11 quotes from the Business Innovation Summit

HR leaders, don’t miss out: Join us in Las Vegas for free as a VIP guest at UNLEASH America.

AI, diversity, belonging, retention...just some of the big issues of our time. It's unsurprising, then, that these topics formed the backbone of the recent Business Innovation Summit, organized by Economist Impact, the commercial content partnership division of the popular finance-focused media brand.

So you don't have to, we distilled the whole day down to our favorite quotes from the event to give an idea of the temperature of conversation around the future of work.

Read on beneath for the hot 11.

The importance of belonging

Tracey Franklin, CHRO, Moderna: “We measure belonging because if you belong, you’re going to innovate, and that in turn will drive diversity and culture.”

The cost of living crisis

Ulrika Biesert, people and culture manager, IKEA: “The way we show up in this moment will be remembered - you don’t have a choice. You need to step up.”

Data security

Chu-Cheng Hsieh, chief data officer, Etsy: “There’s no perfect use case for data security so do what is appropriate for your size of business.”

The best way to prototype your products

Vivienne Sung, VP of product, Bumble: “The magic that happens when you put people in the same room as the teams building products for them, is indescribable.”

AI as propaganda

Henry Ajder, generative AI expert: “Ethics and safety must come first, and be baked into the core of these products.”

AI applications in finance

JoAnn Stonier, chief data officer, Mastercard: “Data provenance will become increasingly important. Your questioning of the tools needs to become sharper, more accurate and our queries need to be sharper.”

AI ethics

Pierre-Yves Calloc’h, chief digital officer, Pernod-Richard: “Make sure you have the right parameters in place with the tools you use for the audiences and customers you serve. Be mindful of cultural differences and watch your targeting.”

The need for purpose

Christopher Markson, head of global talent acquisition, Revolut: “Brand and purpose are even more important when you have a distributed globalized workforce.”

Work/life balance

Krista Bourne, COO, Verizon: “Accept that balance takes time, and that time is your most precious asset.”

C-Suite hiring trends

Mitesh Popat, CFO (equities, sales and trading), Citi: “Specialist skills are being automated through tools in the tech stack so you see roles such as CFO and chief product officers coming from non-traditional, more generalist tech backgrounds.”

Communicating your benefits strategy

Joan McGrail, CHRO, New Balance, on communication around benefits: “Be transparent, get on the front foot and be grounded in your reasoning and people will appreciate that.”

Looking for more from the summit? Listen to Jon's interview with Arjan Toor of Cigna Health, here.

Future of work-related show alert: Discover amazing speakers from the world of HR and business at UNLEASH America on 26-27 April 2023.