Chris Riddell, renowned futurist and former Chief Digital Officer at Mars, tells Business Advantage PNG why the chaos of our modern world presents an excellent opportunity for business leaders.

Chris Riddell is an award-winning speaker and renowned futurist.

Business Advantage PNG (BAPNG): What are the key things business leaders tell you they are worried about as far as the future is concerned?

Chris Riddell (CR): I think it’s not just business leaders, it’s all of us as individuals. We’re all in this world of chaos. Whether it’s in our personal lives or whether it’s at work, the chaos is real.

For our business leaders, you’ve got to be able to lead through that chaos and volatility. You’ve got to be able to plan through the uncertainty because that won’t change. As humans, that’s the bit that we struggle with. We don’t like the chaos.

I was chatting with the CEO of a major pharmaceutical firm recently who was saying on the one hand, business is booming. On the other, it’s in more chaos than we’ve ever seen before so she said we had to change how we do leadership. We’ve had to be more empathetic, more vulnerable. That’s the kind of stuff that we’re seeing change through the chaos – the human side.

The amount of change that we will see in the next three years alone will shape the next 100 years of society.

BAPNG:  Does this chaos worry you? Should we be worried?

CR: Of course, I’m worried. it worries all of us. I’m a dad. The world that my kids are going into is vastly different than the one I’ve come from. But if we look at history, we see that pattern of worry played out through every single generation.

With that said, I think it’s about shifting our perspective. Fundamentally, we’ve got to transform how we see the future. The amount of change that we will see in the next three years alone will shape the next 100 years of society. These changes have influenced everything, including the boundaries between home and work.

For business, and indeed for individuals, this presents such an excellent opportunity to be at the front of that change rather than the back. That has to be a good thing. It’s an extraordinary moment to be alive.

BAPNG:  What technology are you most excited about right now?

CR: Artificial intelligence (AI). There are so many possibilities that we’ve started to see – we’ve only just begun to understand its capabilities.

But it’s a double-edged sword. AI could be the most powerful tool to change things at a rate we’ve never been able to before in history, but it needs to stay out of the wrong hands. What we don’t want is just a few people being in control or owning it. AI needs to be a tool for everyone to be able to use.

Nothing is certain, and that’s what excites me.

BAPNG:  What are you hoping delegates will get out of your speech at the conference?

CR: Aside from a good drink and a good time, the chance to connect. The feedback I get most often from my events is the feeling of connection – that they aren’t alone, that there is hope. Hopefully, by sharing all these stories together, they can be inspired and take this new perspective with them back to clients, their organisations and even just into their lives.

Conferences like this are an extraordinary opportunity just to be able to look up over the hill and see what’s coming around the corner.

Chris Riddell is the keynote speaker on day one of the 2024 Business Advantage Papua New Guinea Investment Conference, taking place in Brisbane on 12 and 13 August. To view the program and register, click here.