Two Thirds of UK Business Leaders Say They Are Scared to Admit When They Don’t Understand Technology

Over two thirds of UK business leaders say they are afraid to admit when they don’t understand technology out of fear of looking out of touch or behind the times, according to new research by brand and cultural transformation company, BBD Perfect Storm. 

Against a backdrop of slowing national productivity and, consequently, the need to create economic growth,  this new research is designed to gauge the views of business leaders on the speed of digital change who are critical to this growth. 

It has uncovered that over a third of business leaders don’t speak up because they fear not understanding makes them look old and they have a fear of embarrassment. One in four feel it’s easier to keep quiet and try to learn it at a later date. 

Three in five are also worried about the digital world evolving faster than their business can keep pace. The biggest fears amongst them are not understanding new technologies, AI taking jobs, competitors quickly moving ahead of them and the business ultimately collapsing. The research also revealed that business leaders are worried about feeling too old to grasp how things are changing, leading to losing relevance with consumers and employees losing faith in their ability to lead the business. 

Interestingly, men ranked higher as feeling it’s more important to appear to understand whereas women are more worried about looking behind the times.

Wasting money through fear

The research also looked at what the effects of these views are and how making fear-based decisions only exacerbates the problem. With over half of business leaders admitting to have spent money on digital services without understanding them or that haven’t helped or worked for the business, it’s more evident that C-Suite roles have become a lot harder. Accelerated digital innovation and changing consumer behaviour are creating more decisions to make, at the same time growth is harder to achieve. Choosing where to invest and how to connect with consumers, is becoming complicated.

It also looked at the psychological effects of digital acceleration, with half of business leaders admitting they have lost sleep or felt stressed worrying about the speed of change in the digital world and the technological landscape - with a quarter worried this may soon happen to them.

But despite this, 52% of male business leaders and 44% female polled feel it’s not their job to understand digital technologies and digital change - and would prefer to hire specialists instead to deal with it. 

The solution

Compiled with independent research house Censuswide, BBD Perfect Storm, that works with global brands such as Heinz, Pepsi and Unilever, conducted the research to support the launch of its new division, Co/Labs, designed to help business leaders build confidence across digital culture.

As a company, they are increasingly seeing the problems with businesses struggling to keep up. This results in companies and brands then ‘hacking’ at digital culture rather than driving it- therefore not properly positioned as relevant or meaningful. Laura Redman, who comes from a background in social-first publishing,  previously as Group Chief Strategy Officer at JOE Media Group and CEO at agency Therapy, will lead and develop a thriving team across different technological disciplines. This includes social-first thinkers and digital innovators across skill sets - data & insights, strategy, content, design and production – and will help business leaders and employees understand how to stay relevant in the new digital age.

Laura Redman, managing partner, BBD Perfect Storm CO/LABS said, “The research proved what we had expected - that business leaders are often acting out of fear rather than understanding when it comes to new technologies and digital culture. Worryingly, half of business leaders surveyed also feel it’s not their job to understand digital technologies and change. But the lack of understanding will likely increase the fear of being left behind which leads to investment in the wrong places. I’m thrilled to head up this exciting new division that will help businesses confidently step forward in an ever evolving digital landscape and authentically find their voice”