The Power of Digital Policy: Recent Episodes
Kristina Podnar
The Power of Digital Policy is a podcast that teaches you and your organization how to balance the risks and opportunities that come with operating websites, social media, mobile applications, voice assistants, AI and other channels. Through a monthly focus on individual topics, such as accessibility, cookies, copyrights, social media faux pas, data breaches, and data privacy, you will learn how to develop guardrails to maximize digital opportunity and minimize risk. Whether you work for a startup, Fortune 500 company, nonprofit or the government, this podcast will help you get digital right.
In this episode, we are joined by Lawrence Eta, a leader at one of Saudi Arabia's mega projects and former CTO of the City of Toronto, Canada. Lawrence shares his extensive experience and insights on transforming cities through digital innovation, the importance of servant leadership, and fostering community involvement in policy development. Hear this inspiring discussion on the evolving concept of smart cities, the role of data in digital transformation, and how to create agile, responsive public services. Lawrence also talks about his new book, "Bridging Worlds," which chronicles his journey in technology leadership and offers actionable lessons for the next generation of public service leaders. This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in the future of urban digital transformation and public service.
On this episode of "The Power of Digital Policy" Kristina talks with industry veterans Jim Kaskade and David Maher. As leaders at the helm of Conversica and InterTrust Technologies, respectively, Jim and David bring decades of experience in technology and secure computing to the table. This episode takes a deep dive into the intricate world of Generative AI, spotlighting the recent regulatory buzz from the Netherlands and its implications for day-to-day operations inside enterprises.
In this podcast episode, Kristina talks with Saira Jesani, the Deputy Executive Director of the Data & Trust Alliance. She delves into the collaborative efforts of leading organizations such as American Express, CVS Health, and Walmart in championing the responsible use of data and artificial intelligence (AI). The Data & Trust Alliance serves as a beacon for these corporations, guiding them toward ethical AI and data practices that comply with regulatory standards and align with societal values.
Saira elaborates on the Alliance's proactive initiatives like implementing Algorithmic Bias Safeguards. This endeavor underscores the Alliance's commitment to mitigating biases inherent in AI systems, thereby ensuring fair and equitable outcomes across all user demographics. The discussion further illuminates the critical role of fostering a culture of shared purpose and understanding among diverse organizational stakeholders. Saira identifies this cultural alignment as pivotal in overcoming the inherent challenges associated with integrating responsible AI practices into the core operational frameworks of large corporations.
The conversation also touches upon the strategic approaches employed by the Alliance to navigate the complex web of corporate cultures, priorities, and objectives. Saira underscores the necessity of building consensus around the ethical implications of data and AI usage, which often involves reconciling varying perspectives and interests to achieve a common goal. Through real-world examples and experiences shared in the podcast, you’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of the intricate processes involved in steering influential corporations towards a future where technology is leveraged responsibly and ethically, reflecting a commitment to societal well-being and sustainable progress.
In this episode, Kristina delves into the increasingly critical nexus of legal expertise and technological acumen, highlighting the emergence of "legal unicorns" - professionals who are not only adept at navigating the complexities of the law but also possess a profound understanding of technology. Guest Olga V. Mack, a lawyer with an extensive background in digital technology, discusses her journey and the growing trend of digitally savvy lawyers, including in-house legal teams, law firms, and government agencies.
On the latest episodes of “The Power of Digital Policy ” show, Kristina Podnar interviews Charles Beyrouthy , Forma Prime Managing Partner, about the fascinating world of quantum computation. They explore its different uses, from quantum GPS to photonic-based quantum computing, and outline the factors to consider when investing in this promising technology. Charles highlights the need for forward-thinking in corporate strategy and the pressing necessity of cybersecurity reforms to safeguard these new technologies. This episode also talks about the challenges and global signs in adapting new technologies for corporations; technology brought along with an increase in the need by firms to become pioneers rather than followers.
In this new podcast episode, Kristina and guest Lewis Barr, VP of Legal and General Counsel at Conversica, discuss the European Union's Artificial Intelligence Act (EUAIA). Barr highlights the Act's primary goal to implement a risk framework for AI development while addressing human rights concerns within the EU. He emphasizes the potential impact of the Act on both large tech companies and smaller enterprises, noting the need for transparency and human intervention in AI decision-making as per GDPR standards. Barr advises startups to integrate privacy and compliance from the onset, stressing the importance of understanding and articulating AI's societal impacts. The discussion also touches on how the EUAIA might influence AI regulation globally, underscoring the need for continued innovation within regulatory frameworks.
