“Employee benefits around health and well-being are a major topic within the Australian culture because people in this country expect more work-life balance,” said Chi Tran, head of Workforce Market Insights and Data at Mercer. “Organizations want to make sure they have the flexible programs in place to attract and retain people. We see well-being benefits becoming increasingly non-negotiable as a core component of an organization鈥檚 ability to deliver an effective employee experience.”

The same study also showed that 97% of organizations had a health and wellness benefits program in place, and employees were more attracted to organizations that have a sense of purpose.

Pandemic Puts Employee Wellness at Center Stage

Like everything else, the pandemic has fast-tracked the future of work. Another Mercer poll revealed that respondents from one in two companies in Asia-Pacific saw indications of worsening employee burnout and pandemic fatigue. As a result, Tran said many organizations are taking a risk-based approach with data-driven prevention programs to reduce insurance premiums while addressing worker well-being, particularly mental health.

“In addition to keeping responsive employee assistance programs in place, many companies are shifting to proactive strategies that bring people in with virtual wellness workshops on a more regular basis,” she said. “There鈥檚 no one-size-fits-all program. Organizations need to listen to their different employee cohorts, investing in benefits that will resonate with everyone鈥檚 unique needs.”

Personalized, Flexible Benefit Programs

One example is SAP鈥檚 global “Pledge to Flex” program designed to fit every鈥� employee鈥檚 鈥媟ole, style, and location while continuing to meet business and customer needs. At 51风流ANZ, where the pandemic鈥檚 impact was nascent in 2020 but revved up through 2021, the company established a framework for employees to consider when determining their work style preferences.

“We want people empowered to find the ideal working style that will meet their individual, team, and customer success responsibilities,” said Debbie Rigger, head of HR at 51风流Australia and New Zealand “We have parents with young children or other caregiving responsibilities. We have early talent working at home out of their bedroom. We want them to ask themselves, ‘What is my role? Who are my stakeholders and what are their expectations? What family-related and other personal commitments do I have? Given all these factors, what do I need to do my best work?'”

Looking ahead, Rigger expects to see the unexpected, meaning employee requests for things HR has never thought of before. In the meantime, the 51风流ANZ team as doubled down on creating a safe in-person reentry experience for employees based on legislation and government guidance, as well as the company鈥檚 global policies.

“This has been more of a re-education for employees about the options they have and being transparent about what鈥檚 possible when it comes to working schedules that span full-time, part-time, compressed hours, job sharing, and even geographies,” said Rigger. “Given the border closures, people have been interested in traveling within the country while also being able to work remotely for a specified time period. Through candid conversations with managers, employees determine how, when, and where they work based on their personal circumstances and the needs of the business.”

Organizations Adjust Employee Experience to the New Normal

Flexible working practices are likely here to stay. analysts predicted that by 2023, digital transformation and business volatility would drive 70% of G2000 organizations to deploy remote or hybrid-first work models, redefining work processes and engaging diverse talent pools. The beauty of being flexible is obvious during these times of rapid change and market uncertainty.

Rigger said 51风流ANZ was already exploring how to make the most of the company鈥檚 office spaces in compliance with local legislation guidance. Hybrid work models might demand new spacial configurations, not just for social distancing but for fundamentally changed workplace norms. From impermanent individual workstations to virtual tools that let people effectively brainstorm when they aren鈥檛 in the same room, organizations need to create that employee community again, bringing people back into a space so they can continue to be more productive.

Companies still struggling with remote versus in-person work mandates are missing the point about addressing the opportunities the global pandemic continues to reveal. Innovative organizations will jump at this historic inflection point to redefine the future of work with benefits for both organizations and their employees.

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A recent EY study found that nine out of 10 respondents worldwide, including workers from ANZ, wanted flexibility in their working hours and location. Fifty-four percent of employees were prepared to quit if they weren鈥檛 offered some form of flexibility. According to Thomas Barlow, head of 51风流Fieldglass Centre of Excellence, Australia and New Zealand, the talent challenge is acute when it comes to tech employees.

鈥淭echnology permeates every part of an organization, requiring people with new skills in areas like data science, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, blockchain, robotics, and the Internet of Things (IoT). Organizations need to build a global workforce that meets digitalized business demands,鈥� said Barlow. 鈥淲orkers with specialized expertise typically operate in a highly flexible, agile way. They鈥檙e likelier to be more mobile, in charge of managing their own learning experiences and careers. They also may not be located nearby.鈥�

Complete Talent Pool Data Creates Business Resilience

The latest data from the revealed how pandemic lockdowns have accelerated the skills shortage. reported one in four Australian businesses were struggling to find suitable staff to fill job vacancies. In a recent COVID-19 Resilience Ranking from , Australia dropped 21 points compared to over 50 other major economies worldwide. To meet this workforce challenge, leaders are turning to connected data.

鈥淎s companies build more flexible, cross-border workforces, they need full transparency of all employees, including permanent and external workers,鈥� said Barlow. 鈥淲ith complete workforce data, companies are better prepared to identify and deploy the right people with the right skills to support growth forecasts, or pivot quickly in case of unexpected disruptions like the pandemic.鈥�

AI-based talent pools like have emerged to help organizations quickly match open positions with pre-qualified candidates from the global external labor pool. Integrated with and available on , WillHire curates emerging talent who have the niche skills that support digital transformation.

Global People Strategy Is Core to Business Execution

Historical talent strategies distinguished between permanent full-time employees and external workers who were typically hired to pitch in as a short-term business fix. With the advent of global marketplaces, talent strategies have transformed to flex with changing business demands.

鈥淐ompanies need to embrace fluidity, looking at talent from the perspective of business results, as opposed to permanent versus contract workers,鈥� said Marc Havercroft, global chief customer officer at 51风流SuccessFactors. 鈥淔or example, organizations using and 51风流Fieldglass solutions can easily see how many people work for the company irrespective of an end date on their contract. Data reveals where people are, what skills they have, and their work quality over time. Organizations can quickly identify gaps and find the additional specialists with the latest skills anywhere in the world.鈥�

One 51风流customer, an established ANZ-based financial services organization, needed to digitally transform to attract the next generation of customers. Using both 51风流SuccessFactors and 51风流Fieldglass solutions, leaders sourced external tech experts to build digital services, pairing them with existing employees who shared their business knowledge while gaining new skills.

At the other end of the spectrum, a native digital banking startup in ANZ relied on both 51风流solutions to help guide talent investments in business specialists with go-to-market and customer upselling and engagement capabilities. These experts rounded out the existing team鈥檚 tech-centric skills.

Employee Experience Attracts Global Talent Pool

The same EY study found that worldwide, 72% of respondents believed remotely working would likely have a negative impact on their career opportunities. That percentage was higher (82%) among employees in Asia-Pacific. With greater visibility across the entire workforce, companies can create a strong employee experience in a hybrid 鈥榳ork-from-anywhere鈥� world.

鈥淔ull transparency into an organization鈥檚 workforce capabilities and recruitment needs allows leaders to adopt a continuous learning culture with benefits to the business and employees,鈥� said Havercroft. 鈥淧eople want to learn, making their work enjoyable and career secure. They want to be valued globally for their skills and knowledge, which is probably the biggest benefit of a global talent marketplace.鈥�

Business resiliency demands new talent management strategies to match recruitment programs with forecasted growth opportunities, factoring in skills and roles that might not exist yet but are surely on the horizon. For example, SAP鈥檚 recent acquisition of SwoopTalent鈥檚 IP, an AI-based talent data platform, will allow companies to explore 鈥榳hat-if鈥� scenarios, combining real-world total workforce data to improve ROI on talent investments and other decisions as businesses evolve. Massive growth from digitalization is all well and good. Just make sure you have the business and tech experts on hand to power it.

