The TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study surveyed over 1,200 leaders from 17 industries to understand how digital technology will impact their strategies between now and 2025. Key findings include: - Companies will need both innovation and optimization, though the balance may differ by sector. Innovation was most commonly ranked as the most important culture trait. - Leading companies will look outside their traditional sectors for opportunities, especially in large, fast-growing markets and digital ecosystems. - Success will require collaborating with competitors through joint ventures and win-win deals to manage risks. - Innovation, customer centricity, and quality will be defining priorities for leading companies globally.

1. TCS 2021 Global Leadership
Study
Outlook for the mid-2020s
TCS Thought Leadership Institute

2. 2
Outlook for the mid-2020s
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
The study asks: What will be more important in an increasingly digital decade—innovation or optimization?
The TCS 2022 Global Leadership Study surveyed more than 1,200 leaders of large global enterprises across 17 industry sections to understand
how they believe digital technology will impact their strategy over the next five years.
VS
Innovation Optimization

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TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: Innovation and optimization will be
essential
Companies will need both innovation and optimization, and the right mix will vary by sector. Optimization was ranked most important in
four areas. Yet, the companies that put innovation first could gain competitive advantage.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
Participants said optimization will be more important than innovation over the next four years. However, participants also ranked
innovation as the most important corporate culture trait through 2025.
Findings
Companies that prioritize innovation will be quick to find untapped opportunities to get ahead…but they can’t forget about optimization.
Prediction 1
Digital strategies:
the businesses and
markets to be in
Where to compete
Digital offerings:
the products and
services to offer
What to compete with
Digital ways of
conducting business
How to compete
Leadership approaches
to managing an increasingly
digital workforce
How to lead

4. 4 TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Findings
Companies that prioritize innovation will be
quicker to find untapped opportunities to get
ahead, but…they can’t forget about optimization.
Prediction 1
The majority of respondents said optimization
would be more their priority than innovation
between now and 2025:
58% 42%
Optimization Innovation
VS
Yet innovation ranked #1 as the most important
company culture trait across all 1200+ respondents:
Innovation
Diversity, inclusion & equal opportunity
Quality driven
Customer centricity
3
1
4
2
All
respondents
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: Innovation and optimization will be
essential

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TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: Leaders will look for growth in digital
ecosystems
The more a company restricts itself to traditional
boundaries of its industry, the less successful it is likely
to be. Most Leaders look for opportunities and threats
through the lens of cross-industry digital ecosystems;
only about a third of Followers do the same.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
58% of Leaders plan in terms of cross-industry
ecosystems compared to 35% of Followers.
Findings
Leading companies will look outside the boundaries of
their traditional sector for new opportunities—in cross-
industry digital ecosystems—especially in large and fast-
growing markets.
Prediction 2
Most Leaders include ecosystems when building their future strategy:
Leaders Followers
VS
58% 35%

6. 6
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: Success will require collaborating with
competitors
No enterprise can operate as a self-sufficient island in
a digitally interconnected world. Success will depend
on collaborating with competitors that own key pieces
of the digital ecosystem infrastructure.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
Top-performing companies are more likely to
collaborate with competitors. While about half of
overall respondents do this, the proportion rises to
80% for Leaders and falls to 23% for Followers.
Findings
The companies that cooperate with competitors in their
digital ecosystems will grow revenue and profit fastest.
Prediction 3
VS
80% 23%
More Leaders are currently collaborating with competitors:
Leaders Followers

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TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: Brokering win-win deals will be essential
Some of the world’s ardent rivals have found ways to
collaborate. Unlikely matchups include Ford and GM, DHL
and UPS, Netflix and Amazon, and Google and Yahoo.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
Nearly 80% of Leaders, versus a third of Followers, said
win-win contracts with “frenemies” can be highly
effective.
Findings
To manage the risk of collaborating with competitors,
the most successful companies this decade will rely on
joint ventures and win-win deals.
Prediction 4
Leaders focused on reducing risk of collaboration by using win-win contracts:
VS
79% 32%
Leaders Followers

8. 8
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: More ecosystem planning will be found
in Chinese and Dutch companies
When strategizing, companies must consider digital
ecosystems and evaluate competitors from beyond their
traditional industry boundaries. China and the Netherlands
are the only countries that stand out on three or more of
these factors, potentially enabling companies in those
nations to advance more quickly in the years ahead.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
Companies in the Netherlands and China are the most
likely to be strategizing through a lens of digital
ecosystems or a combination of their current industry
boundaries and digital ecosystems; 60% do so, compared
to 45% on average across the globe.
Findings
Companies in certain countries may be better positioned
to take advantage of the vast digital opportunities
available between now and 2025.
Prediction 5
Netherlands and China are more likely to include digital
ecosystems in their strategic planning:
55%
40%
40% 40%
46%
20%
14%
14% 31%
All Countries
Netherlands
China
Strategic planning exercises include:
Traditional industry Traditional industry+ecosystems Cross-industry ecosystems

