency, you’ll need to set up an account with a crypto exchange. Typically accessed via a downloadable app and/or website, these providers allow you to buy and sell digital currencies online. As you research potential solutions, factors you’ll want to consider include which specific currencies they trade in, fees and overall security.

CRYPTOCURRENCY PROS AND CONS

PRO Quick, affordable two-party transfers

CON Security makes lost keys, passwords hard to recover

PRO Offers highly secure encrypted transactions

CON Less liquid than real cash— a digital equivalent

PRO Friendly to new technology and apps, fueling innovation

CON Private nature boosts potential for use in illegal activities

PRO Provides greater efficiencies and more expedient exchanges

CON Traded 24/7, highly volatile in valuation, can shift any time

Remarkable Results

For over three decades Insigniam has been providing the methods and applications that breathe life into Big Ideas and Bold Commitments.

Recognized by senior executives of the world’s best-run companies as an unrivaled partner in generating extraordinary performance and accomplishment.

For more information, visit www.insigniam.com