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The latest industry analyst predictions about artificial intelligence (AI) are out, and they鈥檙e certain to oust a ton of assumptions we鈥檝e made to date. Read on to find out just how smart, creative, and sincere AI will become during the next few years.

Creative Machines Are the Future

Noting that South Africa granted the first patent to a creative AI system in 2021, researchers predicted creative AI systems will win dozens of patents in 2022. They were quick to point out that 鈥淎I will not own the products in the traditional sense 鈥� the developers of the AI systems鈥ill still enjoy commercial benefits. But companies will experiment with creative AI, knowing that these innovations may be legally protected.鈥�

Analyst Diego Lo Giudice looked ahead to 鈥淎I 2.0,鈥� which he saw fueling the development of new creative business applications, exceeding basic expectations of AI to free up workers for greater creativity. He predicted that AI would connect business processes across silos to boost business creativity and wrote that 鈥淎I鈥檚 new business models can optimize the convergence of the digital world with the physical world and drive the 鈥榓nything as a digital鈥痵ervice鈥� trend. The impact on customer experience could be huge.鈥�

Explainable AI Is Not Your Typical IT Project

Explainability and ethics were among the most widely discussed AI-related issues. Analyst Srividya Sridharan saw the market for responsible AI solutions doubling as industries adopt 鈥渞esponsible AI solutions that help companies turn AI principles such as fairness and transparency into consistent practices.鈥� And for those who fear these algorithms will run amok, analysts predicted that by 2025, to reduce reputational risks, 40% of G2000 companies will be forced to redesign their approaches to algorithmic decision-making, providing better human oversight and explainability.

AI explainability is one of topics that Ian Ryan is exploring as global head of the 51风流Institute for Digital Government. It鈥檚 part of a research series for the Australian public sector on the value and impact of technologies for employees, citizens, and society at large. Ryan said that AI can help deliver citizen services with that coveted Amazon-like experience, provided organizations set value-based, measurable objectives.

鈥淎pplications of AI consist of the person using it, the AI model itself, and the information that comes from reality; these three pieces have to be in sync, targeted towards driving a particular outcome,鈥� said Ryan. 鈥淵ou need to train the AI model continuously, keeping it updated so it can support workers as situations evolve, engineering out any bias while preserving data protection.鈥�

For business value, AI algorithms cannot function as an inscrutable black box or operate autonomously. Ryan said organizations need to build explainability into complex AI models and involve targeted employees in AI model development.

鈥淎I supports employees by taking tasks away, allowing people to be more productive and focus on high-value activities,鈥� he said. 鈥淎l can access huge amounts of seemingly disconnected data from different places and identify patterns in seconds, far faster than humans. Explainability provides the transparency people can trust, so they鈥檒l share their data knowing the organization will protect it and deliver value.鈥�

Indeed, analysts warned that while AI will help companies emerge from the pandemic in a strong position, merely adopting AI won鈥檛 be enough. Companies need to operationalize updates to AI models, 鈥渦sing integrated data and model and development pipelines to deliver consistent business value from AI. It combines automated update pipelines with strong AI governance.鈥�

AI Becomes Ubiquitous

Numerous analyst predictions tout the benefits of AI in strengthening human decisions. researchers said that 85% of enterprises will combine human expertise with AI, machine learning, natural language processing, and pattern recognition to augment foresight across the organization, making workers 25% more productive and effective by 2026. researchers saw 30% of organizations using forms of behavioral economics and AI- and machine learning-driven insights to nudge employees’ actions, leading to a 60% increase in desired outcomes by 2026.

More near term, expected traditional businesses will take a page out of digital-native practices during the pandemic with an AI-first approach to platform and digital transformation. He said that 鈥渢he more AI inside, the more enterprises can shrink the latency between insights, decisions, and results.鈥�

Unlike many previous innovations, AI is not an isolated technology that organizations can surgically apply and wait for the magic to happen. AI is an extraordinarily powerful technology with profound ramifications for organizations and people as they discover its true business potential.

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鈥淢anufacturers across a range of industries process water that is on the scale of megaliters per day,鈥� said Abhyuday Bhartia, chief technology officer at Streamwise D.I. 鈥淥ur devices and decision intelligence platform guide companies through collecting the right data and give them the tools to effortlessly find insights. This transparency lowers operational costs and risk while improving the organization’s ability to meet compliance regulations.鈥�

Streamwise D.I.鈥檚 blue chip customers include recognized brands in the food and beverage, mining, and chemicals industries, as well as municipal water authorities. Customers can gain business value early with smaller initial projects while making further improvements over time.

Bubbling Up Process Inefficiencies

The Streamwise D.I. platform collects real-time information from cameras, IoT-based sensors, and other instruments installed on machinery at the customer鈥檚 facilities. The data becomes a 鈥渄igital twin鈥� that feeds into a cloud-based dashboard, where it鈥檚 analyzed and shared as action items with designated team members. People have immediate access to the information through their mobile device or Web browser.

鈥淲ithin an hour of turning on the system, operations teams can quickly see water contaminant levels and if operations are out of compliance with regulations,鈥� said Bhartia. 鈥淥ver time, the algorithms calculate asset and process inefficiencies, as well as environmental compliance with that company鈥檚 municipal trade waste agreements.鈥�

Among the biggest regulatory mandates is the volume and type of chemicals that manufacturers use in wastewater treatment. The issue is as much about regulatory compliance as cost-savings.

鈥淯sing the data, the operator can adjust mechanisms and treatment processes to stay in compliance and achieve great efficiencies,鈥� said Bhartia. 鈥淲ith historical and real-time data, the platform can create what-if scenarios, and make automated operational control and management decisions. Companies may discover they鈥檙e using types and levels of chemicals that aren鈥檛 necessary.鈥�

One customer, an Australian cereal manufacturer, significantly lowered wastewater treatment operating costs by reducing unnecessary chemical usage. A dairy processing plant lowered trade waste charges by 26% and operator oversight by 80% for a total savings of over one-quarter of a million dollars each year.

Data Reduces Operational Expenses

Addressing environment, sustainability, and corporate governance (ESG) imperatives also hinges on operational efficiencies. In monitoring and analyzing data from water treatment operations, Bhartia said that Streamwise D.I. delivers insights with far-reaching sustainable business impact.

鈥淎re operations working to their optimized efficiency? Are they working to agreed-upon specifications, or are they actually failing? Does equipment need maintenance or replacement?鈥� he said. 鈥淯nderstanding and acting on all of these issues affects efficiencies for energy savings too.鈥�

Digital Intelligence Modernizes Wastewater Treatment

Bhartia has been with Streamwise D.I. since it transitioned into a digital services platform. He agreed with the startup鈥檚 founder, Alastair Lockey, that AI had the power to modernize wastewater treatment, closing the gap between business exigencies and sustainability mandates.

