1. 2019 trends: planning for an uncertain year
Introduce yourself; who are you (Co-founder and Director, Vuture, rather than sales lead) and introduce the company
Introduce the topic:
Time of year for budgeting and preparing for 2019
Lots of change happening within professional services
Change brings challenges…
… But also opportunities
Webinar will consider these areas in order to help you prepare for the year ahead, and beyond
Presented by:
Robin Stephens,
Director

2. Looking back on 2018

3. Business challenges for professional services in 2018
Looking back over the past year
Prioritising customer expectations
37%
Increased competition
44%
Winning new clients
32%
Expand into new markets
26%
business challenges for professional services in 2018
Let’s start by looking back over the past year and considering the business challenges we’ve all seen and the precipitous trends that accompanied them.
Increased competition – 44 per cent Prioritising customer expectations – 37 per cent
Addressing ltd. access to skills – 31 per cent Winning new clients – 32 per cent
Increase profitability of work – 26 per cent Improve operational processes – 26 per cent
Expand into new markets – 26 per cent [Mavenlink research]
Addressing limited access to skills
31%
Increase profitability of work
26%
Improve operational processes
26%
[Mavenlink research]

4. 2018 TRENDS Cloud as the new normal Compliance Automation
Ultra-personalisation
Social media
Virtual firms
2018 trends
Technology has been the dominant driver for trends in all industries for several years and 2018 was no exception. Client experience has often driven business decisions and strategies, with 2018 embracing a variety of technologies that, when adopted successfully, could have real and positive impact on the bottom line.
Ultra-personalisation
Virtual firms 
Cloud as the new normal 
Automation 
Social media 
Compliance

5. Business challenges for professional services in 2019

6. 93 per cent of executives say client expectations are increasing
93%
client expectations
Like 2018, 2019 will see organisations increasingly place their clients front-and-centre of their business objectives, due to increased expectations. 93 per cent of executives say client expectations are increasing, specifically; quality of work (51 per cent), speed of delivery (50 per cent), cost of work (48 per cent), transparency (37 per cent) and accountability (37 per cent). [Mavenlinks research.]
93 per cent of executives say client expectations are increasing

7. Competition 2018 2017 80% 62% competition:
80 per cent of executives state competition increased over the previous twelve months, in 2018, and 62 per cent in 2017.
Trust is what drives the professional services business model as, often, clients enter into a relationship without knowing the outcome, unlike buying a product and having the option to return it if it doesn’t meet expectations. Where competition is concerned, and new players enter the mix, maintaining trusted relationship with clients and prospects will be a key differentiator for a competitive market.
In addition, the battle for talent acquisition has become ever more pronounced and will continue into per cent of executives asked stated ‘expertise’ as the main differentiator for being competitive in the professional services space.

8. Change of resourcing models
94 PER CENT OF HIGH-PERFORMING COMPANIES LEVERAGE EXTERNAL TALENT NETWORKS
94%
change of resourcing models
The absence of particular skills and resources will be an issue for those organisations that fail to upskill staff and offer competitive packages, roles and working environments. 65 per cent of executives had to turn down work due to a lack of resources and skills to deliver. This is an increase of 35 per cent on the 2017 report. As a result, 94 per cent of high-performing companies leverage external talent networks. [Information Services Group.]

9. disruption:
The sum of the above three trends relates directly to the extreme and rapid change that professional services organisations are going through, now. Client-first strategies have seen new start-ups enter the different professional services markets. In response, transformation is vital for all organisations, although the urgency for some is greater than others will see many industries that currently have not seen much impact from this find themselves in a position where they have to take it seriously. Addressing the above will become vital for business survival.
Disruption
CLIENT-FIRST STRATEGIES
Client-first strategies have seen new start-ups enter the different professional services markets.

