Chris Riddell is an award-winning global futurist and industry recognised inspirational keynote speaker on emerging trends in our hyper connected world. Chris inspires change through the delivery of tailored, unique, immersive, content driven keynotes. His energy and passion is contagious. Chris provides audiences the tools, knowledge and insights needed to turn their digital journey into an incredible success story.

Chris spends his life connecting with businesses and individuals, across industries, and around our hyper connected digital world. With a talent for analysing emerging trends, patterns and behaviors, Chris’s insights are compelling, thought-provoking and inspirational.

As a recognised and trusted authority on digital, technology and emerging trends, Chris is frequently called on to provide exciting and real-time commentary in television, radio and print media channels around the region.

A global trailblazer, Chris Riddell has worked for some of the largest and most defining businesses and brands in our modern world. Having lived and worked in countries such as the UK, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Kuwait, China, New Zealand and lately Australia, his understanding of our new world is compelling and thought provoking to say the least.

Notably, Chris Riddell was the first ever Chief Digital Officer (CDO) for MARS Incorporated, architecting the corporate digital strategy behind brands including Whiskas, Pedigree, Wrigley, Starburst, Masterfoods, Snickers and Maltesers

Speaking topics include:

BUSINESS BEYOND 2030

It’s never too soon to prepare your business for the world of tomorrow. The speed of change we’re experiencing is altering every facet of our lives—and this dramatically different world requires a shift in thinking and a fresh perspective on business, on leadership and on our global community.

So, let’s prepare ourselves today for this new world by immersing our businesses and our teams in the critical factors that have the power to affect how we do business today and how we evolve and thrive towards the future.

THE NEW CUSTOMER

WHAT WILL THE CUSTOMER OF 2030 LOOK LIKE… THINK LIKE… BEHAVE LIKE? AND CAN WE PREDICT THEIR NEEDS BEFORE EVEN THEY KNOW WHAT THEY WANT?

The ‘future of customer’ is a story of data, real-time information and radical experience transformation. And in a post-pandemic era it is more important than ever to deeply understand the genetic construct of your customer and their continually evolving needs.

Generation Alpha—the “children of the millennials”—are already guiding many of the purchasing decisions within their families. They are expected to be the longest-living and the wealthiest generation to have ever lived. This will be the most diverse, demanding and tech saturated generation we’ve ever seen, and we need to understand who they are—and what’s important to them—right now.

REINVENTED BUSINESS

WHEN OUR ‘BUSINESS AS USUAL’ IS ANYTHING BUT, HOW CAN WE CONTINUE TO GROW, THRIVE AND INNOVATE? WHAT COULD INCREDIBLE BUSINESS LOOK LIKE AMIDST THE INCREDIBLY UNUSUAL?

COVID-19 has been the biggest stress test for business and the global economy in living memory. But while it is undoubtedly challenging many businesses to find different, smarter, more connected ways of operating, surviving and connecting with their audiences—it’s also revealing pockets of startling ingenuity and resilience—sometimes in the most unlikely places.

Let’s discover and uncover the diversifications, innovations and strategies that some of the world’s most exciting businesses have employed to ensure that they’re riding the wave of reinvention—while not being drowned in the process.

RESILIENT LEADERSHIP

WITH THE WORLD AT A PRECIPICE HOW CAN BUSINESS LEADERS REINVENT THEMSELVES, AND EMBRACE REAL-TIME DECISION MAKING FOR THE CHALLENGES AHEAD?

The need for leadership invigoration has never been more urgent. Leaders are navigating a dynamic, fast-paced digital age, and working within this environment demands leaders make decisions more quickly, agilely and across virtual landscapes.

The global community is shrinking, and reliance on high-performing, collaborative teams is more critical than ever. And in turn, leaders will need to evolve their understanding of human behaviour and the human brain through neuroleadership which will help create more effective leadership, better change management and drive positive behaviours.

FUTURE TRUST

HOW CAN WE BUILD ENDURING CONSUMER TRUST IN AN AGE WHERE WE GAIN DIGITAL LEVERAGE BY MERELY PUSHING THE “ENTER” KEY?

Trust, in its simplest form has been the cornerstone of our civilisation for 10,000 years. It’s the glue that holds everything together—it’s what makes people feel safe, feel connected and feel like they belong.

But what role does trust play in our digital lives? With recent events contributing to the decline in levels of trust in major public and private institutions across much of the world, we need to invest in—and understand—the increasing human need for digital trust.

And with the proliferation of new trust-enabling technologies—transforming how trust is built, facilitated and maintained in our digital age—the transformation and instruct importance of trust in our world has never been more important.

RADICAL INNOVATION

IN THIS NEW ERA OF INNOVATION, HOW CAN WE IDENTIFY DRIVERS OF FUTURE TRENDS, AND DEVELOP NEW PRODUCT AND SERVICE IDEAS TO DRIVE RAPID GROWTH AND INNOVATION?

Welcome to the new wave of innovation. With the pace of change hitting peak levels, we’ll see more fundamental human problems being solved in the next two decades than have been solved in the last two centuries.

Radical innovators will need to think and behave like technologists. More importantly, they will need to refresh their skills routinely to stay ahead of rapidly evolving technology.

HYPER DISRUPTION

WHAT ARE THE KEY TRENDS THAT WILL DETERMINE A PATH FORWARD AMIDST A CHAOTIC AND FLUCTUATING WORLD—AND HOW CAN WE EMBRACE THIS VOLATILITY?

Our world is in a state of flux. Recent events such as COVID-19, Brexit, the United States Presidential race, and demonstrations in Hong Kong have shown us that nothing is straight forward when it comes to politics, government and society.

The ever-increasing power that technology giants have gained over the last decade—combined with trade wars between regions and countries—have seen major shifts in power in both the business and government sectors.

Businesses of the future will without doubt require a deeper understanding and tolerance to the volatility that these new shifts have created.