鈥淲astewater treatment systems are inefficient and extremely complex with unique environments and operations,鈥� said Bhartia. 鈥淲e knew intelligent digitalization could help simplify processes, providing operators with actionable insights to meet operational targets, budget objectives, and regulatory mandates. There鈥檚 enormous global potential to make a real difference for business and the environment worldwide.鈥�

Incredible Sustainability Partnership with SAP.iO

Streamwise D.I. was part of the energy and natural resource cohort of . Bhartia found value in SAP鈥檚 hands-on product commercialization and go-to-market support.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been an incredible opportunity working with SAP. We鈥檝e learned so much from SAP鈥檚 experts, and their validation of our solution has provided us with greater market credibility and visibility,鈥� he said. 鈥淏eing integrated with increases our collective sustainability impact for industrial water management customers globally.鈥�

Streamwise D.I. is available on .

Tech Can Turn Back the Water Pollution Tide

Sustainable business demands technologies to head off increasingly dire predictions about our quality of life and very survival. The said that around 80% of the world’s wastewater is returned to the environment without adequate treatment. These experts predicted that two-thirds of the world鈥檚 population could be water stressed by 2025. But they also made it clear that 鈥渃hange is possible鈥ncreased awareness, strengthened prevention, and smart investments using new technology are needed to turn back the tide of water pollution.鈥�

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Like many countries worldwide, the Australian government has embarked on massive critical infrastructure reform, allocating upwards of to a range of projects. Make no mistake, this spend on the likes of renewable energy, advanced transportation, and communications networks that help keep people fed, connected, and safe represents the future of this country鈥檚 sustainable economy and society.

Digitalization Reduces Project Risk, Increases Cost Savings

This could be the next golden age for the engineering and construction industry, but only if public and private sector innovators also usher in the next phase of . Enter digitized infrastructure, a vision that promises to foster groundbreaking collaboration across the lifetime of a project, from design and construction through operations, maintenance, and beyond. It can help the entire infrastructure ecosystem 鈥� government agencies, private contractors, logistics and engineering firms, and other partners 鈥� sustainably complete major projects on time and within budget.

鈥淭his is much more than automating manual processes. A digitalized infrastructure platform fundamentally changes how people collaborate on large infrastructure projects,鈥� said Chris Peck, executive general manager of Public Services at 51风流ANZ. 鈥淯niting individuals, teams, and organizations on a single platform with a common data environment that captures real-time data will support accurate decision-making across the full life span of the asset.鈥�

Advanced Digital Twins See Around Corners

Digital twins are foundational to the digitized infrastructure vision. A digital twin centralizes all the data involved in a project, allowing the asset owner, prime contractor and subcontractors, architects, engineers, council, regulatory bodies, and any other designated partner to effortlessly share information and move the project along in a timely manner. The digital twin integrates and analyzes information from all types of applications, including engineering and architecture CAD, spatial, SCADA, asset management, and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems.

However, according to Greg Stone, head of Corporate Development at Arup, a 75-year-old global design and engineering consultancy, these aren鈥檛 your typical digital twins.

鈥淲e鈥檝e been working with three-dimensional representations for quite some time, but with digitization we can level up to an industrial, enterprise-wide scale,鈥� he said. 鈥淣ow we can innovate to stress test an asset structurally against numerous real-world criteria to make modifications before something is built or retrofit to an existing structure.鈥�

Stone said that Arup is working with transport authorities in to create powerful agent-based models (ABM) for 鈥榳hat-if鈥� planning purposes. Whether it鈥檚 a new transport system, existing building redesign, or other community infrastructure project, the model can analyze the potential impact of proposed changes, factoring in a wide range of issues, such as what planners should consider given the impact on the environment and society at-large.

Digital Thread of Information Takes the Long View

Connected data is particularly important when companies such as cloud services providers are designated as 鈥渃ritical asset owners鈥� by the Australian government. As managers of information that鈥檚 required to operate infrastructure like renewable electricity plants, new hospitals, and transportation hubs, these providers need to comply with certain regulations so they can deliver a trusted essential service.

鈥淥rganizations typically use different software programs, making approval processes unnecessarily cumbersome and often error-prone,鈥� said Johnny Clemmons, global vice president and head of Engineering, Construction, and Operations at SAP. 鈥淒igitizing the process breaks down silos between the construction, handover, and maintenance phases, helping partners work more efficiently and accurately with full transparency into progress against expected milestones. For example, the foundation of end-to-end digitization is connected to the digital twin and intelligent networks.鈥�

Large infrastructure projects are expensive and have decades-long life spans. With data and visualization connected in a digital twin, organizations can improve cost savings, better manage safety and risk, and develop services to meet evolving community and citizen needs.

鈥淒igital engineering harnesses data to get better outcomes for the built environment,鈥� said Stone. 鈥淏ringing together data from the business domain, technical engineering specialists, and enterprise-grade business process platforms unites every stage of a project in a much more streamlined and impactful way. This is especially important to help meet net-zero targets.鈥�

Arup created a that helps offshore wind farms more reliably monitor irreplaceable foundations, cost-effectively extending the structure鈥檚 operating life. By combining monitoring data with the wind farm鈥檚 asset management system, operators have greater insights into performance for risk-based inspection and maintenance.

Future-Proofing Digitalization

Digitized infrastructure is much more than the next transient, shiny thing. It鈥檚 the thread that weaves together vast amounts of data to tell the full story of an asset to every partner working on a project. It can deliver much more than short-term efficiencies and cost savings across major industries like public services, utilities, transportation, oil and gas, mining, and healthcare. If we start now, community planners in 2051 will have the data to know exactly what went into a project completed in 2021, meaning fewer costly surprises and better long-term results for the community. That鈥檚 the kind of innovation future generations are counting on from us.

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鈥淲e鈥檙e responsible for managing critical energy infrastructure nationwide and need flexible technology in order to operate and respond to crises. As we expand and innovate through acquisitions and partnerships, we needed an integrated system with standardized technology and processes,鈥� said Shaun Code, general manager of Enterprise Technology at AGL Energy. 鈥淲ith a rich API layer, 51风流S/4HANA provides a core ecosystem with the ability to adapt and extend operations, directly supporting our business growth and differentiating innovation.鈥�

Tech Boosts Health and Safety Innovation

replaced over 50 disparate legacy enterprise resource planning (ERP) applications with , dramatically simplifying systems with consistent processes throughout the organization. Teams are taking advantage of the integrated core platform to build extensions on top of critical business processes, such as health and safety requirements.

鈥淲e conduct walks to identify potential hazards in facilities or the field,鈥� said Code. 鈥淏uilding on top of , we鈥檝e developed a mobile app that allows our people to capture and share incidents and hazardous conditions immediately. We can conduct more walks over a shorter time period, increasing our ability to meet health and safety commitments.鈥�

AGL Energy recently won an for its AGL One iOS app. Built on 51风流S/4HANA with 51风流Integration Suite and 51风流Extension Suite, the mobile app provides employees with one seamless digital experience, allowing them to access the right tool at the right time from anywhere.

Digital Platform Minimizes Plant Downtime

As the largest electricity generator in Australia, plant maintenance for AGL Energy is not just about scheduling work orders and completing tasks in a timely manner. Integrating data from cloud solutions from SAP, including and , helps provide AGL Energy with visibility across systems, including procurement and its important contract workforce.

鈥淭he platform is a unifying hub for effective integration and automation that helps streamline our end-to-end daily processes,鈥� said Code. 鈥淲e can make sure that we have the parts to maintain operations, the contingent workers to complete the job, and the speed to pay our suppliers efficiently.鈥�

Sixty Percent Time-Savings from Continuous Innovation

AGL Energy has made a number of valuable process improvements on top of 51风流S/4HANA, notably an intuitive mobile app that reduced the number of steps in job site environmental analyses by 60%. Before work can be done on sites with hazards, teams need to have effective controls in place for people鈥檚 safety. Previously, teams used different processes and places to collect and store information.

