I have been doing video interviews with a number of C-level execs and practitioners about acrobatics they have been seeing in various vertical sectors during the COVID-19 crisis and the "New normal" they can expect as the economy wakes up. Here is the index to the growing list of interviews.
This time it is Kevin Parikh, CEO and Chairman of Avasant, a digital research, benchmarking and advisory firm.
We cover wide ground around heroics he has seen in his IT focused client base. We also spend time on his book, Digital Singularity, which he describes as human experience meeting technological omnipresence as it gets embedded all around us in sensors and smaller devices. His view of Singularity is very different from that of Dr. Ray Kurzweil which is much more about man-machine convergence. Kevin emphasizes the subtitle of his book over and over - the case for tech in service of humanity.
I particularly liked his optimism around using maturing technologies to re-imagine the world as we recover from the crisis. He says like we sat on video and collaboration till the recent crisis, we have been underutilizing IoT, AI and advanced data processing. I liked the examples he cites - how he recommended rebuilding Dominica and the Caribbean broadly with wireless tech given the repeated damage from hurricanes, the moonshot race and similar opportunities around world to think differently around today's challenges. More of his vision are in this corporate video.
He rightly is proud of the private sector as it continues to be outcome and data focused in a world of disinformation and political maneuvering. He ends with his own examples of leadership - internships for his employee's young, and in turn encouraging his employees to spend time on charitable activities.
A very positive, optimistic conversation.
