ESI ThoughtLab Reveals How 167 Cities Worldwide are Leveraging Technology, Data, and Partnerships to Drive SDGs - Learn More

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ESI ThoughtLab and CityAge Invite City Leaders to Attend The 2021 Smart Cities Strategy Summit

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An Exclusive Meeting of Global City Leaders

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a watershed event for cities, with lasting impacts on how residents will live, travel, shop, and work. Our ground-breaking research into the post-pandemic plans of 167 cities worldwide—to be released at the summit—reveals that cities will need to morph into Cities 4.0 to achieve their social, environmental, and economic goals and meet their citizens’ needs after the pandemic ends.
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Cities 4.0 are urban centers that will evolve beyond yesterday’s smart cities to transform and interconnect various urban domains by leveraging technology and data, and by using a wider set of partnerships and innovative financing models. Just as importantly, Cities 4.0 will engage and empower their citizens, and will work with communities to take their social, environmental, and economic agenda to a higher level, fully aligned with the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

The Smart Cities Strategy Summit will bring together city leaders from around the world to exchange views on solutions for a post-pandemic world. Participants will include urban experts from ESI ThoughtLab and CityAge and thought leaders from the business, academic, and government, who will help moderate and contribute to the discussion. Unlike other urban-focused events, the Smart Cities Strategy Summit is an invitation-only interchange that will provide a virtual forum for a cross-pollination of ideas and practices, drawing on our latest evidence-based research.
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Please join us at the summit so that you can gather insights from your peers and our analysis to craft a successful roadmap to achieve your post-pandemic urban development goals.

Special thanks to our event sponsors

           

 

How Business Will Permanently Change in 2021

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Succeeding in a Transformed Post-Pandemic World

With the end of the pandemic in sight, a new U.S. administration in place, and Brexit a reality, 2021 is quickly becoming a new dawn for business and government. Digital, social, and economic shifts will continue to gain momentum, propelling companies and cities into the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This is a defining moment for business leaders and policymakers. Like other seminal turning points in history, it is galvanizing technological, market, and social forces already in an unprecedented manner.

As this new era continues to unfold, private- and public-sector leaders will require visionary thinking and actionable insights to keep their organizations profitable and their cities safe. To fill this need, ESI ThoughtLab is conducting several thought leadership research programs throughout 2021 to analyze how industries and cities will need to adapt their approaches and digital strategies to succeed. Are you and your clients prepared for 10 ways that business will forever change?

  1. Everything goes digital. Digitalization will upend all industries, giving rise to remote medicine, online education, mobile banking, and smart manufacturing. From operations and sales to HR and financial management, everything that can be better done digitally, will be.
  2. Customers reset priorities. A year of social distancing is permanently shifting the demands, priorities, and shopping behaviors of customers across generations. Customers will expect digital experiences, hyper-personalization, and social awareness from businesses.
  3. The pre-pandemic workplace does not return. Now that agile and remote digital working has been shown to boost productivity, there will be no turning back. Boundaries between firms and ecosystem partners will blur, IT platforms will modernize, and the future of work will start now.
  4. Smart connectivity and on-cloud platforms transform business. The convergence of AI, IoT, cloud, 5G, and faster computing will speed business processes and decision-making while creating seamless connections among billions of devices, products, and services.
  5. Distance loses its relevance. Proximity will matter less to companies across industries, from retail and entertainment to banking and manufacturing. Customer relations will become contactless, except where personal access can provide added value or a competitive edge.
  6. The pandemic ends, but disruption remains. The pandemic has shown that we live in an interconnected world where disruption can occur suddenly and cascade unexpectedly. Agility and resilience will drive business success.
  7. Technology empowers citizens and consumers. Digital connectivity will give people greater input into political, business, and product decisions. Governments will use technology to achieve their social, economic, and environmental goals, with an eye on building digital equality.
  8. Cities adopt a 4.0 framework. The most successful cities will use technology, data, and citizen engagement to achieve sustainable development goals. They will use an agile ecosystem of partners to drive change and support new ways of doing business.
  9. Capitalism becomes inclusive. The crisis has served as a wake-up call for business to think, act, and invest for the common good. Firms will move from shareholder to stakeholder capitalism to meet the changing expectations of customers, investors, and employees.
  10. The US democratic tsunami will redraw the business landscape. While businesses will likely see increases in taxes and regulations, they should also expect a revitalized economy with greater geopolitical alignment and a sharper focus on sustainability and social responsibility.

Big Shifts Lie Ahead

The 2021 thought leadership agenda has been set. The pandemic has shown that we live in an increasingly interconnected world where disruption can occur suddenly and cascade unexpectedly. Agility and resilience must continue to be a driving force for business and government to succeed. Massive transformative shifts lie ahead, and to help our clients and governments around the world, we will be building off of these themes and conducting several cutting-edge evidence-based research initiatives throughout the year. You can preview many of our discussion papers highlighting these themes and current research programs by clicking here.

We’re calling this moment ‘The Big Shift’, and we would love to hear your thoughts on these topics.  In our opinion, successful thought leadership is a team sport, requiring collaboration and the right blend of analytical, editorial, and marketing skills. Please contact us today if you would like to learn how you can join one of our many exciting programs.

 

Lou Celi, Chief Executive Officer, ESI ThoughtLab
Lceli@esithoughtlab.com 

Lou Celi is Founder and CEO of ESI ThoughtLab. During his more than 35 years of research, marketing and publishing work, Mr. Celi has helped top organizations build their businesses by engaging corporate and government decision makers. Prior to setting up ESI ThoughtLab, Lou was board director and president of Oxford Economics, where he built the firm’s successful business in the Americas and set up its global thought leadership practice.