Google parent Alphabet loses $100 billion as Bard gives inaccurate information
Google owner Alphabet Inc fell by the most in more than three months after a demonstration of its new artificial intelligence chatbot, Bard, sparked concerns that the tech giant has lost ground
Google owner Alphabet Inc fell by the most in more than three months after a demonstration of its new artificial intelligence chatbot, Bard, sparked concerns that the tech giant has lost ground in the race for the future of internet search.
Google has been under pressure since developer OpenAI launched its wildly popular chatbot, ChatGPT, which many in the tech industry tout as the next generation of search. On Tuesday, Microsoft Corp., which is investing billions in OpenAI, unveiled a new version of its Bing search engine and Edge browser incorporating technology from the AI startup.
By: Bloomberg https://indianexpress.com/article/technology/artificial-intelligence/google-bard-demo-failure-alphabet-shares-fall-8433141/
The recent tech layoffs and the erosion in market value of the tech giants tells it all when it comes to the harsh realities of the disruptive forces of the fourth industrial revolution.
In their own right, investors have every reason to react to any threat to tech driven businesses simply because technological leadership remains the lifeblood of a tech giant and in case of Alphabet Inc, Google is the cash cow in its portfolio and any threat to its market position is bound to get vitriolic reactions.
Whether ChatGPT will disrupt Google in the long run, only time will tell. The fact remains that the recent spate of global layoffs by the tech giants is only the first taste of a rapidly changing and uncertain business environment and going forward as the fourth industrial revolution intensifies, what will be witnessed is a more bewildering environment in which little will be certain, the tempo quicker, and the dynamics of change, more complex.
One thing that emerges very clearly from the recent turmoil is that rapid technological advances, especially in Information technology and communication have started to alter some paradigms of everyday living. Today, computers, smart devices, social media, interactive digital platforms, etc.; are connecting people who otherwise remain significantly removed from each other in time, space, thought and emotion.
As a consequence of further advancement in modern technologies, the complexities of managing everyday business will only compound exponentially and success in management and leadership, will then be determined not by accumulated knowledge but by the speed of individual and organizational learning and adaptability to the changing environment. Managerial excellence will not be a matter of possessing traditional skills and tools, but by demonstrating a high degree of flexibility and adaptability in dealing with both technology and people and by being able to stay constantly meaningfully in a rapidly changing business environment by constant acquisition of latent knowledge and skills.
Broadly speaking, the business and leadership challenges that organizations will have to deal with on a day-to-day basis can be grouped into three categories: market forces, people issues and leadership competencies.
Market forces
At a macroeconomic level, organizational changes will be driven by market forces like globalization as well as the creation of increasingly massive multinational organizations through mergers and takeovers, demanding more from organizations, their leaders and the executive workforce. Increasing global footprints and upscaling of operations will come along with its own share of challenges like the need for highly knowledgeable, skilled and diversified work force with substantial and specific expertise.
People issues
The world of business has just about come to understanding the increasing complexities resulting from globalization and the organizations need for upskilling their leaders and executives in latent skills and abilities. However, the most challenging part is that organizations are far from achieving a reasonable degree of proficiency in mastering them. One of the most important of these will be the ability to balance employee needs (globally) and customer wants (globally and locally) – a balance that will become harder to strike, and to strike profitably and efficiently, in the coming years.
The leaders of tomorrow will have to use diversity as a strategic differentiator where it is productive, exciting and enjoyable reality and not merely a desired demographic profile. Acceptance of increasing work force diversity along with its challenge of individual differences will become a source of creative energy and productivity where organizations will have access to a larger and more talented work force. The work itself will increasingly demand the use of interdependent teams, as very few individuals will be capable of knowing and doing it all.
In a quickly changing world, talented human capital will be a prime ingredient of business success. Businesses will have to accommodate the shift of power from owners and senior management to knowledge workers, while at the same time professionals will become less concerned with the traditional concept of a career and more interested in what we might term self-fulfillment.
