This is what you’ll learn at NBForum Helsinki 2020

We launched our Nordic Business Forum Helsinki 2020 event already in October 2019 but little did we know that the theme of the event, Rethinking Business, would become even more timely and useful than it already was.

Although (or maybe even because) everything seems so uncertain and unpredictable now, it is important to plan and prepare for the future. On the 23rd and 24th of September, we will dive deeper into the topics of Future of Work, Future of Marketing, and Disruptive Technologies for Business. Together with 14 of the world’s top experts, we will help you disrupt your business and forecast the future of work.

So what exactly will you learn at the event? Here’s a quick look into each speech:

• Yuval Noah Harari, a historian and a best-selling author, will talk about some of the most important skills for the future of work. He will explore and outline some of the most crucial competencies for business leaders and employees to have in the future. He will also explain how he foresees working life will change in the future.
• Indra Nooyi, the former chairman and CEO of PepsiCo, will have a moderated conversation about the traditional enterprises changing, transforming, and innovating to stay successful as the times change. She will explore how top leadership needs to rethink business to put more emphasis on emotional intelligence and change management for the future.
• Arnold Schwarzenegger, the former governor of California, a climate change activist, and an actor, will talk about innovation and existing and emerging green technology. He will present his opinions and experiences advocating for a more sustainable future and if/how innovation and technology will save the global economy. His session will be followed by a Q&A on leadership and business.
• Rita McGrath, a world-renowned thought leader and a professor at Columbia Business School, will talk about leveraging business strategies to anticipate and maneuver future changes. Speaking at the strategic level, she will explore the factors that guide an organization’s operations and advise leaders on how to spot weak signals early and turn them into an opportunity for success.
• Seth Godin, a bestselling marketing and leadership author, will talk about how leaders can encourage their teams and employees to be more creative in their respective roles. The focus of his talk will be on surviving and thriving in the future of work, and he will look at how emotional intelligence in leadership plays a key role in the success of both individuals and the company as a whole.
• Lisa Bodell, the CEO of FutureThink and a bestselling author, will challenge everyone with some very controversial buzzwords and ideas that can greatly impact how you do business: killing the company, ending the status quo, and igniting an innovation revolution. She’ll encourage everyone to be an agent of change and explain how change is the result of carefully selected tools instead of a preset process. She will inspire leaders to motivate employees by appealing to their innate curiosity, inquiry, and creative problem-solving skills.
• Erin Meyer, a bestselling author and a professor at INSEAD, will talk about leading multicultural teams and succeeding with business in new cultures. Touching on many important topics like leadership, internationalization, and global teams, she will explain why she believes that multinational companies have spent too much time appealing to a broad customer base and not enough time helping their own employees work together. Focusing on the latter will help leaders conduct better business, and her talk will help guide the way.
• Björn Wahlroos, the chairman of the board at Sampo Group, and Lloyd Blankfein, the former CEO of Goldman Sachs, will first share their thoughts individually, followed by a conversation with each other on finance and business strategy. Both Wahlroos and Blankfein will address business owners, Wahlroos from the perspective of the best practices for shareholder engagement and investor stewardship, and Blankfein from the perspective of when to go bold and when to hold. Looking to the future, they will explore how businesses will be impacted by and contribute to the global economy in the future.
• Brian Halligan, the co-founder and CEO of Hubspot, will have a moderated discussion on marketing and building disruptive customer experiences. He will discuss how he founded HubSpot in 2006, launched the concept of inbound marketing, and created an audience for the company’s products and services. He will also call on leaders to increase their focus on customer experience, which he sees as the key driver of growth in today’s market.
• Ryan Holiday, an international bestselling author, will talk about short-term fads and long-lasting standards – and the differences between the two. He will examine what elements decide whether a product/company is trendy or if it can stand the test of time. The latter products have the power to change the way we think, live, and work. How can companies control this narrative? This will be a very practical talk about growth hacking and understanding your customers more deeply.
• Chatri Sityodtong, the founder, chairman and CEO of ONE Championship, will talk about his journey with ONE Championship and explore the lessons he has learned along the road to success in a highly complex and fast-paced market. He will outline how he brought MMA back to its roots in Asia and turned a fighting sport into family entertainment – a feat in marketing from which European leaders can draw many lessons.
• Rana el Kaliouby, a computer scientist, author and AI expert will explore the possibilities of artificial emotional intelligence (“Emotion AI”). She will reveal eight major ways that Emotion AI will transform the future of work – from productivity companions and human-robot teams to a complete re-imagination of our transportation experiences and how we connect with one another. She will show business leaders how new jobs will be created and why they must rethink how employees are trained (and re-trained) for the constantly evolving technology and business landscape.

We will have two compact days full of not only inspiration and new ideas but also practical tools to adapt and rethink business for the future. We are already looking forward to learning with you in September!

Ps. If you don’t have a ticket yet, you can get yours here.