Focus July 2020

FOCUS is published by: BMT 1 Park Road Teddington TW11 0AP T: +44 (0)20 8943 5544 E: [email protected] W: www.bmt.org Researched/edited by Arianne Matthews ([email protected] ) Edited by Jenni Williamson ([email protected] ) Statements made or opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the view of BMT. Permission for reproduction of articles in FOCUS must be obtained from the Editor. The FOCUS mailing list is held on computer. If, under the Data Protection Act 1998, you wish to have your name removed or added, or alternatively have any other mailing list enquiries, please contact the Editor. Contents Follow us Sarah Kenny, OBE Chief Executive Exploiting Behavioural Science How Digital Transformation is Changing Our Customers’ Worlds Digital Transformation Needs a Diverse Workforce 3 Covid-19 has certainly stress-tested many, if not all, businesses in recent months.  Those who have not been digitally prepared have, no doubt, been presented with particular business continuity and security challenges, and discovered that their talent, operations and platforms have lost some momentum.  The way in which the pandemic has spread around the world, and disrupted the way we all work, has driven an urgent need to mobilise remote, secure, nimble workforces, changing the way that we communicate, collaborate and deliver.  Many businesses are now reflecting on what has been learnt from the past few months, assessing the benefits and opportunities that this rapid digital transformation presents to fundamentally reset and recalibrate their organisations. As organisations have adapted, we have seen a necessary acceptance, and perhaps trust, of technological change.  At the same time, there is a growing recognition that while a global pandemic is the cause today, it could be something else tomorrow that disrupts lives and businesses worldwide.  In any case, there is growing acceptance that things may never return to ‘normal’, and perhaps in this case, that is a good thing.  So, we are seeing a notable push to understand how emerging technologies can be adopted more quickly, in all fields of work, with digital resilience now seen as an operational imperative. For BMT, this emerges as an opportunity for us to continue to help our customers with crisis planning and thinking about the eventual shape of their businesses when they start to recover, ensuring that they are set up to weather times of uncertainty and extreme environmental volatility. I hope that the articles in this edition of Focus will inspire thought, and debate.. It is only through creating a diversity and depth of ideas and opinions that we will be able to guide ourselves, our customers, and partners, through these turbulent times. It is by engaging with each other that we will come to understand how to build sustainability and resilience into our businesses and take advantage of the opportunities this great transformation brings with it. rs t Welcome to the first issue of Focus for 2020, which covers the theme of Digital Transformation. It is brought to you as we navigate our way through a pandemic that has become one of the greatest global challenges in our lifetimes, and many will be finding they have been catapulted into their journey into digital transformation almost overnight. 2 Demystifying Digital Twins Delivering Successful Digital Transformation Programmes Water Sector Systems Thinking The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Digital Transformation