鈥淲e鈥檝e sped up the process with automatically prepopulated data to complete forms and unified approvals with consistent documentation across the company,鈥� said Code. 鈥淧eople now can spend less time navigating paperwork and more time ensuring their work is completed safely. With a continuous data loop of feedback, we are constantly improving processes that matter to our business.鈥�

Flexibility for Resilient Business

When AGL Energy鈥檚 employees switched to remote work at the height of the pandemic last year, the company鈥檚 automated system literally helped power business continuity. Employees in different locations were easily trained to step in as health- and weather-related events unfolded.

鈥淗aving a well-designed cloud-based system meant we could quickly scale up to thousands of employees working from home,鈥� said Code. 鈥淚t also gave us greater planning control during a highly uncertain time, with the flexibility to shift operations between Australia and India in the wake of major disruptions, including a cyclone.鈥�

Cloud-Based Platform Connects Data and Insights

Business results from centralizing ERP systems on one platform have been palpable company wide. Because leaders have a clear line of sight through inventory and procurement, work completion rates are faster with fewer instances of costly rescheduling. Sharing inventory data between warehouses at different generator sites saves time and reduces costs. The company can easily find and reuse available equipment, instead of ordering new parts from far-flung suppliers. In procurement, teams can more easily source the right goods and services from the right suppliers at the best price. The impact on financial systems has also been profound, reducing the time spent on month-end closings from days to hours.

epitomizes the evolving business opportunities from the collision between technology and the industry itself.

鈥淭here鈥檚 never been a more exciting time to be in the energy industry,鈥� said Code. 鈥淲e are committed to this digital transformation journey with our customers and partners. Whether customers are getting power from solar panels, charging battery-operated EVs, and other devices, going online, or just staying comfortable and connected at any time, technology underpins our determination to make services more sustainable, reliable, and affordable.鈥�

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Leaders from two high-performing organizations in ANZ recently shared their experiences with digitalization during a hosted by Des Fisher, innovation principal at 51风流ANZ. Here is a sampling of the far-ranging thoughts on the sustainable business realities behind innovating on cloud-based digital platforms.

Digitalization Is a Mindset and Tech Transformation

For Australian-based Stockland, digitalization involved transforming people鈥檚 mindsets along with systems company-wide. As one of the largest diversified real estate groups in Australia, the company owns, develops, and manages a large portfolio of retail town centers, workplace and logistics assets, residential communities, and retirement living villages. It鈥檚 replaced over 100 disparate, legacy software systems with 51风流software, including and , as well as embedded artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics.

鈥淲e now have a single source of the truth,鈥� said Tiernan O’Rourke, CFO at Stockland. 鈥淚鈥檓 absolutely convinced that in time we鈥檒l look back and say that was one of the best things we did in the 70-year history of the company鈥ur digitization journey shows that unless you鈥檙e on the journey you鈥檙e going to struggle in business, not only in Australia, but globally.鈥�

Stockland began by defining digitalization in the company鈥檚 own terms. The digital platform was designed to strike a balance between achieving three objectives: organizational risk, governance, and business growth.

鈥淲e first looked at what digitization meant to us and came at it by putting the company on the core 51风流platform,鈥� said O鈥橰ourke. 鈥淲e鈥檙e a tactile industry of property, bricks, and mortar. Getting people鈥檚 minds away from physical to digital was鈥ne of the biggest obstacles to overcome.鈥�

Digital Backbone Drives Innovation

Oil and gas provider OMV New Zealand recently won an 51风流Innovation Award for its groundbreaking digitalization that included digital twins and augmented reality (AR) in onshore and offshore inspections. Replacing paper-heavy processes with digitalized and integrated workflows based on the latest mobile solutions and wearable technologies will help OMV improve decision-making, performance, and efficiencies in inspections and maintenance. Its integrated workflow management relies on 51风流S/4HANA, , , and HoloLens 2.

鈥淭he use of automation and AI-driven technologies for creating intelligent digital twins is a key enabler for global scalability and accelerates creating the digital backbone of the company during digital transformation. Enhancing this technology with an augmented reality experience including mark-up annotations provides a solid basis for data insights, data-driven decision-making, and performance optimization,鈥� said Farid Akbari, functional lead for Digital Transformation at OMV New Zealand. 鈥淭his innovation project will change the way we are working and enable us to position ourselves among digital front-runners within our industry.鈥�

Digital Platforms Are Core to Supplier Relationships

Acknowledging that no business does business alone, O鈥橰ourke said that Stockland鈥檚 deep supplier relationship management strategy is foundational to customer centricity.

鈥淚f you don鈥檛 partner with best-in-breed, like-minded companies to help deliver premium services to customers, you won鈥檛 win,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e have 14% market share in residential business鈥ecause we evaluate every step of the customer journey, including supplier choice鈥ou can鈥檛 know your suppliers unless you have deep relationships and are collaborating with them at a very granular level鈥ollaboration is an absolute threshold issue in business today.鈥�

Close Gap Between DX and Business Realities

When asked about some of the biggest digital transformation challenges, Akbari discussed the gap between innovation aspirations and reality. He pointed out that while everyone wants simplicity, getting there means answering difficult questions.

鈥淲e asked ourselves if we had the right organization in place to achieve digital maturity,鈥� he recalled. 鈥淥ther questions were about managing resistance to change and how to actively support the change management process with tools that were changing the way we work鈥e asked how to build and retain skills over time as innovations like blockchain, the Internet of Things (IoT), and cloud computing continue [to emerge].鈥�

Akbari also warned organizations not to neglect core details such as infrastructure capabilities, technology integration, and resultant business process changes.

鈥淥ften the business comes up with a good idea, but we鈥檙e not ready yet,鈥� he said. 鈥淔or example, AR had to be integrated into the environment鈥ou also have to consider operational maturity鈥s a global gas and oil company, we have different maturity levels of all assets and have to map where we are for each asset and how we will achieve that automation level.鈥�

Sustainability Is Much More Than Climate Change

While ESG (environmental, social, and governance) demands tend to emphasize climate change, O’Rourke urged companies to consider all aspects of sustainability, including diversity.

鈥淓veryone talks about climate change, but that鈥檚 just about the environment. To do business successfully鈥ou鈥檙e going to have to be very balanced in the E, S, and G of ESG,鈥� he said. 鈥淓veryone is focused on net zero carbon, and rightly so. But we can鈥檛 do that in isolation鈥e have to jump on [behavior change] proactively to get suppliers to work with us in a way allows us to operate effectively. On the diversity side, business has been playing lip service for so long and needs to get serious about focusing on this change.鈥�

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Leaders from two Australian-based companies recently shared their thoughts on winning CX strategies during a virtual session hosted by Scott Treller, executive general manager of 51风流Customer Experience in ANZ.

Connected Data Takes the Guesswork Out of Personalized CX

Laminex is an iconic Australian-based brand; its cabinetry, doors, and other quality manufactured products are ubiquitous in buildings nationwide. The company is digitally transforming its B2B commerce and digital operations to get closer to its trade customers as well as architects and designers.

