The Value of a Technology Professional with a Renaissance Mind

Architects interested in a step-change improvement in their careers need to adopt what we might call a renaissance mind. Think of the renaissance mind as one that is highly interdisciplinary — an intelligence and curiosity that leads a person to study computer science, life science, and math, as well as philosophy and the arts. This is what technology leaders are made of. If you are truly passionate about your career as a technologist, read on.

It helps to begin with some background and context. Alvin Toffler’s seminal book, Future Shock, was published 50 years ago. He and others accurately predicted how our post-industrial society and economy would evolve. One of the book’s many insights was about the end of permanence. Toffler predicted that we would be much more transient, that we would move from the town of our birth to other places, shift jobs more often, and enter and exit relationships with much greater speed.

What has this to do with a technology architect? It has many immediate implications. Our economy and our society have become most focused on experiences. The experience of a product is more important to most people than the product itself. The examples are endless, but it is worth mentioning a few. There are brands that attract buyers through the strength of their stories. The beverage company Spindrift and the skincare company TULA come to mind. Other companies tap into the desire for wellness, such as Sunday Riley. Still others win because of the sheer joy of the consumer experience like Trader Joe’s, or the consumer commitment to philanthropy and values, seen in companies like the food brand Cava (“Food is a force for Good.”).

None of the challenges above would appear to be technology-driven, yet technology lies at the heart of what enables the greatest shifts in business this century. Close your eyes and call to mind the companies that are best at really connecting with customers. I mentioned a few above, but they are not all household names. You might be thinking of Netflix, Amazon, Spotify, Sephora, and others like them. Through their masterful way of linking AI, business intelligence, data governance, and other technology with insights into the customer — including keen observations of customer wants, needs, and aspirations — these companies demonstrate IT mastery while providing exceptional customer experiences.

Consider three of the many business and societal trends unfolding right now:

1. Highly Personalized Recommendations: The biggest success stories through 2024 are likely to come from those organizations that move from persona-based engagement to highly personalized recommendations.

2. Rave-Worthy Experiences: The true test of customer loyalty over the next four years will be the extent to which the customer demonstrates to others that they are having rave-worthy experiences with the enterprise. This can be thought of as a situation in which the customer becomes an unpaid and unsolicited influencer for your brand.

3. AI-Driven Engagement: In the next few years, AI will finally have entered the mainstream. AI will be the unifying force behind key technology advances serving employees and customers: from workflow, to process automation, guided selling, customer communication, and customer data platforms. AI is what will power customer engagement and employee engagement.

To add to these, Gen Z already looks beyond product quality. They are looking at a company’s ethical standing, concern for employees, commitment to society, consumer privacy and sustainable practices as essential if a business is going to earn their brand loyalty. These factors, then, are as central to corporate growth and profitability as anything the company develops.

How should the architect act upon this vital fact? When designing a product, a service, or a solution, factor these societal expectations into your design thinking and in how you communicate. Choose language wisely and discuss privacy considerations. Talk about how the product improves the work life of the employee in their environment. Talk about the end customer or consumer and how the solution makes their life better. Think about the ways the output of your team is helping society, and look for customers who share your commitment to sustainability. Every time you surface these ideas you are improving the chances that outside influencers will amplify the value of your products and services.

Entire new businesses are arising in response to this last trend. Think of entrepreneur Michael Ellison, founder of CodePath. As a 501 ©(3) nonprofit, CodePath.org has completely reimagined computer science education for underrepresented minorities and underserved populations. Amazing opportunities are out there for the aspiring technologist to contribute to society.

All of this brings us back to the absolute necessity of a renaissance mind to career success. The rungs on the career ladder for technologists are all forms of commitment and passion on behalf of the customer and in service to the employees working from anywhere. Take a moment and inventory the technologies that power the three trends:

• Embedded AI
• Security and compliance
• Privacy
• Mobile apps
• Collaboration and communications
• Business applications
• Data governance
• Advanced analytics
• Integration and automation

The real secret sauce will be blending technologies in support of employee and customer processes. This requires cross-organization and cross-department collaboration, and a multi-disciplinary approach to imagining and building solutions. Think of it as crossing the boundaries of IT, supply chain, operations, billing, sales, and marketing to bring together ad hoc teams.

The current pandemic points to a perfect example of this. Our client, CarMax, had to shift its business model overnight. It listened intently to customers and their safety concerns. The company rapidly increased the pace of innovation by reaching across all departments to create a new, contactless service, CarMax Curbside, in just a few weeks.


Anyone who wants their career in technology to catapult ahead needs to engage in intense lateral thinking:

• Look at your company’s business processes.
• Understand business trends that will impact your industry.
• Join in the conversations on how to harness technology to solve the challenges that employees and customers face.

There has never been a better time to be a technology architect. The astute professional will think not only of the technologies that must be mastered, but also in how you can contribute to developing more resilient employees, how to promote more relevant engagement with customers, and how your enterprise will contribute to the betterment of society.

Resources:
Alvin Toffler, Future Shock

The Work of the Future: Shaping Technology and Institutions

Retail Needs Haven’t Changed: The Buying Experience Has With CarMax

Renaissance minds in 21st century science

About the Author

Michael Maoz is Senior Vice President of Innovation Strategy at Salesforce. He joined Salesforce from Gartner, Inc., where he was a founder of the CRM practice and held positions as Research Vice President, Distinguished Analyst, and Gartner Fellow. Michael is also a board member at Rutgers Center for Innovation Education, and an advisor to Just Capital.
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Twitter: @mimaoz