Quiz | 2020: a year of transformation
Published on 9th Dec 2020
At the end of a year that has tested us all in many ways, here's a final, short quiz on all things transformational during 2020.
Question 1: A lot about 2020 has taken us by surprise, but what did most of the tech predictions get absolutely right?
a. The ubiquitous rise of everything "as a Service"
b. Blockchain finally going mainstream
c. The slow and steady growth of digitalisation
Question 2: Decarbonisation and climate change have remained at the top of the agenda this year. What postponed gathering is focusing global minds?
a. The Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games
b. The COP26 meeting in Glasgow
c. MIPIM 2020
Question 3: How will the global pandemic change our approach to work in 2021 and beyond?
a. There will be greater recognition that work is an activity not a location
b. Businesses will need to review their property strategy and rethink workspaces
c. The next challenge will be optimising hybrid working, combining valuable time in the office with more remote working
d. All of the above
Question 4: Data is the raw material underpinning many aspects of transformation. What approach is the EU taking to regulating data?
a. It has set the global gold standard for data privacy and is now sitting back
b. It is letting market forces shape how data is shared
c. It is pursuing an objective of EU tech sovereignty – regulating the data ecosystem is one aspect of that
Question 5: The pandemic has affected the risk landscape for all businesses. What is this likely to mean for corporate compliance functions?
a. Spending on corporate compliance will not be affected
b. Spending on corporate compliance will increase
c. Spending on corporate compliance will decrease
d. A combination of (b) and (c)
Answers
Question 1: A lot about 2020 has taken us by surprise, but what did most of the tech predictions get absolutely right?
a. The ubiquitous rise of everything "as a Service"
b. Blockchain finally going mainstream
c. The slow and steady growth of digitalisation
Answer: (a) Subscription services have continued to grow across all sectors. We've written about the regulatory considerations where the subscriber is a consumer, as well as the "Netflix-ification of mobility". Blockchain hasn't "broken through" but it continues its steady path to commercial adoption – our webinar discussed recent progress. And, of course, there has been an unprecedented acceleration in the adoption and acceptance of digital tools, driven by the necessities of our individual and collective response to the coronavirus pandemic. We took a broad look at digitalisation trends in our December webinar, "So that was 2020".
Question 2: Decarbonisation and climate change have remained at the top of the agenda this year. What postponed gathering is focusing global minds?
a. The Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games
b. The COP26 meeting in Glasgow
c. MIPIM 2020
Answer: (b) The Glasgow COP26 meeting has been postponed for 12 months. This will be the most significant global conference on climate change since the gathering which produced the Paris Agreement in 2015. Our decarbonisation experts discuss why COP26 matters in this article, and recently held the first of a series of "Countdown to COP26" webinars (catch up here and sign up for future invitations and our decarbonisation updates here). The Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, which have also been postponed until 2021, are aiming for carbon neutrality, with the competition venues and Olympic/Paralympic villages to be 100% powered by renewable electricity. MIPIM, the annual gathering of the international real estate industry, was cancelled this year: we had hoped to discuss our report on the growth of Alternative Residential assets, but look forward to seeing our clients and contacts in the sunshine of Cannes in June 2021. In the meantime, green infrastructure, smart energy meters and offsite construction will all play a part in decarbonising residential real estate.
Question 3: How will the global pandemic change our approach to work in 2021 and beyond?
a. There will be greater recognition that work is an activity not a location
b. Businesses will need to review their property strategy and rethink workspaces
c. The next challenge will be optimising hybrid working, combining valuable time in the office with more remote working
d. All of the above
Answer: (d) The Future of Work is a theme that we continue to invest time thinking about, from the perspectives of employers, workers and jobs of the future, and the spaces where we work, both designated business premises and home-based workspaces. We've pulled these issues together into this infographic and discussed them at our recent gathering for our UK In-House Lawyer event (catch up here). The coronavirus vaccines are enabling us to hope for a gradual shift out of the sustained crisis-response mode of 2020. How we organise our work, our workplaces and our workers will be major factors in the ebb and flow of urban dynamics.
Question 4: Data is the raw material underpinning many aspects of transformation. What approach is the EU taking to regulating data?
a. It has set the global gold standard for data privacy and is now sitting back
b. It is letting market forces shape how data is shared
c. It is pursuing an objective of EU tech sovereignty – regulating the data ecosystem is one aspect of that
Answer: (c) The EU's Digital Strategy was published in February 2020 and a steady stream of policy initiatives has followed (as outlined in this article). Most recently, the Commission has published its proposed Data Governance Act which was billed as creating a European model for data sharing but would also introduce regulation of the data ecosystem (as we discussed here). While policymakers debate the best approach, businesses are seeking to make the most of this valuable asset – as we discussed at a series of webinars in the summer and in this article. It's been a very busy year on the data regulation front, as witnessed by our many articles in this field.
Question 5: The pandemic has affected the risk landscape for all businesses. What is this likely to mean for corporate compliance functions?
a. Spending on corporate compliance will not be affected
b. Spending on corporate compliance will increase
c. Spending on corporate compliance will decrease
d. A combination of (b) and (c)
Answer: (d) Osborne Clarke's Global Compliance survey this summer revealed that more than four out of five respondents expected their organisation's level of investment in compliance for the next year to change, but opinions were split almost equally between those who expected spending to increase and those who thought it would decrease. When the period was extended to the next five years, though, more than 70% expected spending to rise. Our ongoing series on Managing Risk in a Transforming World is exploring how the risk landscape is changing and what businesses can do to mitigate those risks.