In this conversation, Kristina and AI expert Dr. Nicholas Mattei explore the challenges in building trust in AI, focusing on transparency, fairness, and ethical considerations. They discuss the role of AI in society, data governance, and public perception, particularly in relation to generative AI models like ChatGPT. Join the conversation on the importance of data privacy and ethical data use in the evolving landscape of AI technology.
Join host Kristina Podnar and cybersecurity expert Mike Starr as they delve into the critical world of software updates. Discover the hidden dangers of neglecting patches and learn how to transform routine digital maintenance into a strategic asset for safeguarding your digital infrastructure. Don't miss out on expert insights that could fortify your cyber defenses—tune in now!
Dive deep into a stimulating conversation with Sultan Meghji and Nick Reese, exploring the dynamic facets of AI technology adoption across various sectors, including academia, government, and private industries. Unpack insights into why organizations might be holding back and the transformative potential a proactive approach to AI integration can unlock. Sultan and Nick, backed by diverse experiences across sectors, unravel real-life instances of AI as a transformative tool, emphasizing its influential role as a force multiplier and an indispensable asset for future readiness.
Discover pragmatic advice on fostering an innovative ecosystem that harmoniously encourages exploration, education, and evolution with emerging technologies. Join us to navigate the evolving terrains of technology, aiming for a balanced perspective that champions innovation while acknowledging and mitigating inherent risks.
In this podcast episode, Kristina discusses the future of business and the implications of generative AI with Michel Ballings, an associate professor and director of the JTV Center Intelligence Lab at the University of Tennessee. They explore the transformative potential of generative AI, its impact on various industries, and the need for organizations to adapt to this technology. Michel explains that generative AI is a game changer because it can produce open-ended, unstructured outputs that are nearly indistinguishable from human-generated content. He highlights its potential to influence the entire economy, giving examples of how it can reshape industries like content creation. The conversation delves into the challenges of regulating AI, the role of prompt engineering in generating high-quality AI outputs, and the emergence of new job roles and skills related to generative AI.
The traditional "move fast and break things" approach to AI development is shifting toward a more regulated model, akin to high-risk product development like medical devices. Today, the pivotal factor driving successful AI adoption in any organization is trust. How do you facilitate this crucial transformation, harnessing the opportunities that AI has to offer today, and ensuring your organization is equipped for a more regulated AI future? Kristina talks with Gerald Kierce of Trustible on extending ethical deployment and trust-building beyond governance and compliance, ensuring foundational elements are diligently established by any brand looking to succeed with AI adoption for today and the long haul.
More organizations are realizing the opportunities to leverage AI, whether for easing patient administrative burdens to increasing the speed of drug delivery to the marketplace. Providers can see the benefits of broader communication and patient outreach as well. But as we continue to explore the endless possibilities, we first need to build trust in AI. Karthik Sourirajan of ZS Associates talks with Kristina about keeping up with patient digital demands, how healthcare organizations leverage AI, and the risks and opportunities of enhancing digital capabilities through frontier technologies.
Always trust your gut, right? Not necessarily. Your inner voice, aka Y.O.D.A. — Your Own Decision Advisor — can lead to poor decision-making. So how do you fix it? Dr. Jim Loehr talks with Kristina Podnar about your inner voice to make the right calls. Among other tips, he advises writing down your purpose in life, your life's mission, how you want people to remember you when you're gone, your two most important values, and your personal credo.
Building sustainable solutions for privacy requires building privacy programs that can scale effectively across existing and future laws. Privacy must also be a foundational layer of the data ecosystem – so that peoples’ privacy choices are respected and enforced everywhere. It is your UX team, legal, marketing, and IT that participate in delivering that experience. Jonathan Joseph discusses how these teams can become your organization’s growth drivers.
Artificial intelligence (AI) can make the world more sustainable by using natural resources while also helping to reduce environmental costs. It can also make us more efficient and effective. But to do the right thing for your organization and ensure sound business decisions, you must consider ethics and governance. What does that mean? Bryce Goodman, an AI ethicist, and Cantellus Group advisor, guests in this episode and provides perspective and considerations for all organizations.
The responsibility for complying with data privacy laws and ensuring that data is secure falls on individual companies. If your data is copied all over the place, it's tough to secure it because each copy has its own different set of privileges and permissions. Consider the implications as your organization deep-dives into the world's most accessible and fastest lakehouse. In this episode, Tomer Shiran of Dremio talks lakehouses in the era of data privacy and privacy law compliance.
