Must-Read Editors’ Picks From 2019

Our readers have their favorite Smarter with Gartner articles, but so do our editors. Each year, we publish hundreds of articles across nine categories, and a few stand out as must-reads for executives across the business.  

We’ve selected our favorite articles from the past year. Here they are in case you missed or want to revisit them. 

IT Digital Transformation: 10 Culture Hacks for Digital Transformation

CIOs spend up to 70% of their time dealing with meetings and email. Cancel status meetings and replace them with brief written updates. Culture hacks like these can change company culture from a barrier to an accelerator, and some can be enacted in just 48 hours for highly visible, immediate results. Read now. 

Human Resources: Demand for Talent Converges on Critical Roles in the U.S., U.K.

We all know that certain skills are in high demand in the digital age, but the reality is pretty mind-blowing. Imagine all the possible roles you could be trying to fill … hundreds, right? In 2018, 49 of the S&P 100 companies were battling to fill the same 39 roles. In the U.K., 41 of the FTSE 100 were trying to fill the same 20 roles. In case you’re wondering, if you want to be indispensable, you need to be good with data. Read now. 

Communications: Should Corporate Comms Engage in Social Issues? 

Whether you’re buying a sandwich, watching a sporting event or going to work, social activism is ever-present today. No company is immune. Communications leaders must decide when and how to engage to meet expectations of employees, customers and investors. Read now. 

Sales: Why B2B Sellers Need a Sense Making Sales Strategy

There’s no shortage of quality information for customers to use when making a B2B buying decision. This comes as no surprise, as organizations have flooded their online presence and customers with content. In fact, customers are drowning in it and as a result are unable to buy. The imperative for sales is to help customers make sense of — and validate — it so they have the confidence to make a purchase. Read now. 

Legal & Compliance: A Better Way to Manage Third-Party Risk 

The number of third parties that organizations work with has grown considerably. And, the way in which legal and compliance leaders work with them has changed, exposing organizations to increased risks — both known and unknown. Learn how an iterative approach captures changing risk more effectively than a point-in-time one. Read now. 

Data & Analytics: A Data and Analytics Leader’s Guide to Data Literacy

If no one understands what the data team is communicating, the company doesn’t have a data problem — it has a data literacy problem. Data is a second language, and to gain true value, everyone in the organization must speak it fluently. Read now. 

Finance: How CFOs Translate Growth Into Sustained Profitability

When times get tough, investors and CFOs focus on costs. This lens makes it easy for leadership to make decisions that negatively impact long-term initiatives or actual value creation. Instead, they should take a wider view and focus their management teams on building scale in their cost structures to drive stakeholder returns for the next decade. Read now. 

IT Trends: The 4 Phases of the Gartner Blockchain Spectrum

The hype and promise of blockchain are real, but a lot of executives don’t really understand what the technology is or the potential it holds. The Gartner blockchain spectrum breaks down the evolution — from enabling technology to enhanced blockchain. Read now. 

Marketing: Brands Engage Customers by Connecting on Values

Given that 70% of consumers today distrust marketers, organizations are trying to regain trust by aligning their brands with customer values. This shift is highlighting a need for continuous improvement on brand strategies as marketers strive to keep up with a constantly changing, on- the-go customer. Read now.   

Service: Rethink Your Customer Service Strategy to Drive Self-Service

Have you ever called customer service because you were frustrated with the company’s chat feature or FAQ? Service leaders are acutely aware of how painful that service experience is — for both you and the organization’s bottom line. Leaders must take a hard look at their service strategy to improve self-service efficiency. Read now. 

Supply Chain: How to Build a Supply Chain Planning Talent Strategy

Across the business, the competition for good talent is fierce, and supply chain is no exception. Make sure your strategy for finding talent remains within supply chain to ensure the best fit for changing business needs. Read now.