10. compliance compliance:
The GDPR was a top priority this year, as the May deadline approached. Whilst many thought it was a local issue for European firms to deal with, shrew global businesses were looking at it as an opportunity to put their clients’ needs first and get their house in order. What was born out of the GDPR was a benchmark that has had world-wide ripple effects making compliance a top consideration for Data Protection Officers have become the board member, de rigeur, and
[Potentially mention the GMF client story as they adopted the GDPR framework as best practice after reading about it in our marketing.]
compliance

11. Trends for 2019

12. Client expectations Augmented analytics The age of chatbots
Augmented analytics
An element of artificial intelligence, the automation of data analytics will augment the way we develop, consume and share insights. The result? Employee decision and action will be optimised to the benefit of employee relations and client experiences.
Chatbots
A notorious area requiring development, the age of the chatbot will come into its own in Natural language processing will have a major impact on the services industry; evolving job roles and improving service, in turn.
Digital client engagement
Client experience and engagement has been circulating in the analyst spheres for many years, having been the leading driver behind disruption and transformation. However, many organisations have struggled to leverage its power for good. Increased investment, stronger initiatives and the influx of fresh talent will recalibrate client engagement in 2019.
Augmented analytics
The age of chatbots
Digital client engagement

13. Millennials and Generation Z
competition:
Millennials and Generation Z
To be competitive, businesses need to have the resources and skills to fulfil the needs of clients. Organisations, in many cases, failed to recognise the best ways to work with Millennials for business growth and with 75 per cent of the workforce stemming from this group by 2025, these vital skills must come from them. Furthermore their successors, Generation Z, tend to be early starters, so to ensure continuity and growth finding a way to work with these generations will be vital.
Competition
Millennials and Generation Z

14. Immersive experiences
Change of resourcing models
Jobs not lost – upskill
Lack of appropriately skilled personnel ranks in the top five obstacles to digital transformation, as reported by 39 per cent of organisations. [Riverside research.]
Smart spaces
Environment of a digital or physical nature that enables the interaction of humans and technology-enabled systems to be increasingly open, connected, coordinated and intelligent as part of a new ecosystem.
Immersive experiences
An experience that blurs the lines between the physical and digital world. From conversational platforms to augmented, virtual and mixed reality, these technologies shift the way individuals perceive and interact with the world around them.
change of resourcing models:
Jobs not lost – time to upskill
Lack of appropriately skilled personnel ranks in the top five obstacles to digital transformation, as reported by 39 per cent of organisations. [Riverside research.]
Smart spaces
Environment of a digital or physical nature that enables the interaction of humans and technology enabled systems to be increasingly open, connected, coordinated and intelligent as part of a new ecosystem.
Immersive experiences
An experience that blurs the lines between the physical and digital world. From conversational platforms to augmented, virtual and mixed reality, these technologies shift the way individuals perceive and interact with the world around them.

15. Disruption AND transformation
CEOs take control
Disruption and transformation:
CEOs take control
Executives sitting in the IT, marketing and HR space, think CIOs, CTOs, CMOs and CPOs, have been leading the transformation charge, but CEOs are now looking set to take this on in the coming months and years. More digitally mature organisations seeing this: up to 41 per cent from 22 per cent. [MIT Sloan-Management Review.]

16. Digital ethics and privacy
Compliance
compliance:
Digital ethics and privacy
World is becoming increasingly digital, so ethics and privacy is a growing concern for individuals, organisations and governments. The GDPR set a benchmark for businesses globally to ensure data is stored, shared and used in an ethical and compliant way, which is now being adapted and adopted in regions outside of the EU. The focus on compliance, risk mitigation and values is set to grow in the coming years with this increasing value placed on the secure storage of data.
Blockchain
Enables decentralises trust, delivers transparency and reduces friction across the business ecosystem.
Digital ethics and privacy
Blockchain

17. What does all this mean for your business?

18. Q&As next Questions? What’s Sign up to our email marketing webinar
us:
What’s
next
Sign up to our marketing webinar
Sign up for our newsletter: Points of Vu