Despite a lot of enthusiasm, the metaverse didn't go anywhere in 2022, there was a lot of noise and big promises about the world that's to come, but after many tens of billions of dollars, the Metaverse feels like it came down to some very expensive hardware and far too many NFTs. On this episode, Maxx Berkowitz, co-founder and head of product and design at Nowhere.io, and Kristina talk about the metaverse and how to bridge the gap from today’s capabilities to what is yet to come while providing unique virtual reality social experiences.
Consider granting your digital marketing team a higher degree of autonomy without committing to a radical organizational model in an “all-in” fashion because it can make you nimbler and more competitive. By adopting a self-organizing team model, you can free up workers to share the responsibility of planning and executing their work without the supervision of a manager. Team members can take ownership of their workflow, processes, schedules, roles, and more to drive work. Jonathan Lewis discusses how this works best in organizations and positively impacts teams and the business bottom line.
Many organizations are challenged by a combination of on-premises and cloud hosting. Ever-increasing ransomware attacks pose a significant threat, but so do human weaknesses, which are hard to overcome. Amidst the headlines about the latest breach and operational realities, which include limited resources, your organization can still maintain its cybersecurity posture and deliver on strategic goals. In this episode, Jason Floyd, CTO of Cybersecurity at Ascent, provides sound guidance for practical policies and how to translate them into operational tactics.
It seems that hardly a day goes by without news of another organization being hit by a data breach. While the underlying causes and the actions we need to take to prevent them are many and varied, switching to digital identity management is a requirement. Callsign’s SVP, Bill Sytsma, joins us for an in-depth look at how banks and financial institutions are adopting digital identity management to boost security and consumer confidence.
The digital transformation trend goes beyond consumers and organizations and creates a hyper-connected and collaborative society that transforms relationships between people. For connected citizens, communities, and society, we need smart cities. In this episode, Mike Grigsby discusses how to define and develop the smart city of the future and, most importantly, how to ensure that citizens and the community are at the heart of the transformation.
Women are 50% of the world’s population and account for 80% of consumer purchasing decisions in the healthcare industry. So why is it that women’s health has been considered a niche market, a subset of healthcare, or Femtech? This business opportunity is estimated at over $1 billion for a range of tech-enabled, consumer-centric products such as at-home diagnostics, trackers, and wearables. But Femtech also brings with it various risks if you are not savvy in navigating the emerging space. Femtech lawyer and expert Bethany Corbin joins this episode to discuss all the opportunities and risks associated with Femtech and how her own work with startups and venture capital companies is bringing new innovations to the marketplace.
People talk about business to business or B2B, and they talk about business to consumer or B2C. Amidst digitization, remember that the true center of business is H2H or human-to-human. How well does your organization do H2H? Martin Birch, a husband and father to an 8-year-old 'Duracell bunny' boy and CEO and President at ibml talks about getting this critical aspect of the business right for your organization.
Companies shouldn’t be doing digital transformation to people. Instead, they should be working with employees to reach goals. For emerging technologies, including AI, organizations can see tremendous success, according to Nancy Combs of The Cantellus Group. In this episode, Nancy talks about communicating clearly with employees and empowering them for change, improving digital literacy, encouraging and celebrating change, as well as fostering flexibility, adaptability, and a growth mindset.
A failed digital transformation project undermines faith and confidence in future initiatives and increases organizational resistance toward further digital transformation efforts. Enterprises are in a constant state of digital transformation, an extensive, expensive, and all-encompassing process. Strong leadership, solid change management, and adopting a new mental state are critical investments to successful transformations. Mihaela Mazzenga discusses digital transformation based on her decades of experience in the industry.
Building consumer trust through data protection and security means your business treats data privacy and compliance like any other corporate social responsibility pledge. So how do you put data privacy first, from brand recognition to customer loyalty, while realizing substantial ROI? In this episode, Taylor Hersom talks about building world-class security programs for organizations that not only want to embrace cybersecurity but want to realize the benefits of data privacy through a sound security program.
Marketers are obsessed with data, but there is a negative side to data availability that marketers are increasingly being forced to confront: data privacy. Companies are changing how they gather and manage customer data because of new laws, regulations, and efforts designed to protect user data and adhere to local data laws. Dan Aks, President at Undertone, a Perion company, and Kim Leone, VP of Emerging Business, Marketing & Strategic Services, also at Undertone help us understand the landscape and how to best address growing data privacy requirements.
We're living in a very complex privacy world compounded by new data privacy laws in a slew of digital technologies, such as IOT, mobile, immersive tech, and increasing vulnerabilities. We're all wondering how to balance the risk and opportunities for your organization, which is why Anthony Prestia of TerraTrue joined this episode to explain the best approach to compliance and maximizing rewards.
