2020 Business & Society trends

„Ever heard of a phone top-up card that comes with health insurance? It exists in Bangladesh. What about a video game company distributing mindfulness? Riot Games and headspace struck just such a deal. Embedding and remixes are not new, it’s just that we’ve reached a tipping point where we can expect it to become the norm. Now, pass the Heinz with Sriracha.“

– Zia Zaman, CEO, LumenLab

Above paragraph is one out of many characteristic statements included in this thought provoking article, which features 22 business and society trends for 2020.

Some of the trends captured in this article published on Aspen Institute  in the distant December 2019 have unexpectedly accelerated and others slowed down.

Just how much will change – and how much will continue? And, what does all this mean for navigating day-to-day life in business?

Leaders in business and academia offer these predictions:

1. Great Ideas Will Emerge Amidst (Economic) Uncertainty

2. Fortune Will Favor Those Who Build Their Brand

3. New Definitions of Business Success Will Proliferate

4. CEOs Will be Judged Both as Commercial Leaders and as Social Architects

5. The End of Shareholder Primacy Will Surge through Legal Academy and Corporate Boards

6. Boards Will Start Asking New Questions about What It Is They Are Paying CEOs to Do

7. The U.S. Presidential Election Will Create New Challenges and Opportunities for Business Leaders Trying to Create Inclusive Workspaces

8. A Five-Generation Workplace Will Multiply the Demands Business Leaders Face

9. Contrary to the Popular Rallying Cry of Younger Generations, Consumption of Single-Use Plastic Will Continue to Sky-Rocket

10. A Collaborative, Networked Refill Model Will Emerge as Our Best Hope against Single-Use Plastics

11. Risk Becomes the Leading Driver of Corporate Climate Action

12. Corporate Sustainability Professionals Will Face Good News/bad News/good News in 2020

13. Smart Election Year Politics Will Hone in on Economic Security Policy

14. S.-China Trade War Becomes Our New Normal

15. The European Union Will Seek to Lead – but Others May Not Follow

16. All Technology Companies Will be Required to Demonstrate Empathy and Ethics in Doing Business

17. Companies Will Expand CSR to Include CDR

18. Remix Is the Way to Get to New Consumers

19. Investors Embrace Shared Value Strategies to Improve Performance

20. Rising Student Voice Will Prompt a Paradigm Shift among Professors

21. Companies Will Come Together to Accelerate Second Chance Effort

22. The Backlash to Populism Will be Worth Watching