Leadership competencies
The most critical challenge of the 21st century will be that of leadership competencies. Strategic focus and vision, coupled with a practical sense of when to be flexible and adaptable, will be most critical for survival. An ability to manage multiple points of view simultaneously will differentiate the best leaders: to keep the high-level goals in sight while managing and tracking day-to-day success; to understand equally the points of view and needs of the customer and of the organization; to be able to empathize with all stakeholders in order to develop people, foster productive change and keep the spirit of the enterprise vital.
The evolving nature of business conducted by global organizations will also call for a fundamentally different kind of leader. Demonstrating flexibility and empathy, while remaining true to the core values of the organization and finding ways to circumvent unpredictable impediments, will be characteristic of tomorrow’s leaders. These will be people who are inspirational; technologically savvy but not prone to getting lost in details; entrepreneurial; devoted to service, and inclusive rather than independent or autocratic. Additional key leadership competencies will include: the ability to develop and articulate a value proposition – maintaining it in a dynamic market and energizing others to buy into it; investing in a business model that guides employee decision-making at all levels; committing to a culture that values mentorship and learning while aligning individual and corporate goals, and recognizing what it means to develop and manage truly transformational knowledge system
Since the beginning of this century, the world of business management has changed radically, totally, and irreversibly. It is not just that today’s business challenges don’t share even a family resemblance with yesterday’s, but it is that the world in which businesses are managed is changing rapidly and irrevocably. Evidently, business challenges will feature high change, high speed, high stress and that organizations having to adjust continually to sudden competitive threats, new technologies, changes in government regulations, or frequently varying information about customer needs, will be the norm and not the exception.
For businesses to remain relevant and resourceful in such a chaotic and volatile environment will require an agile, adaptive and innovative organization, that is change-tolerant and has a chaos-friendly culture that recognizes and supports the special needs of different situations from traditional to extreme.
Given the harsh realities of a chaotic and volatile environment that we may have to deal with on daily basis calls for the need of a new leadership model based on the presupposition that radical change and uncertainty will be the new norm, not the exception, encompassing a worldview that is compatible with change and unpredictability, recognizing that although goals are achievable, how we get there is unpredictable and hence, adaptability being more important than predictability.
In a rapidly changing, volatile and chaotic business environment, it is expected that organizations will have to adjust continually to sudden disruptive changes, competitive threats, new technologies, rapidly changing markets, business environment and customer needs, and therefore a need for developing such a radical leadership approach then necessitates a new leadership paradigm that addresses the following;
• Reinventing the leadership model in a contemporary context
• Shifting our perceptions of realities and how we relate to it
• Being comfortable leading at the edge of chaos
• Having the foresight in anticipating rapid changes
• Having an ability to reach out and develop enduring bonds.
• Having the courage to steer the organization through volatility and chaos.
• Having the competency to see patterns in chaos and take control.
• Having the ability to take bold actions and safeguard interests of the organization.
• Being prepared to alter strategies.
• Having the agility to stay ahead of the volatility curve.
• Having the ability to spot opportunities through rapid upturns and downturns.
• Having the ability to adapt to ever changing internal and external factors while maintaining the strategic focus and core vision.
Going forward what businesses need is a holistic leadership approach built on an integrated set of principles and shared values and practices, that includes tools that accelerate performance on all the levels essential for success under very demanding circumstances and is radical enough for dealing with the new breed of extreme challenges that may feature one or more of the following characteristics:
• All time high stakes; failure is not an option and comes with a prohibitive cost.
• Uncertain and changing circumstances.
• Relentless innovation being of paramount importance.
• Bottom line result, the ultimate measure of success.
• Maintaining the quality of life is face of everyday chaos and turbulence.
Given the leadership challenges of tomorrow, it is not an easy task to come to an understanding or defining a leadership model that will help businesses remain relevant and resourceful in the turbulent and chaotic business environment. But coming from my vast experience of over 40 years what I envisage is the evolution of a leadership model that is a refreshing and practical approach for extreme challenges, acknowledges the complexity and fluid nature of business change, is profoundly thoughtful and a useful approach to managing in a chaotic environment, is a radical thought that provides a sounding board, a frame of reference, a guide, when faced with tough and demanding leadership situations.
Jammu Navani
Organizational Development, Leadership & Entrepreneurship Coach,
Management Consultant, Corporate Trainer
Experiential Entrepreneurship 