Organizations now realize that data has always been a critical component of their strategy. As the data numbers and types grow, organizations need to figure out: what can they do better with the data? What can they derive from the insights? AtScale’s Guarav Rao talked with me about the new opportunities that data represents for organizations willing to embrace the challenge.
To support their metaverse strategy, more than three-quarters of leaders, about 84% across the IT, telecom, and technology units, say they are planning to look to procure data intelligence solutions and deploy them inside virtual worlds in the next two years. In this episode, Or Lechner of Bright Data disuses public web data scrapping, misinformation, and the metaverse, as well as the privacy and security considerations we must keep in mind.
We’ve heard agile used in context of software development, enabling teams to quickly review and respond to any unpredictable circumstances and shifting goal posts. But why not take this project management-specific methodology, used especially for software development, and apply it to digital transformation? In this episode, Carol May discusses the benefits to the enterprise of short transformation phases, and the reassessment and adaptation of plans to realize strategic and operational success.
Artificial intelligence revolutionizes everything from the product itself to the consumer experience in many different industries. What we're seeing is an explosion in intelligent virtual assistants (IVAs) using natural language processing. To help us break down the business case for AI in consumer care and when and how to employ IVAs, we're joined by Kathy Sobus.
How do you become a frontrunner retailer among global audiences? It’s simple according to BLEND Localization’s CMO, Hila Shitrit-Nissim. You expand the number of language offerings on your website since the use of native language makes the shopping experience one that is easy and trusted. In this episode, we discuss marketing in a multilingual and multicultural environment.
The pandemic has fueled the propagation of technology and tendencies toward spending time online. It has also fueled cheap access to consumer personal data that has flooded the marketplace. Information abuse is on the rise and presents a serious problem for individuals. It is also a growing security threat to business security as the data is used for social engineering and breaching protocol. In this episode, we discuss the trends and how individuals and organizations can fight back with digital policy.
Waze, Airbnb, Amazon, and Uber have one thing in common: they use the power of the masses with applications to benefit an even more significant number of people. All are innovative ideas powered by data. What if we could do the same for the cyber world and give cybersecurity professionals an advantage by crowdsourcing data? Philippe Humeau explains how CrowdSec is making this happen daily.
KokoSwap is a unique decentralized platform that combines NFT trades (powered by the $KOKO token) with blockchain gaming to offer a seamless experience to the users. If you feel the need to reach for your dictionary to figure out what we’re talking about, don’t worry. Chris Clarke, Kokoswap’s CEO, breaks down the platform and the marketplace to help us all get up to speed.
Compared with older generations, members of Gen Z (those ages 13-24) are feeling emotionally distressed by the pandemic but are less likely to seek help for their behavioral health challenges. They also get and process healthcare information differently than any other generation. How do you walk the tightrope and get the messaging right? Shavonne Reed, a healthcare communications expert focused on Gen Z sheds light on how to change your messaging and get it right for this new consumer generation.
Although the web has existed for over 32 years, only 2% of websites are accessible to people with disabilities. Despite increasing website accessibility-related lawsuits, designers and developers are not creating websites, web products, and web services with accessibility in mind. This gap is only growing with new technologies that allow websites to be made by anyone and faster than ever before. Stacey Turmel, an attorney with deep accessibility experience, explains how to prioritize accessibility in your organization and help drive the business bottom line.
Ransomware is the primary threat for businesses these days and cybersecurity experts believe this criminal enterprise will reach new heights in 2022. Cohesity’s latest research points to strong consumer sentiment towards organizations that pay out on digital ransoms. What should you and your organizations do? Brian Spanswick, chief information and security officer at Cohesity, answers critical security and ransomware questions, including how to protect your brand.
In 2015, Membersy's CEO sold his car and raised $20,000 from friends and family with the goal of creating a platform that disrupted "antiquated dental insurance". Just six years later, Membersy has received $66 million in venture funding and is on par to continue disrupting the dental care industry. The company's reward for disrupting the industry is clear: ample digital opportunities, but also risks that need to be balanced if the company is to be a true success story. Have a listen
ROI is an archaic concept in the business world as much as in our personal lives. Instead, we should be thinking value on investment, which comes in many forms. The concept of value can certainly include quantifiable returns, but it is more about the ones that meet our emotional needs. Suppose you think about your personal investment strategy. In that case, you may desire a sound retirement account, a pre-paid college tuition program for your children, or knowledge that you can afford the best possible care if something happens to your health. Our companies need the same type of needs met, albeit they come from a broader population. For example, we need to have improved confidence in our products or people, accelerated brand recognition, or reputation protection. These benefits can be considered an investment value, which Alyssa Lum, the founder of Luminate Financial Planning, helps explain.
