How Individuals and Organizations can rise to the challenge of the Fourth Industrial Revolution

About This Session

Experts argue that we now are on the precipice of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, describes as a “technological revolution that will fundamentally alter the way we live, work, and relate to one another”. Artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, blockchain, biotechnology, nanotechnology, and a host of other technological marvels are bringing both benefits and disruption to wide swaths of industry.

Such drastic upheaval places heavy demands on business leaders to build strategy and capabilities that afford organizational resilience in the face of uncertainty and adaptability in reaping the benefits of emergent advance. The nature of the trends underway inform perspectives on the critical skills that individual employees will need in this era and on the organizational strategies that will potentiate success. Employees must not only have rich domain-specific expertise, they will need to be equipped with creativity, innovation-skills, and capacity for complex problem solving and situational adaptability.

This reality has implications for individuals and for talent and HR strategists seeking to build the workforce of the future. Given that past solutions cannot be applied directly to new challenges and the fact that rapid technological advance will require continual updating of optimal strategy, organizations must build experimental capabilities and embrace a culture of trying new approaches, measuring impact, innovating, and iterating. Leaders must not conceive of rising to meet the demands of this revolution as a singular challenge that can be solved but instead recognize that an era of continual change is upon us.

Through analysis of these trends, consideration of the unique demands placed upon individuals and organizations, and discussion with other members of the implications, attendees will gain valuable insights on how to rise to the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Our Presenter(s)

Nathaniel Barr, PhD

Nathaniel Barr, PhD, is a Professor of Creativity and Creative Thinking at Sheridan College, and a Scientific Advisor at BEworks.

Nathaniel’s federally-funded research program fuses behavioural science and art/design to solve practical challenges, and he has published on topics including creativity, the intersection of thinking and technology, how best to align human and artificial intelligence in the workforce, and the importance of behavioral science in the Anthropocene/Fourth Industrial Revolution.His research has been covered extensively in the media, in outlets like Scientific American, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post.

At Sheridan, Nathaniel teaches and develops courses within the Board Undergraduate Certificate in Creativity and Creative Problem Solving, helping students from across the college learn to make the most of their minds and be better equipped to tackle complex challenges.

At BEworks, Nathaniel applies his expertise to the practice of applying behavioral science to strategy, marketing, operations, and policy challenges. The company’s goal is to ‘transform the economy and society with scientific thinking’, and is a part of kyu, a collective of creative organizations who seek to ‘understand, connect, and explore the edges of what our societies need now and what they’ll need in the decades to come’.