By combining their strengths, industry leaders believe they and their organizations have a better chance of overcoming disruptions brought about by not only the pandemic, but also of the rapid technology developments. This is one of the major findings from the study by global IT services provider Tata Consultancy Services.

To keep their key players position in the digital ecosystem, leaders maintain a vision of collaboration even with competitors. The study found that 55% of leaders plan to expand more collaborative relationships with competitors.

The global study titled ‘Where, How and What Leaders Will Compete with in the New Decade: Findings from the TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study,” was based on a survey of 1,200 CEOs and senior executives. The study reveals a sharp divide in the digital strategies of better performing companies (leaders) versus the laggards (followers), including unexpected insights such as: 80% of leaders are more willing to collaborate with competitors compared to followers (23%).

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“Senior executives are always challenged to lead their organizations forward to be more competitive, and increasing digitization only accelerates that momentum,” said Krishnan Ramanujam, head, Business Group, Business & Technology Services, TCS.

To be able to compete, leaders rank innovation as the most important aspect of organization culture, followed by diversity, inclusion and equal Opportunity (#2), quality orientation (#3), and customer-centricity (#4).

Cultural priority

Leaders ranked customer-centricity as the top cultural priority, above shareholder value, while followers ranked it No.6 6, indicating that higher-performing companies embed a “customer-first” mindset across the organization. But lower performers still regard competitors as enemies to avoid with Leaders also anticipate that more of their revenue will come from purely digital offerings compared to follo

All senior executives identified an accelerated digital economy on the horizon, yet few are preparing to innovate accordingly and may end up lacking the capabilities to successfully compete.

Brought out by the TCS Thought Leadership Institute — which conducts primary research to help organizations transform for long-term, sustainable growth — the study examines how large global enterprises have recalibrated their competitive strategies through 2025, following the pandemic. Specifically, it explores how management teams across the world are striking a balance between innovation and optimization in four areas — digital strategies, digital offerings, digital ways of conducting business, and leadership approaches.

Automation, real-time analysis

Leaders believe that digitally empowering employees will be more impactful to the organization, including over automation of real-time analysis of the company’s financial condition. While digital cultures are thriving, senior executives are underestimating the amount of innovation they will need, as competing in the marketplace will still mean navigating some legacy barriers to innovation.

“The adoption of digitization in the Philippines picked up pace as businesses and consumers acknowledge the need to cope with changes in the society, especially given the challenges brought about by the pandemic,” said Shiju Varghese, country lead, TCS Philippines. “Local leaders continue to find holistic and safe solutions to empower businesses, employees, and consumers today and beyond.”