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\u201cIt\u2019s not cost-cutting,\u201d Bill Winters, the chief executive of Standard Chartered, insisted\u00a0during a recent panel discussion. \u201cIt\u2019s replacing lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital\u00a0we\u2019re putting in.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The words created a flurry of protests\u2014\u201creplacing\u00a0lower value human capital\u201d hitting a nerve for those nervous about an approaching\u00a0AI\u00a0\u201cjobs apocalypse\u201d.\u00a0Winters was obliged to apologize, pointing out that Standard Chartered was investing heavily\u00a0in retraining teams.\u00a0<\/p>\n
How company leaders\u00a0respond to the AI wave\u2013and take their colleagues with them\u2014is one of the most\u00a0important issues\u00a0for C-Suite leaders as they contemplate the year ahead.\u00a0At Fortune\u2019s CEO Forum this week on September 16, AI, workforce\u00a0planning\u00a0and return on investment will be a centerpiece debate. And\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0before any discussion\u00a0on the fact\u00a0that AI might kill us all in any case.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s fundamentally changing the way we work and our timescales and getting products to market quickly,\u201d Kate Dohaney, the CEO of the U.K. mobile network,\u00a0Giffgaff, part of the\u00a0Virgin Media Group,\u00a0tells\u00a0me. \u201cThe question is not necessarily how do we bring down our human capital, but how do we train our people to do more,\u00a0strategically,\u00a0across the business?\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0not a CEO sitting back saying cut, cut, cut.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m\u00a0not saying we\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0become more efficient as a business.\u00a0But just like with any revolution that has happened in the history of humankind, we have to understand what\u00a0are the next generation of skill sets?\u00a0And\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0trying to get ahead of that and bring\u00a0people\u00a0on the journey and keep them excited and keep them curious as we navigate.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dohaney is in a competitive market, not just with other mobile providers but with new entrants as well. Octopus\u00a0(energy) and Revolut (banking)\u00a0are both looking at offering mobile\u00a0products\u00a0as mass-to-consumer brands\u00a0push towards\u00a0\u201csuper-apps\u201d\u00a0which\u00a0offer multiple services.\u00a0Nubank, a U.S. neo-bank, now\u00a0provides\u00a0the\u00a0NuCel\u00a0mobile\u00a0network\u00a0in Brazil.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe question is not necessarily how do we bring down our human capital, but how do we train our people to do more strategically, across the business?\u201d<\/p>\n Kate Dohaney, CEO of Giffgaff<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a massive opportunity for telcos to get ahead and\u00a0think\u00a0about revenue diversification,\u201d Dohaney says. \u201cWe have all these competitors getting into telco. We see Revolut, we see Monzo, we\u00a0see Klarna.\u00a0That\u00a0does allow telcos to sit back and say:\u00a0I can get a lot more creative,\u00a0I already have this massive, amazing foundation with this\u00a0great brand.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Earlier this year,\u00a0I interviewed Erik Severinson, the Chief Commercial Officer\u00a0at\u00a0Volvo Cars,\u00a0who spoke about brands needing to stand out in a world of noise. In a stadium full of white t-shirts, how does\u00a0a\u00a0company make sure\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0the red t-shirt that people notice?\u00a0<\/p>\n Dohaney\u00a0has focused the\u00a0Giffgaff\u00a0brand on\u00a0low cost and\u00a0sustainability. It is a\u00a0certified\u00a0B-Corp, supports a number of\u00a0charities,\u00a0and three-quarters of the phones it sells are refurbished.\u00a0\u201cGiffgaff\u201d is a saying in Scotland meaning \u201cmutual giving\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSo how can we outmaneuver and capitalize?\u201d Dohaney\u00a0says\u00a0about the new entrants in\u00a0the mobile\u00a0market. \u201cWe\u2019re\u00a0experimenting in fintech.\u00a0Our strategy is focused on \u2018fair play\u2019,\u00a0giving the next generation fair access and a leg up in life. So how do we enable new and different capital risk assessors for a young person\u00a0who\u2019s\u00a0entering the workforce and having trouble finding a\u00a0job, or\u00a0wants to start their own business and has no idea where to\u00a0start?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Service wars are coming\u2013the mobile phone company\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0a\u00a0financial\u00a0trading and advice platform; the neo-bank that does telco; the table booking app that can\u00a0find you flights to your next holiday destination.\u00a0Human capital will be\u00a0the\u00a0vital\u00a0component\u00a0in winning the battle for the future, with a good dollop of AI thrown in.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n For the latest coverage and updates from Fortune CEO Forum, as well as insights into the companies on our list,\u00a0visit this page.<\/em><\/p>\n The opinions expressed in Fortune.com commentary pieces are solely the views of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of <\/em>Fortune.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n #KateDohaneysaysAI #demands #type #leadershipIm #CEO #sitting #cut #cut #cut<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cIt\u2019s not cost-cutting,\u201d Bill … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4650,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[283,372,1136,6624,7690,7691,1126,4497,143,4498,1510,1156],"class_list":["post-4649","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance-news","tag-ceo","tag-cut","tag-demands","tag-fortune-ceo-forum","tag-katedohaneysaysai","tag-leadershipim","tag-londonarticles","tag-mobile","tag-sitting","tag-telecommunications","tag-type","tag-u-k"],"yoast_head":"\n\n