This year the event brought in seven globally recognized keynote speakers, and is organized by WOBI (World Of Business Ideas), an international event organizer that holds similar forums in México, Spain & Portugal, as well as Colombia’s capital of Bogotá.

Martha Lucia Maldonado is the Colombia Country Manager for WOBI

“We do three different types of events. The first type is the World Business Forum held in various locations. The second is the World Leadership Forum. Here in Colombia we hold that, but in other global locations we have the World Marketing & Sales Forum, the World Innovation Forum, and there is a third type of event we do, our seminars,” said WOBI Country Manager Martha Lucia Maldonado in a conversation with Finance Colombia. “Here in Colombia, this year we organized two. The first one held here in Medellín was WOBI Digital Transformation, and the second one held last October in Bogotá was the WOBI Family Business Seminar. These are targeted to a very specific niche of attendees with very focused themes.”

Keynote speakers this year included management guru and author Ram Charan (pictured above), Saatchi & Saatchi former CEO Kevin Roberts, paleontologist Ignacio Martínez Mendizábal, tsunami survivor Maria Belón, human resources expert Alejandro Melamed, mountain climber Edurne Pasaban, and Colombian influencer Sylvia Ramirez.

“Today Medellín is going through a crucial moment in its economic development and positioning in the world, today we are protagonists in the hemisphere for our determined commitment to social and urban transformation, in sponsoring events, in the arrival of visitors, investor confidence and the support of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurs in the generation of productive dynamics, said Paula Andrea Zapata Galeano, Secretary of Economic Development for the city of Medellín. “However, these achievements are not exclusive to the public sector, the union of efforts with entrepreneurs, academia and citizens has been key to achieving these common goals. For that reason, we are happy to be the hosts of the World Leadership Forum again, the largest meeting of leaders in the region.”

Opening keynote speaker Nathan Furr, a professor at INSEAD business school, discussed innovation and change in business, the “platform” business model, and how to take advantage of digital disruption. Furr used several cases to demonstrate how both traditional businesses such as utilities and banks can apply some of the same strategies as tech startups to transform business and strengthen relationships with customers.

The afternoon keynote was conducted by Charlene Li, the bestselling author of Open Leadership, co-author of Groundswell and her last book, The Engaged Leader. Li talked about the challenges of aligning customer experience with business strategy, understanding new generation clients and the differences in their behavior, and the role of customer experience in digital transformation.

Workshop throughout the day covered topics such as Medellín’s strategy for the “Fourth Industrial Revolution,” blockchain, civil security, the role of design in technology and business, and artificial intelligence.

WOBI also has a World Business Forum event scheduled for Bogotá June 5-6, a family business forum in Bogotá on October 23, and returns to Medellín for the World Leadership Forum November 26-27.

Photo Credit: Loren Moss