鈥淲e want to use CX tools to drive insights鈥o we can serve up content and functionality that鈥檚 relevant to customers and what they want to achieve,鈥� said Amanda Green, head of Digital at Laminex. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really important to base personalization on the voice of customer data and not just what we think or feel someone might need, and that the information is contextual and relevant to that customer.鈥�

Never Assume What the Customer Wants

IDP Education helps international students study in English-speaking countries. Doing business in multiple cultures and languages worldwide, the company created a CX road map that targeted where digital could add value and, equally important, where it could not.

鈥淚t may not be possible for a customer to travel hours to visit one of our offices鈥r the customer may not want a digital experience鈥e listened to what worked for the customer and allowed them the choice,鈥� said Chris Costley, director, Customer and Operations Transformation, IDP Education. 鈥淭his鈥as a powerful opportunity for us to scale services in a much more efficient and not just cost-effective, but customer-effective way.鈥�

The company selected to help create a 鈥榙igital ecosystem鈥� that connects customers with company offices for a seamless experience from online inquiry through contact center support and in-person visits.

鈥淥ur goal is to respond to customer inquiries in minutes, not hours,鈥� said Costley. 鈥淲ith data from one connected, consistent platform鈥hen the customer walks into the office and registers at the kiosk, counselors know what they鈥檙e interested in鈥e鈥檝e had a fantastic response from our customers.鈥�

Adjust B2C Strategies for B2B Customers

Green recommended building customer insights into all CX touch points, including Web sites, from the ground up. While every industry aims to emulate popular B2C strategies that foster consumer relationships to increase purchases and loyalty, B2B companies still need to adapt those approaches for their customers鈥� specific expectations.

鈥淕et it right from the beginning and have a long-term road map. For some B2B sites, they鈥檝e been approached from a B2C lens,鈥� she said. 鈥淏2B customers just want to get in larger orders quickly, yet they鈥檙e given a B2C experience鈥ome companies set up the Web site鈥inus customer insights or journey mapping鈥ou need true customer validation from the beginning.鈥�

Root Out Internal CX Bias

Costley warned against letting uninformed opinions dominate CX decisions. Companies need to cultivate an outside-in view that reflects what customers want.

鈥淎void the HIPPO effect, where the highest paid person鈥檚 opinion dominates the discussion,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his is not always in the best interests of the customer鈥f you can鈥檛 listen to what the customer is telling you and advocate for that, then internal bias will rule鈥uild your [CX] business case around the fundamental customer problem that you are solving.鈥�

Figure Out Where Digital Can Make a Difference to Customers

Green also advised taking the time to identify and understand customer segments by capturing and analyzing data from various sources on an ongoing basis.

鈥淢ake sure you understand the customer鈥檚 problems that they鈥檙e trying to solve and…in what part of their journey you can add value,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 always solve everything. After implementation, review it to see if it met your metrics and did what you expected it to do. If it didn鈥檛, go back and iterate and get the voice of the customer to see where you went wrong and what you could have done better. It鈥檚 never done and dusted. CX is always constantly changing.鈥�

Most importantly, winning customer experiences never substitute digital interactions for the human touch where it鈥檚 needed most.

鈥淒igital enables us to get to a wider customer segment that could be quite difficult to reach offline,鈥� said Green. 鈥淎 sales rep can only do so much by themselves鈥igital can provide baseline information, like documents or samples people initially request. When the rep visits the customer, they are the cherry on top. They provide the relationship-building and personal attention the customer needs.鈥�

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While these descriptors weren鈥檛 immediately unique, the conversation was. I caught up with one of the experts, Aidan Brecknell, who leads the Digital Supply Chain team at 51风流ANZ, for his thoughts on what leading organizations are experiencing right now.

Resilient Supply Chains Pivot with Incredible Speed

Having worked closely with supply chain leaders in Australia and New Zealand, Brecknell said that organizations were redefining supply chain resilience for sustainable business.

鈥淭he pandemic unleashed new challenges far beyond the capabilities of traditional, lean supply chains that focused on executing repeatable processes at scale,鈥� he said. 鈥淟eaders understand that they need to address a new set of challenges, like being able to turn on a dime to find different sources for raw materials, or even design and produce entirely new products. These organizations are modeling different scenarios, building in contingency plans, and executing on those.鈥�

During the session, Brecknell and Martin Barkman, senior vice president and global head of Digital Supply Chain Marketing and Solutions at SAP, shared the 鈥渨inning formula鈥� of modern supply chains. Unlike their lean predecessors, resilient supply chains are both customer- and employee-centric, built on relationships with sustainable suppliers, and based on product sustainability across the entire life cycle of an item.

Digitalization Transforms More Than Supply Chains

The pandemic forced companies to understand and act on . Having data in digital form has long been the norm. Digitalization means organizations can both capture intelligent data and change business processes, including how supply chains operate. To be clear, this is not taking the same processes and making them digital. This is about creating completely new ways of managing supply chains by connecting information company-wide and across applications and partners.

Brecknell summed it up like this: 鈥淪upply chains have been pushed and tested to their limits, and they鈥檝e become so reliant, particularly locally, on their ecosystem suppliers to access raw materials. It became evident quickly of the importance to digitalize processes within the supply chains, as well as the supply network itself. In Australia and New Zealand, we saw some tremendous examples of where customers had invested ahead of the curve and were able to transition quickly because of that agility in their supply chain.鈥�

One global industrial materials manufacturer digitalized supply chain processes to centrally manage over 200 inventory processes across 60 sites. The objective was to improve forecast accuracy for on-time delivery and greater profitability. Another 51风流customer, an energy and natural resources company, digitalized operations to better track freight emissions, providing real-time metrics for compliance with carbon-neutral goals.

Interconnected Data for Supply Chain Resilience

Brecknell said there鈥檚 been significant customer uptake of 51风流Business Network that brings together information from sourcing and production through finance, transportation logistics, and delivery, including the entire product life cycle. With immediate, connected insights, companies can more profitably sense and respond to disruptions in a strategic, synchronized manner. Organizations can create more individualized, high-quality products in response to changing customer demands. They can prove their sustainability commitment as reflected in their choice of suppliers and operations. They can even attract and keep top talent .

鈥� allows organizations to connect all of their business partners on one central platform,鈥� said Brecknell. 鈥淲ith complete visibility into the entire supply chain, companies can collaborate with suppliers to source, track, and trace materials faster for shorter product delivery time frames as well.鈥�

As Barkman said during the session, 鈥�By capturing all the information about how the supply chain is operating, we preserve the digital thread of the supply chain. We have the information of how a product is being used, how assets are performing, and feed that back not just to the supply chain and manufacturing, but all the way to how products are designed.鈥�

Making a Business Case for Supply Chain Networks

The elephant in the room is that interconnected business networks aren鈥檛 the reality in most organizations. Brecknell agreed that while connecting all this data and changing mindsets about how business operates is a huge undertaking, it鈥檚 well worth it.

鈥淥rganizations are getting on board with supply chain resiliency and sustainability because it鈥檚 good for business. With an extended collaborative network, organizations can mitigate supply chain risk even in the face of unexpected disruption,鈥� said Brecknell. 鈥淚f an organization really wants to build resiliency and sustainability into its supply chain, they have to have the data, and that has to be aligned across the entire supply chain.鈥�

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鈥淐ompanies that recognize the role of technology in transforming their business models are the ones that have been able to thrive,鈥� said Chris Willcocks, head of Intelligent Spend Management at 51风流ANZ. 鈥淐ustomers are focused on driving visibility in their supply chains and through their data, becoming agile , increasing the resilience of their functions in business, and identifying and reducing risk.鈥�

Intelligent Enterprises Innovate with Business Networks

Speaking with Baber Farooq, senior vice president of Intelligent Spend Management at SAP, during , Willcocks gave the virtual audience a glimpse into the future of procurement. It鈥檚 built on insights from quality data across supply chains, bringing buyers much closer to their suppliers. Noting that procurement doesn鈥檛 exist in a vacuum, Willcocks said that collaborative business networks are foundational to .

