Microsoft is embracing a model of accountability that goes far Business leaders must adapt for the world they’ve created. beyond its products or customers. Responding to the impact the Sticking with yesterday’s models isn’t just a risk around annoyed tech boom is having on Seattle’s housing prices, the company customers or disengaged employees; it’s a permanently limited 22 pledged $500 million to build affordable housing in the city. potential for future innovation and growth. But it doesn’t have to be Similarly, as Microsoft has researched and developed more this way. Tech-clash is a challenge waiting to be solved: people still advanced technology, it has strived for responsible innovation. love technology. The enterprises that find a way to deliver it in line Most notably, the company built an ethical framework to guide with people’s expectations will blaze the trail for everyone else. its development of AI and backed state legislation around proper use of facial recognition technology.23,24 Is your company ready to deliver human-centered experiences? The world is ready for you. Businesses across all industries are also beginning to acknowledge that they have a responsibility to a larger range of stakeholders. In 2019, chief executives of nearly 200 major companies, including Accenture, signed a letter indicating this shift: that shareholder value should not be the only metric of success. The signatories took a more holistic approach, pledging to expand investments in employees, protect the environment and work ethically with supply chain providers.25 The enterprises that find a way to deliver it in line with people’s expectations will blaze the trail for everyone else.