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TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: Purely digital products will gain steam in
emerging economies
A quarter century ago when cellphone ownership was
becoming more common, emerging markets embraced
the opportunity to leapfrog traditional technologies and
get digitally connected. Likewise, our data suggest
evidence of a similar trend in purely digital (online and
downloadable) products and services.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
Mexican companies surveyed generate 57% of revenue
from purely digital products, and those from Colombia earn
53% – significantly more than the survey average of 39%.
Findings
Worldwide, companies have a real opportunity through
2025 to grow the revenues they earn from purely digital
products—especially in emerging economies.
Prediction 6 Expected percentage of revenue from purely digital products and services by 2025:
All Countries
57% 64%
53% 62%
42% 52%
42% 47%
39% 47%
40% 46%
35% 40%
31% 38%
33% 37%
30% 36%
43% 51%
48% 50%
41% 49%
Mexico
Colombia
Netherlands
Singapore
France
UK
Brazil
Germany
US
Japan
India
ANZ
China
% of revenue from purely digital products/services today
Expected increase from digital products/services by 2025
39% 46%

10. 10
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: Diversity-focused firms will outpace
competitors
Social movements promoting DE&I have gained strong
momentum. Global investment firms managing trillions
of dollars are pressuring companies to improve DE&I
performance. And diverse, inclusive teams perform
better, so companies will be paying more attention to
DE&I in the years ahead.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
Executives at the most successful firms in seven
countries ranked "diversity, inclusion and equal
opportunity" among their top three priorities.
Findings
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) will become far
more important globally by 2025, and companies that
get ahead of the trend will beat competitors.
Prediction 7
7 countries ranked DEI among their top three (out of 11) priorities:
Colombia & Mexico
US & Netherlands
UK, Germany, China
1st
2nd
3rd

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TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: The three priorities for success will be
innovation, customer centricity and quality
The top three cultural traits cited by our Global
2000 executives as most necessary for their
company’s success between now and 2025 were
innovation, customer centricity, and quality.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
As with the overall survey findings, “innovation”
tops the list by country, with 14 of 15 countries
calling it a priority. Eight countries ranked “quality”
in the top 3 priorities and in 5 countries, Leaders
ranked customer centricity #1
Findings
Innovation, customer centricity, and
quality will be the defining cultural traits
for leading brands in many countries.
Prediction 8 Cultural traits most important for success in the mid-2020s:
Canada
USA
Mexico
Colombia
Brazil
UK
France
Netherlands
Germany
China
India
Japan
Singapore
Australia
New Zealand
Innovation
Quality driven
Customer centricity
Diversity, inclusion & equal opportunity

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TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: The "size of the prize" will rule strategic
planning
In determining where to compete, Leaders’ top criteria
were “size and growth rate of the market,” followed
closely by “existing presence in those markets” and
“degree of competition.”
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
Sectors that assess opportunities based on the “size of
the prize” include transportation and logistics,
hospitality, media and entertainment, technology, health
insurance, hospitals and other healthcare providers, and
oil and gas.
Findings
Leaders will first consider the biggest and fastest-
growing markets rather than cultural fit or brand
recognition in those markets.
Prediction 9
Rank of factors for how Leaders determine in which markets to compete:
For Leader firms
Growth rate of the market
Size of the market
Existing presence in those markets
Degree of competition
Alignment to organization’s purpose
Existing sales & marketing capabilities
Political, fiscal & regulatory environment
Sustainability (i.e., environmental impact)
Cultural fit with our company
Brand recognition in those markets
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

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TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: Innovation-focused sectors will lead the
way
The pandemic has pushed companies to pivot quickly,
changing their ways of working, and forcing them to
boost their digital capabilities. Leaders in several sectors
are more willing to innovate in this area.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
Leading sectors that promote innovation in strategy are
life, property and casualty insurance; consumer
packaged goods; and oil and gas.
Findings
A small number of industries will make break-out
moves to innovate—concentrating efforts on a
single business area.
Prediction 10
Leaders in strategy innovation:
46%
60%
60%
53%
42%
Life, property & casualty insurance
Oil & gas
Consumer packaged goods
All industries

14. 14
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study: Ecosystem planning will be
essential for digital products and services
In digital-friendly sectors, most companies
are strategizing through a digital
ecosystem lens.
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
Analysis
In 6 of 17 sectors surveyed, at least 7
out of 10 respondents said their
company strategizes purely or partially
through a digital ecosystem lens.
Findings
In sectors where the core product can either
be purely digital or can be ordered digitally, it
will become even more essential to plan
using ecosystems.
Prediction 11
Percentage of industry leaders that devise strategy purely or
partially with a digital ecosystem lens:
Telecom
Retail
Media & Entertainment
Technology
Banking & Credit Institutions
Health Insurance
Life/Prop/Casualty Insurance
Hospitals & Health Care Services
Manufacturing
Life Sciences
Utilities
Transportation & Logistics
All Industries
Securities & Investment Services
Hospitality
Consumer Packaged Goods
Oil & Gas
Mining
73%
76%
73%
72%
71%
70%
70%
67%
62%
54%
48%
46%
45%
43%
36%
35%
27%
17%

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What it all means
TCS 2021 Global Leadership Study
but most are likely underestimating the amount of innovation they will need to compete in the first half of this decade.
Business leaders around the world anticipate massive growth in digital opportunities…
Innovation starts with building on belief and having a clear vision that embraces the art of the possible.
Encompassing big goals on how to deliver quality and delighting customers. And moving beyond the confines of
traditional boundaries into new and evolving digital ecosystems.
More innovative approaches will be front and center to success in the coming decade.

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TCS 2021 Global Leadership
Study
Outlook for the mid-2020s
TCS Thought Leadership Institute