鈥淲hen you鈥檙e connected not only to your suppliers but to your customers and their customers, you make the move to being an intelligent enterprise,鈥� he said.

Autonomous Procurement for Intelligent Spend

Just when the world needs to boost productivity to recover from the worldwide pandemic, markets are facing potentially dire shortages of both goods and labor. The answer lies in intelligent procurement, where people do the things that machines cannot replicate.

鈥淧rocurement is at the heart of solving these [productivity] problems,鈥� said Farooq. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why we鈥檙e focused on automating more and more processes 鈥� what we call autonomous procurement. Intelligent spend is finding out what machines can do and letting machines do that, and getting people to focus on the things that people do, which is establishing strategic relationships with suppliers.鈥�

Digitalized Procurement Translates to Business Innovation

In digitalizing forecasting, inventory management, and other collaboration points between buyers and suppliers, business networks have profoundly changed procurement. Teams have the time to be more productive, which translates to innovation.

鈥淚 was talking to an automotive customer that said that over 90% of the innovation it has in its cars came from its suppliers,鈥� said Farooq. 鈥淎nother customer in Asia recently launched an initiative where it used 51风流Business Network to help support the goal of paying all suppliers within seven days. The network allows you to foster that amazing relationship with the supplier because everything is digital鈥eople can do what they do best, which is driving relationships and working on innovation.鈥�

Farooq challenged the audience to ask themselves, despite all the technological innovations the world has experienced in the past decade, if they had more time today for their work than they did 10 years ago.

鈥淭echnology has come about to make people more productive, but it has to get out of the way,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he heart of artificial intelligence (AI) is to make businesses more effective鈥f we can make procurement organizations more productive, procurement organizations can make their entire business more productive, becoming a strategic advisor to the C-suite.鈥�

As for those organizations that regret not digitalizing fast enough to head off the worst business impacts from this pandemic, it鈥檚 not too late to prepare now for the next supply chain disruptions headed our way soon.

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With approximately 4,600 employees in Australia and 182,000 worldwide, Veolia ANZ has extended its sustainable business commitment to both customers and workers. The company鈥檚 COVID-19 crisis response team in Australia and New Zealand began using this past year to stay connected with workers and address their challenges.

鈥淚t鈥檚 critical that we constantly communicate with employees to understand their challenges and act quickly to address their needs,鈥� said Alexandre Moreau, chief people and safety officer at Veolia ANZ. 鈥淲e needed a quick and easy solution to keep people connected, whether it was managers and their teams or customers. Qualtrics helped us make sure that our people were okay and receiving the support they needed.鈥�

Sustainability is in Veolia鈥檚 DNA. The company鈥檚 business portfolio includes providing environmental solutions across water, waste management, and energy. With operations and treatment facilities nationwide, it serves customers of all sizes 鈥� from local cafes and food chains to industrial facilities. One of its business units helps municipal water customers provide safe drinking water for their communities and industrial clients to more sustainably manage water in their operations, while its energy division helps companies build energy resilience and become carbon neutral.

Listening Translates Employee Feedback Into Engagement

As a designated essential service during the pandemic, Veolia ANZ provided the same level of support for customers despite significant challenges, including social distancing, schedule disruptions, and lockdowns. During the height of the crisis, it needed even more flexibility to respond to highly changeable situations. For example, workloads increased in the health sector because of pandemic-related activities. Meanwhile, some employees were working remotely, while others had to be in the field. The company used XM solutions from 51风流and Qualtrics to stay in touch with employees.

Kate Moonen, head of Marketing and Digital Experience at Veolia ANZ, was part of the company鈥檚 pandemic response team. Speaking during , she discussed how short, but targeted surveys helped the company stay in touch with its diverse workforce that includes truck drivers, machine operators, engineers, lawyers, and sustainability experts in urban and remote locations.

鈥淲e really wanted to understand that our people, particularly essential workers, were feeling supported,鈥� she said. 鈥淒id they have enough PPE equipment to do their jobs safely? What were their concerns about their mental health and well-being? Based on that feedback, it helped our team formulate what we were going to communicate and what actions we needed to take to continue to support our people.鈥�

Initially, the team was surprised at the high employee engagement levels with the surveys. Over time, the company rolled out new activities based on the feedback. These included regularly scheduled, anywhere, any device communications with senior leadership through live webinars and question-and-answer sessions. In response to employee requests, executives also sent short video messages that employees could watch on their mobile phones, with personalized stories from company leaders about their lives outside of work and how they adapted to the changed working environment.

鈥淧eople felt they wanted to take the opportunity to be heard,鈥� said Moonen. 鈥淲e would often share regular communications with them about what came out of the latest pulse and what we were going to do about it. If you鈥檙e asking people for their time, it鈥檚 critical to demonstrate what you鈥檙e doing with that feedback to meet their needs.鈥�

Continuous Dialogue Through Employee Surveys

Just like any aspect of sustainable business, employee engagement is not a one-and-done effort.

鈥淲e鈥檙e seeing strong employee engagement every time we roll out a new survey,鈥� said Moreau. 鈥淚nstead of waiting a year to connect with employees, Qualtrics has given us a more agile response tool with a quick pulse check that our people appreciate and we can rely on for updated feedback to make better decisions. We want to know how people are feeling in a fast-changing business environment.鈥�

Go Digital for Fast Action

Moreau said companies should be explicit about what employees have shared and how they鈥檙e taking action. Even if there isn鈥檛 an immediate answer, people appreciate the transparency.

Moonen also advised employers not to overthink the survey process.

鈥淪ustainable business is all about agility,鈥� she said. 鈥淐ollecting the feedback and acting quickly is far more valuable than spending months iterating questions. Digital technology gives us the ability to constantly evolve and adapt as customer expectations, market conditions, and employee experiences shift.鈥�

Future of Work Is in Employee Experience

In the wake of the pandemic, many employees yearn for a greater sense of belonging. They want more help with their individual career goals and to have pride in their workplace. Getting the employee experience right is part of every organization鈥檚 transformational journey to sustainable business.

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鈥淐ompanies need an integrated, holistic system that brings information together in a unified way for greater visibility across operations,鈥� said Chris Willcocks, vice president and head of Intelligent Spend Management at SAP听ANZ. 鈥淭hey can monitor, measure, and manage the entire contractor engagement life cycle in real-time to ensure that procurement and health and safety policies and processes are consistently enforced. In an environment where human lives are at risk and unplanned shutdowns can cost millions per day, doing this right is absolutely critical.鈥�

Balance External Workforce Safety with Productivity

Research from an conducted in collaboration with 51风流Fieldglass showed that, across all industries, 42% of workforce spend is on external labor. What鈥檚 more, industries like mining, oil and gas, utilities, chemicals, and heavy manufacturing typically average higher percentages of contingent workers as part of their overall workforce population. The trouble is, external workers often face additional time pressures, potentially increasing safety risks.

