Technology and transformation dominate the business conversation, but too many companies are overlooking their greatest asset: people. Even at a time when tech can do so much more than it ever has before, Andrew Chancellor, CEO of Wellbeing International Foundation, argues that human-centred growth will always be a strategic imperative.
You can’t have innovation without people. It seems an obvious statement, but it goes entirely against the narrative currently dominating the business space. Technology and rapid transformation have become the entire focus. But while it holds masses of potential, it’s worthless without people to guide the necessary acceleration, identify the required outcomes, and work towards necessary progress. And yet people – how you lead them, value them, treat them – have become secondary within the majority of operational strategies, and that needs to change. Human-centred growth is a strategic imperative that no business can afford to ignore.
Why human-centred growth matters
People enable technology; AI and automation are just tools. Extremely useful tools that have undeniably enhanced the efficiency of many operational processes, but tools nonetheless. So, when you place too much focus on investing in the right tech rather than the people who use it, you miss out on the potential of both. Human-centred growth not only allows businesses to take advantage of the benefits that technology offers, but unlock progress in a range of diverse areas.
Innovation
Innovation typically comes from human creativity, but it can only happen when teams have a working environment where they feel safe to ask questions, challenge assumptions, conduct experiments, and do things their own way. When they feel pressured into total compliance, you lose the spark of enthusiasm and ingenuity that can lead to innovation.
Efficiency
When we talk of efficiency, the mind now immediately turns to AI and automation – and they have absolutely changed the way we work, removing so many of the painstaking manual processes that no one ever enjoyed. But you need people on board to initiate the introduction of automation, to identify where AI can help. And if your employees don’t feel a connection with your business or engaged with their work, they’ll simply go along with the status quo, rather than taking an active role to support progress; identifying problems, dealing with bottlenecks, and finding solutions. It’s in your interest to find out what motivates your team member and create the conditions to proactively support them.
Transformation
Transformation inevitably has a tech focus, but you can still take a human-centred approach. Because when you build your transformation around inclusion, support, and team education, you can create the champions your business needs to ensure the initiative’s success.
Scaling
Too many people see technology as the means to scale without the headcount. But successful scaling can never be about replacing people with technology. The focus, instead, needs to be on using technology to enhance your team’s performance. When your employees are confident that their roles aren’t at risk, they’ll do more to support your business.
The key tenets of human-centred growth
Connection is at the heart of human-centred growth. If you want your team to support you, you need to become a part of it. It’s no good for leaders to simply come in, lay down instructions, and guide through a closed door. They need to interact with and listen to employees, building a connection and making each individual feel valued. Because that’s when loyalty grows.
But as well as listening, you need to communicate, clearly and genuinely. When you show people that they matter to the company and that you appreciate their efforts, you build their sense of self-worth and inspire them to keep doing more. Genuine appreciation carries more value than any pep talk ever could, so when you communicate that appreciation consistently, it has an impact.
Why people should always come first
It’s easy to see why technology is grabbing all of the attention right now. With AI, automation, and biotech dominating the headlines, human skill is being devalued. Team members don’t feel safe in their work anymore – there are no longer any “jobs for life” – and this creates a terrible sense of insecurity, which can easily manifest in a lack of interest and disloyalty. And that matters, because although we have this amazing technology to change the way we work, it can’t work entirely without people. Because people bring the empathy, the insight, and the understanding to an increasingly sterile working environment.
Technology is amazing, but it can never replace people, because it needs people to reach its true potential. And the businesses that fail to invest in human-centred growth will inevitably reap the consequences, falling behind on innovation, transforming ineffectively, and scaling without any hope of future stability or sustainability.
Technology matters. But people matter more. And there are solid business reasons to invest in them.
About the Author
Andrew Chancellor, CEO of Wellbeing International Foundation a regenerative‑medicine organisation focused on responsible innovation and evidence‑based biologics. With a career spanning banking, international executive recruitment, and nearly a decade in bioscience leadership, he brings a people‑centred approach to science‑driven healthcare.
