Reinventing work

We’re coming off one of the most challenging years in business history. The pandemic forced every company to accelerate transformations that typically take years or even decades. Chief among them? The transition to a digital HQ.

Prior to the pandemic, an organisation’s physical headquarters served as the nucleus of collaboration and productivity. Digital tools supplemented in-person, synchronous work. But that approach no longer squares with business needs and employee expectations. Today’s work-from-anywhere world requires a digital HQ—a place that connects teams, tools, customers and partners across time zones and physical spaces.

Over the past year, we’ve spoken with forward-thinking business leaders from all industries, company sizes and disciplines about their transition to a digital HQ. And we’ve organised their input into five imperatives:

• Employee engagement needs a digital-first makeover
• Alignment matters now more than ever
• The ecosystem economy demands a new partner playbook
• Customer-led disruption forces the CX convergence
• The winners are accelerating work through automation

These aren’t about simple answers that apply to every company. Rather, they’re about emerging themes and innovative methods for proactively meeting the new challenges of work.