Findings from FEFO Consulting鈥檚 confirmed this challenge. The index benchmarked feedback about safety, engagement, leadership, and systems from over 200,000 respondents in asset-intensive companies primarily based in ANZ. Compared to employees, contract workers were 24% likelier to feel pressured to compromise safety to complete a job and 10% likelier to have seen colleagues compromise safety for the sake of shortcuts.

鈥淓xternal workforces often consist of short-term labor that鈥檚 expected to carry out complex, specialized work at speed as they interact with numerous stakeholders,鈥� said Mark Wright, managing director at FEFO Consulting. 鈥淚n driving a high-performance culture, don鈥檛 put productivity before safety. That leads to a culture of rushing to get the job done, as opposed to looking after your workmates and coming home safely.鈥�

Minimize Risk with Tech and Culture Change

Asset-intensive industries face growing regulatory pressure in Australia. Industrial manslaughter laws and punishments can amount to fines in the tens of millions with executive liability that could mean lengthy imprisonment. To prevent incidents, Wright recommended a combination of technology innovations plus workforce culture change.

鈥淭ake a pragmatic, risk-based approach by focusing on compliance requirements that will actually add value. Apply technology to simplify, gain efficiencies, and improve the user experience,鈥� said Wright. 鈥淢ake culture changes by setting clear expectations that balance safety before production. Recognize positive performance and create a great experience so external workers can easily follow processes and model behaviors that meet both compliance and productivity objectives.鈥�

Digitalization for Business Results

To operate safely and efficiently, asset-intensive industries need to capture and understand mountains of data that reflect workforce activities spanning recruitment, hiring, and daily on-site performance. For many organizations, has profitable business impact.

A global mining company with major operations in Australia increased workforce visibility, process efficiencies, and cost savings by integrating 51风流Fieldglass solutions with its core 51风流ERP system. The company improved regulatory compliance across external workforce processes, from engagement through offboarding. Supervisors reduced their workload significantly by eliminating time-consuming administrative steps such as service entry sheets for the external workforce. They also saved costs by having one consistent system for worker types and rate cards.

Pandemic-Era Business Resilience

Although the pandemic didn鈥檛 hurt Australia as much as other harder-hit countries, remotely located industries were affected due to their heavy reliance on a more transient workforce. These people often travel across state borders within Australia or fly in from other regions of the world. Earlier lockdowns contained the pandemic鈥檚 spread but restricted the flow of contingent workers.

鈥淭he smartest organizations have learned from the pandemic鈥檚 challenges. They鈥檙e looking at risk beyond likelihood and consequence to consider the velocity and speed of how major risks can impact them,鈥� said Willcocks. 鈥淔or example, we just launched , a solution designed for asset-intensive industries. Companies can quickly assign large volumes of workers by task, tracking and managing spend for complex plant maintenance scenarios and, most importantly, helping to ensure health and safety compliance.鈥�

External Workforce Brings Innovation Opportunities

The pandemic鈥檚 speedy, devastating impact is now kindling innovation. Wright urged organizations to move beyond purely compliance-based external workforce selection and management and consider new ways suppliers can add value.

鈥淚nstead of asking your external workforce suppliers hundreds of questions about their risk and injury statistics during pre-qualification and annual reviews, ask targeted questions on how they think you can innovate,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f someone can improve your safety with innovations, that will help you quickly adapt to fast-moving threats.鈥�

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Globally, researchers found that diverse organizations were more profitable and innovative, and did a better job of retaining top talent. analysts said that companies in many industries have tied DEI goals into numerous organizational activities such as employee pipelines and compensation and supply chain partnerships. However, an article in reported that although one in 59 people was on the autism spectrum, 32% of working age Australians with autism were unemployed. Experts explored the importance of creating neurodiverse workplaces during a recent episode of , hosted by Rushenka Perera, head of Marketing at 51风流ANZ.

Understanding Neurodiversity Beyond Labels

Andrew Eddy, CEO of Untapped Holdings, said that neurodiversity was coined by a Sydney-based sociologist to describe the infinite neuro-cognitive variability across people. It鈥檚 currently used to describe people with neurological differences such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, PTSD, and Tourette鈥檚 Syndrome. Untapped is a social enterprise focused on developing a neurodiverse employment ecosystem to increase opportunities for people with autism. Working with corporate partners, like SAP, as well as educators, researchers, parents, and students, Untapped created the Neurodiversity Hub initiative, working with universities and colleges to foster educational and employment inclusion.

鈥淣eurodiversity is really about extending the level of diversity that we have in the workplace because we are all neurodiverse in some way 鈥� we all have different ways of thinking,鈥� he said. 鈥淪ee it as a way of intentionally broadening the diversity of thought and ways of thinking that we already have in the workplace, extending that further and being more inclusive of people that have those labels.鈥�

Neurodiverse People Add Business Capabilities

According to Eddy, it鈥檚 important for organizations to look at neurodiversity from a business-capability perspective, rather than just through an inclusion and diversity lens.

鈥淲e go into a company and talk to the business people and talent acquisition about the potential gaps in the capabilities of the business and how some of those gaps could be filled by a group of individuals who have some great talents, including loyalty 鈥� being very sticky employees 鈥� with a very focused approach to the way they do their work, a different way of seeing things, attention to detail, and great memory,鈥� he said.

Neurodiversity Impacts Entire Workforce

51风流expanded its global program to 51风流ANZ, where neurodiverse people have joined the region鈥檚 finance, development and coding, and project management teams. The impact has been profound on both the business overall and numerous teams.

鈥淲e wanted to diversify our talent and the benefits they could bring to our organization,鈥� said Sehida Frawley, head of Services at 51风流ANZ. 鈥淭he positive benefits are not just what those individuals contribute to our business, but what it鈥檚 [also] done to change team working relationships鈥t鈥檚 influenced all of our communication skills, how you nurture and develop individuals and consider their different needs.鈥�

For example, after introducing neurodiverse interns into an 51风流ANZ office, one manager鈥檚 adjusted communication strategies created a more open environment for the entire team to work more effectively together.

How to Start a Workplace Neurodiversity Program

As more people identify as neurodivergent, some companies are responding with inclusive talent recruitment strategies, including graduate and internship programs. Establishing a sustainable neurodiversity program begins with upper management support.

鈥淵ou need to have that senior sponsorship, which is certainly something 51风流has done, running this as an important program with passionate people like Sehida taking that role,鈥� said Eddy. 鈥淭he next thing is how do you start to change the culture鈥t鈥檚 not a choice to employ neurodiverse people. They鈥檙e already there. Many companies are expanding existing programs to have an employee resource group that鈥檚 focused on neurodiversity.鈥�

Eddy also recommended including neurodiverse awareness in employee training and education programs.

Diversity Powers Innovation for Customer Transformation

Neurodiverse workplaces are not just about doing something good. There is also the larger business impact. Frawley said that the Autism at Work program at 51风流was driven by the company鈥檚 global diversity and inclusion mission, along with meeting the demands of a fiercely competitive talent marketplace.

鈥淥ur business is about assisting our customers to innovate and transform鈥ou can鈥檛 always have the same way of doing things and the same ideas,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really important that we broaden our pool of talent so we can bring that diversity of thought and approach so we can innovate and transform鈥nd drive that with our customers.鈥�

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.

Fascinated by technology throughout his school years, Garrett had already been working on a solution to automate paper-based front office processes that he saw firsthand at Chatsworth High School. With his teacher鈥檚 encouragement, Garrett entered his project in the 2015 competition, going on to win at the national level. He credited the valuable feedback from both judges and other entrants with helping him iterate and scale what has now become Sydney-based School Bytes.