On November 1, 2021, China’s data privacy law (Personal Information Protection Law, or PIPL) goes into effect. The law supplements existing privacy rules established by the Data Security Law and Cybersecurity Law. With a focus on personal information protection, the law sets comprehensive rules for companies on how to process personal information of individuals and regulates the lifecycle process of handling personal information, including collection and storage. Phil Bezanson of Bracewell, LLP helps us understand the new law and what corporations ought to do to address the risk and opportunity arising from PIPL.
Any organization that allows human interaction on its digital platforms, including user-generated content, runs the risk of bots and fake accounts hijacking the user experience. humanID is looking to change that and turn the tide of bots and disinformation polluting social networks. In this episode, Namik Muduroglu and Bastian Purrer discuss how organizations can balance user validation and user privacy so that everyone wins.
Translation has come a long way in the last few years, but there’s still a lot of work to do. Automated website translations are horrible, and AI’s ability to understand dialect and cultural nuances is still far from perfect. But there are ways to leverage machine learning as part of the translation process. When coupled with the right human interaction, we not only get lower costs but translation at scale. In this episode, Unbabel’s CEO Vasco Pedro talks about all things AI, natural language, and his company’s search for the holy grail of translation.
IAB Tech Labs, a standards body for the digital advertising industry, is being taken to court by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) in a piece of privacy litigation that’s targeted at the high-speed online ad auction process known as real-time bidding (RTB). But that is only the start of privacy-related worries for any company trying to leverage digital platforms to reach new consumers. In the constant swirl around data privacy and shifts in the marketplace that impact your digital operations, what should you do to keep your risk minimized? Matt Voda explains in this episode what we should be paying attention to regarding privacy, ad auctioning, and the coming shifts in the digital operations world.
People with disabilities have $645 billion in disposable income. They want to spend money but have trouble leveraging their buying power because brands do not make their sites accessible to them. In fact, only 2% of websites are accessible for people with disabilities. Josh Basil talks about accessibility from a first-person perspective and what accessibility means to a disabled consumer. Josh also presents us with an alternative to recording all of the websites to be accessible. Have a listen!
In 2016 McKinsey estimated that 70% of complex, large-scale transformation projects failed to reach their stated goals. Two years later, it revised this estimate to say that only 16% of digital transformations resulted in successfully improved performance. As organizations increase their use of digital technologies to drive customer engagement, employee productivity, and resilience, are you set up for success? Pat Doherty, an association tech executive, explains how he has successful spearheaded a digital transformation within his enterprise and what it takes to be successful and beat the odds.
Too many digital and marketing teams treat data privacy as a mere compliance issue, looking to their legal colleagues to track and address each new legal development. That is certainly an approach you could take, but it requires a constant revisiting of the privacy policy, rethinking your partnerships and practices around privacy, and making redundant changes. In this episode, privacy expert Donata Stroink-Skillrud helps us understand the privacy landscape, how to break the cycle of constant privacy updates, and how to refocus your team on what really matters – the business of digital.
We all know that we need to focus on SEO, whether it supports our website or to support users searching via a voice device such as Alexa. But with the rise of blockchain technology, we now have an alternative, community-driven search engine that can help us in a new era of open information. Decentralized search platforms can not only allow us new inroads to conversing with prospects and consumers, but they can also help deliver on the promise of protecting user’s personal information. In this episode of The Power of Digital Policy, Colin Pape talks about all things search and how it intersects with privacy to ensure your marketing and communication efforts are well-positioned.
Businesses that practice corporate social responsibility (CSR) aim to improve communities, the environment, the economy, and their business bottom line. But what is CSR, why should you care, and how do you go about standing up a CSR program? This practice, which has increased as a result of the pandemic, offers a good deal of opportunity as well as risk. To learn more and determine how CSR addresses digital policy risks, such as data privacy, I reached out to Infobip’a Anisa Taraj.
By making a few simple changes to your devices and accounts, you can maintain security against organizations' unwanted attempts to access your data. You will protect your privacy from those with whom you don’t consent to share your information. And if you are part of a business, take note and start to treat consumer data privacy with the respect it deserves. Cat Coode talks about individual and organizational data privacy considerations, cybersecurity, and how to get a grasp in an increasingly complex digital world.
Over the past several months, Apple has slowly been releasing and updating its iOS. With the latest (iOS 14), there are tons of new additions, including a new privacy feature that will stop advertisers from collecting users' personal data unless they explicitly agree to be tracked and receive the ads. What does this mean for today's advertiser? And how much oxygen will be depleted in the ecosystem? Most importantly, if you rely on ads – including those on Facebook and other social media platforms – what should you do? Have a listen and learn what is changing in the advertising world and how to adapt.
