Technology and the Human Disconnect

Yesterday, I was having wine with one of my smartest friends. We work in different spaces, tackle different challenges, but our shared interest in technology and its impact on people and business gives us common ground to explore ideas that matter.

This conversation highlighted something I've been thinking about a lot lately. When you have two people with solid foundations in both technology and business, which I believe is crucial for moving forward, you start to see the real disconnect happening in organizations everywhere.

The Great Divide

Talk to most business people during uncertain times, and their instinct is simple: stick with the status quo. "Let's just keep doing what we're doing."

Talk to tech people, and you get the opposite extreme: "We need to change and adopt quickly" followed immediately by "but let's make a five-year plan and overthink every detail." The result? Two years before anyone in the business actually starts using what's been developed.

Then there's the largest group of all: those who aren't interested in the conversation at all.

But here's the thing, whether we like it or not, we're at a pivotal moment.

The Inevitable Shift

What we know today will soon become what we knew. What's coming will become what we know. And it's not five years away, or even two. It's been creeping up on us for the past decade. When it first showed its face, we chose to ignore it, hoping it would disappear.

Yet it's still here, just wearing different clothes. Remember the metaverse? It's still here, but it's become like Voldemort: the thing that must not be named. We've given it new labels, but the underlying transformation remains.

The Real Conversation

This isn't really about technology, though that's the surface discussion. It's about finding the right balance. Make the conversation too big, and nothing happens. Make it too small, and nothing becomes visible.

We're already seeing the impact across marketing, sales, training, and corporate strategy.

If you follow my posts, you know I spend considerable time with marketing and sales leaders. Lately, I've been having more conversations about training too. I'm fully aware of the challenges: the future feels uncertain, budgets are tight, and the pace of change is intense.

Navigating "Everything All at Once"

I talk often about this "everything all at once" moment we're living through. In the famous words of Tom Hanks: "This too shall pass." But we need to think ahead, do what we can to evolve, and figure out our next steps.

It's not about taking immediate massive action. It's about getting your feet wet, understanding what this means for your brand and organization, and determining what foundation you need to build or change.

That last point is where many organizations struggle. They try to build on the wrong foundation. Demolishing the existing foundation isn't realistic (not to mention the resistance from teams who don't want change).

Maybe the solution is to build a new foundation alongside the old one. Construct your new structure, connect the old with the new for a transition period, then remove the bridge between them when the time is right.

What We're Focusing On

For marketing and sales: The customer journey has fundamentally changed, and this is true for both B2B and B2C. They're starting to look more alike than ever before.

The numbers tell a compelling story. 88 percent of online shoppers are more likely to continue shopping on a retailer website that offers a personalized experience, including 96 percent of Gen Zers, while 86% of respondents believe AI will have a transformative impact on customer experience. We're seeing 45% of companies experiencing loyalty benefits and 40% reporting profit gains from journey orchestration technology.

What's particularly striking is how 61 percent of customers say they're willing to spend more with a company that offers a customized experience, yet only 60% of consumers agree that brands deliver personalized experiences, despite 85% of brands believing they do. This gap represents the disconnect we're talking about.

For training: We need to be more efficient and more impactful while creating something people actually want to engage with. No one looks forward to being put in a classroom or evaluated. So let's gamify the experience and provide access to training continuously, not just occasionally. When a worker feels uncertain, they should be able to upskill whenever they recognize the need.

The training landscape is transforming rapidly. The gamification market alone is projected to hit $30 billion by 2025, and more than 85% of employees say gamified training makes them feel more engaged. Studies show that employees trained with gamified systems are 90% more likely to retain information and 20% more productive on the job.

According to the National Training Laboratory, learners engaged in virtual reality (VR) training retained information at a remarkable rate of 75%, in contrast to just 10% retention through traditional lectures. This isn't just about technology for technology's sake; it's about meeting people where they are and how they actually want to learn.

Stop Dismissing, Start Experimenting

Let's stop defining new technologies as gimmicks and dismissing them too quickly. It's again about balance. Try, test, understand, iterate, roll out, iterate.

Make small meaningful steps. Learn in the process.

I know what some of you might be thinking: "When we're ready, we'll throw a big amount of money at it and it will be solved."

Wrong. That only solves the technology side of the equation, not the acceptance of your team, your customers, your organization. Those will need time to understand how it benefits them. They need to be pushed, but in a comfortable way. They need to be taught: they need to become ambassadors.

Moving Forward

The human disconnect isn't about choosing between technology and people. It's about finding the bridge that connects them meaningfully. The organizations that figure this out first won't just survive the transition; they'll define what comes next.