The Phoenix and the Unicorn

Unicorn start-ups are brilliant. But, let’s be honest, very few of us will start one, become one, or work for one. Most of us are connected to large companies that often struggle to keep themselves relevant for the ever-changing customer. That’s why this keynote is about a creature that’s just as magical but perhaps offers a more realistic inspiration: the Phoenix. These are the companies that – just like this mythical bird – are able to rethink themselves in cycles: time and time again they rise from the ashes of the old, and come out stronger than ever before. They are the Walmarts, the Volvos, the Disneys, the Apples, the Microsofts, the Ping Ans, the Assa Abloys and AT&Ts of this world.

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This keynote is about understanding what is happening in a world of constant change. It’s about observing and trying to learn from the Unicorns. But primarily, it tells the story of how companies can ACT on their Day After Tomorrow, and how they can apply innovation as an antidote to a radically changing environment. It doesn’t just zoom in on WHAT you need to do in order to innovate, but also on HOW you can make innovation a reality in your organization.

The Two Faces of Innovation: Insights from Silicon Valley & China

SiliconValley and China’s tech ecosystem cities (such as Beijing, Shanghai,Hangzhou and Shenzhen) are thefastest evolving innovation hubs in the world. But inspiration from pioneeringstartups, corporates and academics from these distant corners of the globeshould not be an ‘either, or’ story. Each has its very own background, innovation DNA, culture, methods and strategies. Each has thepotential to trigger you in ways you’d never thought possible.

The Day After Tomorrow

With ‘The Day After Tomorrow’, Peter speaks about an exponentially changing world and its consequences for organizations of Today. He introduces those pioneers who managed to move (way) beyond Tomorrow-thinking in innovation and were able to change the course of entire industries. Above all, he writes about the business models, the organizational structures, the talent, the mindset, the technologies and the cultures needed to maximize our chances for survival in the Day After Tomorrow.

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Most of us focus on Today: on the meetings we will be having, the e-mails we will respond to, the price offers we need to send out while deadlines are breathing down or neck. And we should. Today is what pays our bills. We also think a lot about Tomorrow, about our future value and how our company will survive disruption. Tomorrow is what keeps us awake at night. But let’s face it, most of us don’t think (much) beyond that.

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The truly great ones, the giants, those that dictate the market are the ones who dare to envision The Day After Tomorrow. Because that is where enormous amounts of long term value lie. The radical ideas, concepts, notions or inspiration that focus on The Day After Tomorrow are the ones that change entire companies, industries and even the world.

The Never Normal

We’re at a crossroads. Certainly since the COVID-19 crisis but even before that, we have been evolving into a world with many new types of disruptions. There’s this potent cocktail of global platforms, information, intelligence, and automation that is accelerating the pace of change. But technology is no longer the biggest driver of disruption. What’s coming at us is ecological, biological, societal and geopolitical in nature and this is just the beginning. These many disruptions are going to evolve into seismic shocks that will completely overturn how we live and work. Think about the rising sea levels we might experience the next decades. Or pandemics like COVID-19. Or the cold (trade) war between the US and China.

A World without Order

As we're drawn further into the 21st century by the dawn of a new decade, the very concept of 'world order' seems more elusive than ever before. Literally, because we're now down to what Ian Bremmer calls a G-zero world: a post-G-20, post-G-8 and post-G-7 era with a geopolitical landscape that is more unstable than at the peak of the Cold War during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Figuratively because a series of seismic shocks, that are societal, ecological, technological and biological in nature, have taken away any global form of structure or predictability. While we have been busy managing our countries and companies locally, entropy has been devouring our overarching systems.

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