Business Reporter Podcast

Dr Michelle De Jongh of Inspired ESG and Oxford's Alex Money join NextFrontier host Alastair Greener to examine what human capital really means for business — how it is defined, how it is measured, and why, as automation reshapes every other source of competitive advantage, it may prove to be the only one that cannot be commodified.

Geospatial insights are shifting ESG from self-reported claims to verifiable, investment-grade evidence. Host Alastair Greener talks to Dr Amani Maalouf, Senior Researcher at the University of Oxford, specialising in the use of satellite-based geospatial data to identify environmental risks, social impacts and investment opportunities, with a particular focus on waste management and methane emissions. 

Geospatial insights are shifting ESG from self-reported claims to verifiable, investment-grade evidence. Host Alastair Greener talks to Dr Amani Maalouf, Senior Researcher at the University of Oxford, specialising in the use of satellite-based geospatial data to identify environmental risks, social impacts and investment opportunities, with a particular focus on waste management and methane emissions. 

Is there really a business case for ESG, or is it just compliance by another name? In Episode 3 and 4, Aine Crossan joins NextFrontier to explain why ESG can be a genuine driver of long-term value — when companies get it right.  

In "NextFrontier: The ESG Investment Case," host Alastair Greener engages with leading experts Helena Eaton from Bedrock, Aine Crossan from Inspired, and Andy Ford from St James's Place to clarify the complexities surrounding ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) investing. Together, they explore whether ESG genuinely leads to better business performance or if it merely complicates the market. This insightful and energizing discussion is a must-listen for anyone navigating the future of responsible investment.

In "NextFrontier: The ESG Investment Case," host Alastair Greener engages with leading experts Helena Eaton from Bedrock, Aine Crossan from Inspired, and Andy Ford from St James's Place to clarify the complexities surrounding ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) investing. Together, they explore whether ESG genuinely leads to better business performance or if it merely complicates the market. This insightful and energizing discussion is a must-listen for anyone navigating the future of responsible investment.

In this episode of Business Reporter’s Best of British Business, we explore the power – and pitfalls – of data-driven decision-making with David Harding from MagicOrange.MagicOrange, a leader in IT spend optimisation, believes every CIO should have full transparency in their IT budget, enabling smarter investment and divestment decisions. But can business efficiency truly be reduced to numbers? And how do we ensure data-driven insights are trustworthy?David takes us on a journey through the origins of MagicOrange, and how its role in helping enterprises uncover the real cost of their technology investments has evolved over time. He explains why cost transparency beyond IT is critical, how unit economics can transform financial decision-making, and why AI is becoming the CFO’s smartest assistant.If you're looking to optimise IT spend and drive profitability, this is the episode you can’t afford to miss.

Annuities are often perceived as unattractive, but industry professionals are taking more and more notice of them. The US market is robust and growing, and much of this success is being enabled by modern technology.In 2023, the US annuity market saw almost $400 billion in sales, a record high for the second year in a row – growing from only $260 billion in 2016. Products are greatly improved, and technology solutions are available to assist with the complexities.Unpacking this growth further, fixed-rate annuities are taking market share from variable annuities, but this is to be expected given market performance and higher interest rates. The more interesting trend is the registered index linked annuities (RILA) market, which has grown its share since 2019 to over 14 per cent, and is expected to continue gaining.To learn more about FinMason’s advanced modular technology solutions, visit www.finmason.com. 

What ‌a full-scale biometric payment card is – what it enables, how it works.

Biometric authentication is a game-changer because it couples one-touch convenience with unrivalled security.

By necessity, policymakers in Washington DC have spent much of the past two years focused on addressing short-term crises. The unprecedented scale of Covid’s economic impact required this narrow lens, as the government rapidly enacted stimulus programs and lending facilities to mitigate the pandemic’s financial effects, particularly for the small business community – the segment of the US economy that employs more Americans than any other.

The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies has transformed business operations across the globe. From customer service chatbots to adaptive cyber-security, the applications of AI are limitless. AI can help minimise paperwork, reduce cost and drive better business decisions by increasing the predictive accuracy of future outcomes and mitigating the cognitive biases inherent in human decision-making.

While the jury’s still out on whether the US economy is officially in a recession, there’s no doubt that consumers are feeling the strain of record-high inflation. But by no means is this slowing down the still burgeoning buy now, pay later (BNPL) market, which is increasingly transitioning from big-ticket splurges to more everyday purchases, easing the pain at the petrol pump and the grocery store.

In the final episode of our Open Banking and Klarna Kosma series, we're looking to the future of finance. Discover how the Open Banking movement is evolving into open finance and what that means for consumers and businesses. Get a glimpse of the innovative financial solutions and services on the horizon, and learn how Klarna Kosma is paving the way. Join us for a thought-provoking discussion on the future of finance and the role of Open Banking.

In Episode 3 of our Open Banking and Klarna Kosma series, we're diving into the products that are making a difference in the financial industry. Explore how Klarna Kosma is using Open Banking to provide secure and efficient identification and verification solutions. Learn how Open banking already enables customers to securely share their financial data and authenticate themselves to third-party companies to make payments or use other financial services. The API that makes this possible can also be used to connect to identity services, adding multiple layers of verification.

In Episode 2 of our Open Banking series, we're focusing on how this technology is transforming the insurance industry. Discover the innovative insurtech solutions that are making a real impact, from automating the claims process to providing personalised insurance experiences. Get a better understanding of how Open Banking is helping to bridge the gap between consumers and insurers, and learn how you can benefit from these exciting developments. Don't miss this episode on Open Banking in insurtech. 

