9 Takeaways From Davos | Inside The Push For Universal Broadband | Frank Slootman - CEO For Hire

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The events of 2020 spurred new and evolved priorities in terms of business purpose, investment, initiatives and growth strategy among all C-suite executives. Indeed, CEOs, CMOs and other decision-makers have highly ambitious goals as they enter into a new year and lead their companies forward in a changed world. In 2021, CxOs find themselves in a moment to reset, to reframe and to redouble efforts to drive growth amid new challenges—and also new opportunities.

But arguably no one C-suite executive can go it alone. Now more than ever, CxOs need to connect and collaborate with one another to effect meaningful and sustained change—in their companies, in their industries and in culture at large. There’s power in unity, and siloed organizational functions and leadership will only serve to undermine CxOs’ ambitious growth goals.

With that in mind, last week we launched the Forbes CxO platform, a comprehensive editorial initiative that will exist to shine a spotlight on innovative and unprecedented C-suite collaboration. Incorporating the editorial expertise and specialized content, event and engagement offerings of our tentpole C-suite Communities—CMO Network, led by Editor Marty Swant; CIO Network, led by Senior Editor Martin Giles; CEO Network, led by Senior Editor Steven Bertoni; and CFO Network—the CxO platform will exist as a next-level context for content, events and engagement incorporating mixes of the perspectives of all of those C-suite executives and more, such as CHROs and chief sustainability officers. We will literally bring together combinations of CxOs and create opportunities for conversation and new learnings.

We kicked off the initiative with the launch of “CxO Nexus,” an ongoing CxO video-interview series. Other components of our CxO platform include new, exclusive CxO-focused research from Forbes, this weekly CxO newsletter, and additional ongoing editorial coverage.

So watch for more. The Forbes CxO platform is our initiative to widen the lens—to spotlight C-suite dynamics and create areas of opportunity for further content and conversation through connections and collaborations across Forbes’ C-suite Communities.

Comings & Goings

Jane Gilson, formerly the head of Microsoft’s worldwide strategy and Google’s emerging markets, has been hired to take the reins of Cloudsphere, a newly formed cloud governance platform.

Rosalind Brewer is set to become the only Black female CEO of a S&P 500 company. Last week, it was announced that Brewer would leave her current position as Starbucks’ COO to lead Walgreens Boots Alliance starting in March.

Leadership & Strategy

Global business and government leaders gathered virtually for the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting last week. The past year posed countless problems to leaders, from the coronavirus pandemic to global warming to renewed discussions about racial justice. Here are nine of the biggest takeaways from Davos.

Larry Fink, chairman and CEO of BlackRock, used his much-anticipated annual letter to chief executives to emphasize the need for boards to put climate change issues front-and-center.

Corporate social responsibility has become central to many businesses’ strategies, so much so that some have appointed chief purpose officers. Should your organization invest in a CPO?

By The Numbers

2025

The year the Congressional Budget Office expects the economy to return to its full potential.

Despite some cautious optimism around unemployment and GDP, the latest report from the CBO highlights the overall severity of current economic circumstances.

Innovation & Transformation

Executives from Verizon, Google and Mastercard joined forces under the banner of the World Economic Forum to create the Edison Alliance, a collection of businesses dedicated to expanding digital infrastructure and providing universal broadband access.

While its specific objectives remain vague, many of the players have already invested significant resources (Verizon has allocated $500 million toward expanding broadband access in the last decade). This speaks to a larger trend in IT infrastructure investing: A new poll from Gartner predicts that tech spending will surpass $3.9 trillion in 2021.

Meanwhile, the public sector has been looking to step up its investment in IT following the massive SolarWinds breach. Specifically, $10.2 billion to modernize federal cybersecurity infrastructure.

The CxO Profile

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