ET Retail

Time for Alcobev to Go Online?

Writing in ET Retail from The Economic Times, BCG’s Mani Singhal reflects on the shifts in the alcoholic beverage industry following the COVID-19 pandemic. While alcohol sales were previously concentrated at liquor stores, the pandemic gave way to a flourishing e-commerce market, allowing customers to have wine, beer, and spirits delivered directly to their doorsteps. Analyzing data from India, she explains why e-commerce can be a significant growth driver for the “alcobev” industry as a whole.

The New Zealand Herald

New Zealanders Exercise Caution Amid Rising Inflation

In The New Zealand Herald, BCG’s Phillip Benedetti discusses the mood of New Zealand consumers and what it signals about the country’s future economy. According to a BCG survey on consumer sentiment and purchasing behavior, Kiwis harbor some of the highest levels of concern regarding inflation, despite experiencing lower inflation rates than those living in the US and Europe. Spending cuts are expected in several areas of the economy, including fashion, luxury retail, and hospitality, but Benedetti asserts that certain sectors, such as travel, will actually see an uptick.

Nikkei Asia

Fatal Flaws in the Push to Secure Chip Supply Chains

In Nikkei Asia, BCG’s JT Hsu addresses the supply chain crisis and its effects on global chip manufacturing. Facing a severe semiconductor shortage, more companies are trying to replicate a once-globalized manufacturing process within national borders—a complex on-shoring process that Hsu deems unrealistic. Instead, he calls for solutions that tackle the supply chain crisis at its root, including a redundant capacity that gives the industry a buffer to absorb shocks.

Australian Financial Review

What CEOs Can Learn from Energy Traders

In an interview with Australian Financial Review, BCG’s Philip Hirschhorn and Anthony Roediger address the need for flexibility among businesses amid the ongoing energy crisis. While leaders often prioritize control and stability when it comes to resource management, Hirschhorn and Roediger encourage them to think more like energy traders and lean into the uncertainty, trusting that price highs will naturally ripple into price lows on which they can capitalize. They note that CEOs need to change their thinking and have the “ability to plan across multiple horizons.”

Yahoo Finance

How the Metaverse Is Looking to Transform the Workplace with Virtual Reality

In an interview with Yahoo! Finance, BCG’s Sarah Willersdorf examines the rapidly expanding global metaverse market, which BCG projects will reach nearly $400 billion by 2025. While a significant proportion of revenue is concentrated in the gaming world, Willersdorf focuses on virtual reality’s utility in a hybrid work environment. By transporting employees to a picturesque waterfront for happy hour or a snowy mountain resort for a company retreat, the metaverse can create a sense of unity among a remote workforce, transforming the future of the workplace.

Fortune

Why Leaders See Climate Action as the Future of Competitive Advantage

Writing in Fortune, BCG’s Hubertus Meinecke discusses how the current supply chain and inflation crises have caused many business leaders to put climate action on the backburner. Meinecke asserts that leaders should not view climate action as a burden, but rather as an opportunity to build competitive advantage. Citing BCG research, he notes the various benefits that a sustainable business model can bring to companies, including topline growth, cost savings, and value creation, and shares forward-thinking leaders’ secrets to successful sustainability transformations.

The Edge Singapore

Is Hiring Digital Talent Tough? Get It from Within

In The Edge Singapore, BCG’s Sagar Goel and Orsolya Kovács-Ondrejkovic write about the digitalization of companies’ operations following the pandemic, and how such transitions have increased the global demand for digital talent. Considering the expense of hiring new talent, Goel and Kovács-Ondrejkovic explore various ways employers can broaden their current workers’ skillsets. “Few employers get at-scale reskilling right, but those who do will certainly build a competitive advantage in the near term,” they write.

The Business Times

How to Create a Flourishing Bionic World

In an interview with The Business Times, BCG’s Vincent Chin shares his career journey as the first Asian to lead the firm’s global public sector practice. He discusses his leadership style, along with the importance of upholding a human connection with both clients and colleagues in the digital era. “Today, the right vision for the world is not technology. The right vision for the world is bionic,” says Chin. “Societies and companies can uplift human lives by marrying the best of high-tech and high-touch.”

Australian Financial Review

A Sustainable Competitive Advantage Saves the Planet as Well

In Australian Financial Review, BCG’s Rebecca Russell writes that sustainability leaders across sectors are more likely to attract and retain talent, realize higher growth, save costs, avoid regulatory risk, and create new sources of customer value. Russell’s opinion piece, which is the last in a series of Australian Financial Review articles highlighting BCG and AFR’s 2022 Sustainability Leaders list, outlines three steps companies can take to ensure their organization is ready to compete on sustainability: invest in understanding your ESG impacts, set bold and specific ESG ambitions, and implement the right operating model.

Sifted

The Quantum Computing Race Accelerates

In an interview with the Financial Times-backed news site, Sifted, BCG’s François Candelon says that quantum computing could generate $850 billion of value globally in the next 15 to 30 years, but Europe must act quickly or risk falling behind the US and China in the next tech revolution. “It’s a massive enabler for all the other elements,” he explains. “You take AI, machine learning, drug discovery, pricing in financial markets — these will all be opened up by quantum.” Candelon also provides four recommendations to ensure that European quantum startups can successfully scale up.

Forbes

Burnout Has Been Causing Working Parents to Quit

In her column for Forbes, BCG’s Deborah Lovich addresses the “twin burdens” of work and home which, in tandem, are prompting working parents to leave their jobs. She references a series of surveys that highlight the consequences of such stress and burnout, including a US labor shortage characterized by 11 million unfilled jobs and a notable decline of women in the workforce. To confront this challenge, Lovich outlines three ways that employers can help their employees—and, in turn, help themselves.

Bloomberg Radio

Wealth Creation Continues Despite Systemic Crises

In an interview with Bloomberg Radio, BCG’s Anna Zakrzewski discusses BCG’s 22nd annual Global Wealth Report, which finds that financial wealth globally grew by a staggering 10.6% from 2020 to 2021—the fastest rate in over a decade. She says that wealth development has been extremely resilient, even against the backdrop of geopolitical turbulence. Zakrzewski also explains why women’s wealth is growing faster than ever before and outpacing the growth of wealth held by men.