Technology innovation continues to accelerate exponentially and become more deeply linked with human capabilities.
As a result, technology solutions are empowering humans in unprecedented ways. A new book shows that in order to achieve success in today’s “radically human” era, business leaders must adopt a bold new strategic framework that challenges previous assumptions, and focuses on the human issues of trust, experience, talent and sustainability. Those who master these core business differentiators will be best positioned to lead and succeed.
Co-authored by technology experts Paul Daugherty, group chief executive – Technology and chief technology officer of Accenture, and H. James Wilson, global managing director of thought leadership and technology research at Accenture, Radically Human: How New Technology is Transforming Business and Shaping Our Future reveals how leading companies are adopting a new generation of human-centric technology to drive innovation amid rapid change. Radically human systems are modelled on human brains and behaviours and are able to listen, see, talk, and understand in more humanlike ways than previous generations of intelligent technology.
Research from Accenture shows that leading companies that amplified their technology investments during the Covid-19 pandemic have significantly extended their growth advantage over competitors. In fact, by stepping up investments in cloud, artificial intelligence (AI) and other technologies, these leading companies are now growing revenue at five times the rate of companies that lag behind.
Radically Human builds on this shift and explains why in an age of emerging technologies such as brain-inspired computing, emotional AI, blockchain, extended reality, synthetic data and the metaverse, it’s ultimately people – not the algorithms deployed or technologies used – that will be the reason most companies succeed.
A follow-up to their highly acclaimed bestseller Human + Machine, Radically Human provides business leaders with a new playbook for defining success – a strategic framework that upends commonly held assumptions around five business fundamentals – Intelligence, Data, Expertise, Architecture, and Strategy (IDEAS) – and explains how they are transforming competition. Presenting each of these new fundamentals through the lens of talent, trust, experiences, and sustainability, the book offers a new formula for applying technology in business and society.
“In the past, people had to adapt in order to use technology. Now, radically human technology is adapting to people, accelerating their potential and changing the way we live, collaborate and work,” said Daugherty. “Our book gives leaders a new framework for innovation that encourages them to re-evaluate and flip commonly held business expectations in order to chart a new path to the future.”
With groundbreaking insights and research on more than 10,000 companies, “Radically Human” provides leaders with a blueprint for navigating a complex, yet exciting, future while building more human-centered, trust-based, and sustainable enterprises. Rich examples show how leading companies are taking a human-centric approach to using technologies to innovate, grow and transform their businesses, while also achieving advancements rooted in human values.
For example:
- Aesthetics are notoriously challenging for AI, but one e-tailer’s engineers built a unique program that tapped into each customer’s style to create a one-of-a-kind experience
- Thousands of changing SKUs make warehouse fulfillment a tedious task—but a new generation of smarter robots are learning from humans and changing the game
- After a fast-food chain put data-based decisions into employees’ hands, they tapped into unexpected value for their customers and created a radically human experience. The book also explains how many companies are taking bold steps to unlock the full potential of their people by democratising technology and putting a renewed focus on digital literacy skills. 2
“In this new era of business, every company is a technology company,” added Wilson. “The future has arrived far sooner than expected, and it requires rapid proficiency in new approaches to innovation that are just beginning to emerge. Our book offers business leaders an easy-to-understand breakdown of today’s most advanced human- facing technologies and provides a clear roadmap for companies to lead in this radically human era.”