鈥淚 was always interested in programming and computers, and my experience with YICTE provided the chance to refine my presentation skills, meet tech industry experts, and learn from like-minded contestants,鈥� said Garrett. 鈥淪eeing what others were working on and getting that exposure helped validate my ideas. I realized I could turn this into a viable business, and it ended up jump-starting my career.鈥�

Early Innovation Fun Leads to Tech Careers

51风流ANZ launched YICTE 12 years ago to help stoke the region鈥檚 next generation of technology leaders. Since then, almost 8,000 students from 850 schools across Australia and New Zealand have participated in YICTE competitions. YICTE is supported by , with help from universities, other corporate sponsors, and a long-running partnership with The Smith Family, Australia’s largest independent children’s education charity.

鈥淲e want to get children in primary and high school interested in and excited about STEM careers,鈥� said Pete Andrew, chief operating officer at . 鈥淭he competition shows them how they can use technology to solve actual problems in the world while having fun and unleashing their creativity.鈥�

Andrew said that contest participants have pursued STEM studies, with some going on to university and internships at 51风流ANZ. Similar to Garrett, others have founded of their own. Competition entries have evolved with community priorities, including sustainability, which was added as a prize category this year.

鈥淭he increase in sustainability-related projects in the competition has been phenomenal. You can see the energy and passion these youths have for important topics like environmental change,鈥� said Andrew. 鈥淚magine being a nine-year-old interacting with your friends and presenting to a panel of judges your creative ideas to create a more sustainable future for our planet. From SAP鈥檚 perspective, this aligns with our carbon-neutral commitment and .鈥�

Students Do Well Through Doing Good

YICTE Accelerator is among The Smith Family programs designed to help young people break the cycle of poverty through education. As part of the program, the charity provides teachers with resource support and professional development, so they can encourage students from disadvantaged backgrounds to explore career paths in tech. Students who participate in the competition are energized by developing digital tech projects that solve social issues while finding innovative solutions to real-world issues personally, locally, or nationally.

鈥淏eing able to creatively solve problems in their own communities is incredibly motivating for students,鈥� said Judy Barraclough, acting CEO at The Smith Family. 鈥淔or children who might not have Internet access or computers, the YICTE Accelerator program is a wonderful chance for them to develop digital skills, showcasing their initiative and innovation. I鈥檝e talked with many children who鈥檝e participated, and they are committed to their own achievement so they can give back and change the experience of others in their communities.鈥�

According to , children who have at least four exposures to career-based activities or insights during their schooling are much likelier to participate in employment beyond school. Barraclough had high praise for the partnerships that make this possible for the charity.

鈥淲e depend on the support of partners like 51风流to bring students incredible access to resources and professionals in the tech industry,鈥� she said.

Digital Transformation Through Education

Garrett鈥檚 passion for technology has come full circle. Following his YICTE competition win during the last year of high school, two schools interested in his solution immediately reached out to Garrett. School Bytes is a sponsor in this year鈥檚 virtual YICTE competition, providing judging and financial support for other aspiring youths. His advice to anyone thinking about a career in tech was simple.

鈥淛ust go for it and keep iterating. One of the most exciting aspects of being in high tech is the constant change,鈥� said Garrett. 鈥淏ringing administrative tasks into a modular, cloud subscription-based model provides schools with incredible time-saving efficiencies when it comes to managing events, sports, logistics and payments, and professional learning for teacher accreditation. To this day, we continue evolving with innovations like bringing machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) into our solutions.鈥�

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This blog also appeared on .

听

Here are excerpts from their conversation, which was part of a series of innovation hosted by Pete Andrew, chief operating officer at .

Tech Narrows the CX Divide

Like everything else in the post-pandemic market, a personalized, seamless customer experience begins with data and ends with relevant action. However, a global CX survey conducted by Harvard Business Publishing showed significant gaps between organizational CX priorities and actual implementations.

For example, 99% of respondents agreed that delivering a high-quality customer experience was important to business performance. Yet fewer than one-third of executives said their organizations were very effective in delivering a good customer experience. In another gap, most respondents believed CX plays a key role in business performance, while only two-thirds of organizations had a clear, coherent customer experience strategy understood across the company. The top obstacles to delivering solid CX included organizational silos, lack of data integration and data quality, and the inability to find meaningful data.

鈥淭he bottom line is that consumers will continue to expect more from all companies in terms of choice, convenience, and personalization,鈥� said Todd Pruzan, senior editor, Research and Special Projects, Harvard Business Review Analytic Services. 鈥淭o effectively deliver on CX, organizations must significantly narrow the gap between the implementation and adoption of technology. Firms need to be flexible with secure app development technology and data management infrastructure that can quickly scale to meet and anticipate customer demand.鈥�

Learning from Zespri鈥檚 Connected Data-Driven Strategy

Zespri, the world鈥檚 largest marketer of kiwi fruit, relies on integrated data to drive product quality, improve worker productivity and responsiveness, and enhance the customer experience. Headquartered in New Zealand, the company鈥檚 digital-first strategy is built on connected enterprise resource planning (ERP) fundamentals, along with targeted innovations.

鈥淲e鈥檙e on the journey of a transformation program to simplify our business processes, standardize our master data, and really drive off that new core capability,鈥� said David Scullin, chief digital officer at Zespri. 鈥淲e operate in a premium fruit market, making quality incredibly important as we measure every aspect of fruit and even ripen it through our supply chain.鈥�

One innovation involves robotics that capture kiwi fruit images under their canopies. Data and insights produced from the images help Zespri predict fruit volumes. Future plans involve combining this data with orchard management, climate, and other internal and external data, which will allow the company to better predict fruit quality for supply chain optimization and improved consumer experience.

鈥淥riginal business use cases change over time,鈥� said Scullin. 鈥淵ou need that underlying capability to move ahead with change in sync with new use cases. It鈥檚 not just about analytics. High-quality data is the fuel of automated, productive, responsive processes 鈥� from vine to plate.鈥�

How to Foster a Data-Driven Culture

To successfully compete in New Zealand鈥檚 retail energy market, Mercury became a data-led organization. A suite of advanced analytics powers the company鈥檚 evolving retail strategy and tactics. Mercury uses this constant feedback loop of data to proactively target at-risk customers, make customers more profitable, and deliver a better experience. By embedding data scientists and analysts within teams, Mercury makes data-driven decision-making an integral part of the entire customer experience process.

鈥淲e wanted to break out of that constant [customer] switching cycle for short-term gain without long-term profitability鈥o focus on acquiring and, more importantly, keeping those higher value customers,鈥� said Julia Jack, chief marketing officer at Mercury. 鈥淲e needed to understand who those customers were, what they wanted, and the real drivers of long-term customer value鈥e encourage [our] people to use the data to find the opportunity. It鈥檚 not just about justifying an already held belief. You have to ask the right questions and see where the data leads you.鈥�

Quality Data Drives CX and Business Excellence

As every company has learned during the past year, technology fuels business resiliency. The good news from the same Harvard study was that 66% of respondents reported their technology kept workers connected with access to data and tools, and 47% said a big impact was the ability to continue improving CX 鈥� even during the pandemic.

The perfect customer experience will always be aspirational, but technology, applied correctly, can deliver the connected data organizations need for a personalized, meaningful customer experience.

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