Resiliency Will Be the Watchword in 2023

By Eric Clark, Andersen Alumnus and Chief Executive Officer, Americas, NTT Ltd.

Copyright 2023 NTT. This article originally appeared in NTT’s CXO Magazine, original article maybe found here. Reprinted with permission. No further reproduction is permitted without permission from NTT.

As we head into a more uncertain economic period, it is understandable that many of us – employees and leaders alike – will be feeling somewhat unsettled.

It’s no secret that businesses can be exposed to more risk during unpredictable times. However, it is also important to remember that this is precisely when our clients need us the most.

Last year, NTT ran its second annual Innovation Index survey. The findings showed that while nearly two thirds of businesses are concerned about a negative operational impact over the next two years, less than a quarter are prepared for disruption.

Encouragingly, the study also showed that organizations have high confidence in their partners to help keep them safe, become more profitable and plan for disruption and agility.

And so ‘resilience’ will be the watchword in 2023. As businesses prepare for potential challenges and instability, new opportunities for leadership, growth and innovation are emerging. In the midst of uncertainty, one thing holds true: companies that address their customers’ needs the best will be the ones to accelerate.

Organizations that can do this while staying ahead of the technological curve, treating digitalization as a top operational priority, and most importantly, holding their nerve when focusing on creating long-term value, will be the ones to come out stronger on the other side of a challenging economic period.

If organizations can reframe their way of thinking about the current uncertainty and approach it as a time of learning and opportunity rather than a series of obstacles to be overcome, I believe that growth for the most agile and innovative is not only possible but highly likely.

After all, as Franklin D. Roosevelt – who became president during the depths of the Great Depression – once said, ‘a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor’. So, while all boats may rise during times of economic prosperity, the leading contenders are forged in the storm.