Successful brands pay close attention to their marketing and communications, ensuring a laser focus on close, meaningful customer relationships. But what does that look like, and how do you ensure that you understand your customers’ needs, problems, and what solutions they want from you? How do you ensure that your brand continues to thrive as a strong asset? Daniel Diosi talks about the importance of the brand to the business, how to perform a brand audit, and the biggest lessons learned from brands that must get it right – luxury hotels.
If you are comfortable walking the tightrope without a safety net in order to delight your audience and earn their engagement, then you may want to pivot to podcast livestreaming. In this episode, Christoph Trappe discusses the pros and cons of adopting livestreaming, what equipment and planning you need to make the pivot, and how to get the most out of this interactive podcasting approach. Christoph even shares tips from his upcoming book Going live – Livestream your podcast to reach more people
Does Dupont need Kim Kardashian to succeed in its digital marketing campaign? Before you answer that, have a listen to Kyle Hjelmeseth, CEO of top-tier talent management agency G&B, who provides a deep dive into digital influencer marketing, finding the right fit for your brand, and what types of policies are appropriate in this perils-riden world we live in. Kyle also helps break down the DuPont/Kardashian question!
Two major innovation-related topics are top of mind for commercial insurers worldwide: data analytics and the use of artificial intelligence (AI). Amir Raskin, Data and Analytics Product Strategist at Sapiens, joins Kristina to discuss how companies can uncover insights using capabilities that were once seen to be like science fiction and drive customer service, top-notch experiences, and profits.
Unless you are a business of one, you are likely challenged with getting multiple content creators to write in a consistent tone and coming across as intended. And let’s face it, communicating effectively and not making silly mistakes that detract from your message or brand is hard at an enterprise scale. That’s where AI-enabled writing tools such as Grammarly come in. It’s like having an editor paying attention to every content creation in your organization, but without the associated cost. In this episode, Dorian Stone (GM of Business at Grammarly) lays out the business case for AI-enabled writing tools and what Grammarly is doing to enable enterprises to consistently deliver content aligned with editorial policies and standards.
Stories have a greater ability to cut through the noise, reach consumers, and build an emotional connection with users. That's why brands use stories to build engagement, loyalty, and sales. But a brand's storytelling is more than just words and a logo. It is about evoking an emotional response that will drive people to buy from you – not a nameless, faceless company. Storytelling can appear like a hard task, made more complicated by sound design. But Chiara Aliotta breaks down storytelling into manageable components and joins this episode to share experience and insights that every brand ought to adopt.
Small businesses face a stark reality that they need the same type of infrastructure that large businesses need, just at a smaller scale. From security, privacy, and marketing to accounting and finance, small businesses have never been as challenged as they are in this pandemic-laden time. But amongst the obstacles, there are many great opportunities to be harnessed, and thus marketplace gains to be made. Rachael Powell, CCO of Xero joins this episode to talk about risk and opportunity for today’s small business.
What do you think of when I say soccer and digital marketing? Is it Nike or Adidas that come immediately to mind? What if I told you that a professional soccer player, who isn’t Ronaldo nor Messi, is taking the world on with same enthusiasm and ingredients as the big brands, but with more heart and focus on the long game, to successfully recruit a legion of followers? In this episode, Quincy Amarikwa talks about his journey through the sports world and what drives him to be relevant in today’s fluid digital world. It’s a recipe that each and every marketer needs to understand, including associated guardrails (or as I like to call them, digital policies).
In a world full of artificial intelligence, machine learning, conversational chatbots, and the latest cool digital capability, it is easy to feel like email marketing is dead. After all, this channel has been around for so long, what can it possible have to contribute to the customer experience? Andrew Kordek joins me to discuss email marketing, it’s increased relevance in consumer communication, and the critical aspects for getting it right. Email marketing is still going strong today and could be the best possible strategy for your business.
Governance, risk management, and compliance are unavoidable words in today’s marketing world. But if you flip that on its head, what you end up with is opportunity to engage and thrive in the fast pace digital world, impacted by COVID, data privacy, and evolving regulations. In this episode, Gina Hortatsos, CMO of LogicGate talks about her approach to successfully engaging users, keeping the business safe, and harnessing opportunities that digital represents.
With the persistence of the pandemic,users are spending the majority of their time at home and avoiding physical interaction. How do leading enterprises reach customers in this new paradigm? According to Evan Kohn, Chief Business Officer (CBO) at Pypestream, it is about hyper-personalization by adopting AI and automation into the customer journey.