Join us as we dive into the world of Open Banking and explore how Klarna Kosma is revolutionising the way we manage our finances. In this episode, we’ll explain what Open Banking is and its benefits, and how Klarna Kosma is using cutting-edge technology to make banking easier and more accessible for everyone. Get ready to learn about the future of finance and how you can take advantage of this innovative platform. Tune in now!

According to research from AI Rudder, your call centre representative may become an AI by 2023.  Almost half of all call centres and customer-facing businesses are now planning to adopt voice AI to simplify and automate processes that otherwise require human intervention.  The benefits of AI and automation are becoming increasingly apparent, but how will voice AI impact human-machine interactions or shape the future of customer experiences?  To find out more we’re taking a look with Kun Wu, Co-founder and Managing Director of AI Rudder.  To find out more, please click here. 

Voice AI connects humans and machines through communication. It also paves the way for next-generation human-machine interaction.  Despite the lack of widespread familiarity, voice AI is at the core of many technologies today, such as voicebots, chatbots and voice assistants.  AI-powered voice technology is capable of changing the business landscape for good.  To find out more about voice AI, we’re speaking with the man behind the technology, Kun Wu, Co-founder and Managing Director of AI Rudder.  To find out more, please click here. 

Enter voice AI, a new generation of technology that empowers customer voice communications and helps build a stronger connection between companies and their customers.

What is voice AI and why should we care? Find out more in this podcast with Kun Wu, co-founder and Managing Director of AI Rudder.

Sam Coyne and Fahd Kasri, CMO and CTO of cross-border payments company Currenxie, chat with Business Reporter about the emerging trend, and how embedded finance relates to banking as a service (BaaS), as well as the technology behind it.

Plenty of business leaders dream of scaling globally – but the cross-border payments landscape can be so complex that many find their ambitions stifled before they’ve even begun.

When the Covid-19 pandemic paralysed the world in 2020, restrictions saw millions of people confined to their homes.

Introhive and artificial intelligence: started from the problem, now we’re here

How to push past fear and find success in digital transformations

There was a time when the only tools salespeople had access to were a Rolodex and a phone. Times have changed.

People and things are tangible forms of capital that can easily be seen and measured, but there is one form of capital that many companies forget about: relationship capital.

There has been a constant evolution of bundling and unbundling of services in the financial services industry. Fintechs are great at this disruption, and their products, including payments, often disrupt multiple industries at once. 

Adam Moelis of Yotta Savings joined Sunil for the third episode, to discuss the increase in fraud sophistication and what banks need to do to encourage new sign-ups while keeping information safe.

Ajay Hans, CEO and founder of Mobetize, joined Sunil on the second episode, discussing the challenges for instant digitisation by banks brought on by the pandemic.

Anil Aggarwal, CEO of Fintech Meetup, joined Sunil on the first episode, discussing digital transformation that will be ongoing now that the pandemic is receding.

As losses from natural disasters continue to increase, the customer experience will hang in the balance. Technology-forward insurance companies will emerge as reliable partners while insurers that depend on traditional models will fall behind.

Increasingly, customers expect convenience, an intuitive way to buy, and irrespective of the communication channels they have used.

The weather is becoming a growing challenge, not only for the insurance industry but also for much of the national economy. Hurricanes, wildfires, floods and other forms of extreme weather are becoming ever more aggressive and unpredictable.

Man meets machine in Finance and Procurement: Tune in to hear from Dr Ayesha Khanna, Co-Founder and CEO of ADDO AI, who joins Basware’s CMO Lars Madsen. Together they cut through Artificial Intelligence myths, throwing light on which roles AI can and should be playing in Finance and Procurement.

Artificial intelligence (AI) adoption among insurance carriers is on the rise, and is transforming how insurance is sold, serviced and how claims are handled. AI is even used to help detect and reduce claims fraud, as well as improve customer service.

The Covid-19 pandemic has forced many industries to adapt their business practices to survive in the new paradigm. In the insurance sector, carriers continued to adopt new technologies to accommodate the impact of quarantines and lockdowns. One advancement in particular has allowed for significant breakthroughs in the insurance workflow: the integration of underwriting and claims.

Digital transformation can be a seamless process that leads to reductions in cost per claims and an increase in customer satisfaction.The coronavirus pandemic has pushed insurance, an inherently conservative industry founded on minimising risk, into a new reality. Consumer expectations and health regulations have forced a new way of transacting business. In the past, underwriting inspectors, appraisers and claims adjusters regularly made appointments to visit properties on-site. But now the industry has been forced into working remotely and virtually, both out of its own offices and policyholders’ homes.

Your CRM is only as good as its data and the insights you derive, and AI can help surface and plot trendsYour business’s customer data is everywhere – in your teams’ email inboxes, calendars, IM platforms such as Slack and on social media – and, within those places, there are levels of data that offer invaluable insights into the relationships between an organisation and its network. And, in today’s knowledge economy, companies are seeking ways to make the most of this data to drive business forward.

It’s the age-old question. Which came first: the desire for data or the technology and tools to gather it? As the world of business moves forward, one thing is for sure: finding ways to uncover trends in data and turn that data into actions that can drive revenue and help businesses grow is critical. And our collective appetite has never been greater. One of the most used tools in business today is the customer relationship management (CRM) tool – the digitised version of a Rolodex with the propensity to be a company’s secret weapon for revenue growth.