Employees are inundated with emails, phone calls, shoulder taps, and tickets. Customer service is answering a basic customer question and having trouble scaling in order to truly personalize service for your products. Why not empower your team with instant access to centralized knowledge, so that people can be freed up to focus on strategic goals and tasks that require higher-level thinking? Justin Schmidt breaks down how to make it all happen with conversational AI.
Personalization impacts nearly every industry, with IoT providing new opportunities and a competitive edge. Wearables, healthcare, pharma, nutrition, CPGs, and other verticals are being impacted by an increasing personalization trend, and that means growth (or decline, for those not focusing on personalization) of consumer focused companies. Jonathan Melnick talks about the impact of IoT on industries, how to develop a roadmap, and why personalization is more important than ever.
For the past five or more years, we have been hearing that IoT will revolutionize digital marketing and how we connect with consumers. The claim by most industry experts has been that the very devices that allow us to receive personalized environments such as self-learning thermostats and predictable timing coffee machines will generate hordes of new data. And based on inordinate amounts of new data, companies can market more precisely, more predictably, with greater relevance and value. In this episode tap into the insights you’ll need for sound digital policies where IoT and personalization are concerned. By balancing out the risks and opportunities, you can make IoT and personalization work for your business!
Last year, ransomware victims collectively paid out more than US$1.3 billion to attackers. The evolving digital security threat landscape signals the need for a more holistic plan, which, for many organizations, should include cyber insurance. In this episode, Courtney Hensley talks with Kristina Podnar about insurance as an additional layer of protection against a myriad of malicious activities that enterprises face and breaks down the real costs to an organization of a security event. Courtney also breaks down the unseen risks that enterprises face amidst COVID and remote working, and how to ensure that your business is not unexpectedly interrupted.
Digital security, cyber security, or just security. It doesn’t matter what your policy is called, the facts surrounding security remain the same: It’s a day-to-day struggle for businesses because of the huge increase in hacks and breached systems, including mobile and IoT devices. Only 5% of business portfolios are properly protected and 68% of business leaders feel their cybersecurity risks are increasing. Is your security policy properly addressed? I this episode, I share what my 20+ years in digital policy has taught me about structuring the right security guardrails.
A key component to telling your brand’s story is the ability to understand your customer’s pain points, tell them how and why your product or service will solve the problem, and then present why you are the right person to solve their problem. It is about knowing what you want prospects to think, feel, and do, and then customizing the message from the user’s perspective, in a relevant and relatable way. In this episode, Patti Podnar (no relation), a content strategist and writer, explains her process for creating content that resonates and leads to business results. She also shares where businesses most often get tripped up and how to jump over such hurdles to get content marketing right.
A lot of companies are focusing on producing content and campaigns that get executed, but they don’t perform. They are neither good at attracting prospects, nor maintaining a relationship with existing customers. Smart brands are leveraging unique stories that reach individuals and create long-term sentiment that drives businesses to meet their objectives. Christoph Trappe provides his insights on how to use authentic storytelling to successfully drive digital marketing results.
Whether you are a seven-year-old trying to explain what you were just doing on a video game, to how you communicate in business and in life, we are all storytellers. Some brands tell their stories in more conservative ways, while other brands lean into the risk profile and experiment with what resonates with consumers. How should everyone, from individuals to big brands, tell stories, and tell them well? Fred Faulkner provides a perspective on how to balance the risks and opportunities that come with content marketing.
For years, we've been creating more and more content, treating content as if it is king. And it could be considered as such, given that by conservative estimates, the big four - Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Facebook - store at least 1,200 petabytes between them. That is 1.2 million terabytes (one terabyte is 1,000 gigabytes). But quantity doesn't matter if it is bad content, nor does lots of content mean good digital content marketing practices with proven results. This month I explore policies and practices that support digital content marketing. Join me for an exploration of the topic, starting with the type of policies needed to support your content marketing efforts, and then turning to three amazing upcoming quests which will deep dive into sound practices to round out those policies.
Smart cities have long been touted as the solution to managing the explosive growth in cities, making services and infrastructure more accessible and convenient to all. But for smart cities to work, vast amounts of data are prerequisites. That automatically brings into question citizen personal data and where a city, or enterprise such as Apple, draws the line between data privacy rights and the collective wellbeing of the city. In this episode, Ashwin Krishnan breaks down for us the current draw of smart cities, provides examples of what it is like to live within smart city boundaries, and what implications all of the “smarts” have on our personal data rights and freedoms.
Do an internet search for “Anthony Veri” and “smart city” and you will get a diverse set of results that span pages upon pages. That’s because Anthony has been part of the smart city evolution since the very beginning, working through network analysis, audits, planning, designing, and training for what we now term smart cities and smart enterprises. In this episode, Anthony provides a simple definition for smart city and smart enterprise, gives us a view into the opportunities and risks that come with getting “smarter” and explains why we need not worry (but should be excited about!) 5G.
As smart city projects pick up steam across the globe and present new opportunities for technologies capable of modernizing cities, they also present new risks that should be considered.
It is easy to get wrapped up in a great A.I. idea and hard to build it into a reliable business. It is harder yet to do a trustworthy business without A.I. ethics. Shalini Trefzer provides us with ample resources and advice to get this policy area right.
Just like organic milk, digital ethics will become a global standard to which more countries, businesses, and individuals will subscribe. We are all at the beginning of this journey, and Pernille Tranberg shares what smart organizations are doing to lead the way.
Digital is quickly evolving and is increasingly shaped by the idea of ethics. If you are not factoring ethics into your digital policies, you are missing out on opportunities and creating risk. I look at three specific areas (cloud, data privacy, AI) where ethics questions are particularly important.
Going international in the digital age is a given, but entry into local markets can be full of perils. Kathrin Bussman discusses the best way to exploit new opportunities while limiting risks by properly planning and entering new markets. From properly strategizing new ventures to finding the right partner, this episode highlights what SMBs need to know.
Globalization and internationalization are two distinct different practices, both of which pose challenges to everyone from large corporations to the small business looking to expand its markets. Bruno Herrmann explains the difference, and how to get your strategy right.
The coronavirus COVID-19 is causing a lot of fear at the moment, especially as it relates to China. But fear is not a strategy, fears is never a strategy. No company can afford not to be engaged in China. Lawrence Federman tell us how to get to the other side of this humanitarian crisis and make your business thrive.
When it comes to conquering new global markets, do you need localization, globalization, internationalization, or all three? If you are already on the global stage, do you have a digital policy to maximize your ROI while ensuring you avoid faux pas and legal risk? Tune in to get your terminology and marketing ready for the global marketplace.
Privacy in the context of the life sciences is anything but simple. Faced with many different in-country regulatory systems, organizations are also struggling with a growing complexity in regional and above country marketing strategies. How do you keep up to date on all of the new regulations popping up and yet not lose your competitive edge? Hema Lakkaraju outlines the pragmatic approach to regulatory compliance, and it all starts with shifting your mindset.
Digital policies are an opportunity for us to do great work, be innovative, achieve organizational goals, and minimize risk. But you can’t get all of that if you are not mindful. Former Buddhist monk, and now coach to executives and agile teams, Amaranatho Robey, talks about teams, getting maximum speed, and doing digital the right way.
- Which does your organization have: chaos or complexity?
- Agile of waterfall? You still need leadership support.
- Be more effective, be more creative!
- Attitude is key to sound digital practices
Data privacy laws are the new norm, and proposed regulation is sprouting up in the US and around the globe. But there is so much more to data privacy than the required compliance with laws. And certainly, a lot more than the common privacy statement in the footer of your website. So, what does that look like and why think about privacy beyond the minimum required to check the box? I tee up everything that you need to know around digital data privacy policy.
Accessibility is on the upswing. The press has had an effect. The message has been delivered with the number of lawsuits and people are aware that there are accessibility issues. So where do you stand? Kevin Rydberg shares his 20 years of experience in accessibility, usability, and design to help understand best practices in developing digital solutions for those with disabilities. Spoiler alert: we all have a disability, at some point, whether temporary or permanent.
James Baverstock gives us accessibility adoption tips, including how you can save yourself a significant headaches if you consider accessibility from the very beginning of any digital effort. In essence, accessibility is like a blueberry muffin. When you’re baking a blueberry muffin, you can't just stuff all the blueberries in at the end. Accessibility, like blueberries, needs to be there from the beginning. James also gives us some great resources for getting started on the path to accessibility.
While it is important to understand the legal risks your business may be facing by not making digital content accessible, it is crucial to focus on the opportunities it may be passing up by not reaching those with a disability. In this podcast, I discuss how to develop and adapt your accessibility policy in order to minimize your online risk and maximize digital opportunity.
Welcome to The Power of Digital Policy, a podcast that teaches organizations and their digital workers how to balance the risks and opportunities that come with operating websites, social media, mobile applications, voice, AI and other channels. This podcast will help you develop guardrails to manage issues like accessibility, cookies, copyrights, social media faux pas, data breaches, and data privacy. I hope that the sharing of lessons learned, cross-industry experience and anecdotes will help you - whether you work for a startup, Fortune 500 company, nonprofit or the government - to unlock desired opportunities and get digital right.