E-Book Overview
(Introduction: A Call to Action)
As the saying goes, If you do not like changes, you will like irrelevance even less. From computer viruses and epidemics to terrorism and political unrest, change and uncertainty have come to define the world in which we live and do business. Rather than resisting and being paralyzed by this precarious state, executives should seize the opportunities it presents.In World Out of Balance, Paul Laudicina, managing director of A.T. Kearney’s Global Business Policy Council, calls on the corporate community to understand the external world in order to engage it. Although anticipating and preparing for every eventuality is impossible, executives can lead more confidently if they know which corners to look around and what they may find. (Compliments of A.T. Kearney)
E-Book Content
WORLD OUT OF
BALANCE NAVIGATING GLOBAL RISKS TO SEIZE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
R EUE DDLIA JCO UIXN A PA AUL ELX AAN D. R AL A H. PETER NESVOLD With a foreword by Jürgen Hambrecht, Chairman, BASF
COMPLIMENTS
OF
A.T. KEARNEY
As the saying goes, “If you do not like change, you will like irrelevance even less.” From computer viruses and epidemics to terrorism and political unrest, change and uncertainty have come to define the world in which we live and do business. Rather than resisting and being paralyzed by this precarious state, executives should seize the opportunities it presents. In World Out of Balance, Paul Laudicina, managing director of A.T. Kearney’s Global Business Policy Council, calls on the corporate community to “understand the external world in order to engage it.” Although anticipating and preparing for every eventuality is impossible, executives can lead more confidently if they know which corners to look around and what they may find. In this light, the book offers a practical framework for building scenarios that make future possibilities clearer. Five key drivers likely to shape tomorrow’s global business environment — globalization, demographic developments, changes in consumer attitudes and tastes, natural resource trends, and growing regulation and activism — form the foundation. This is not a crystal-ball approach to strategic planning, but a set of practical tools that can help executives separate false signals from meaningful developments. The following excerpt is the introductory chapter from World Out of Balance: Navigating Global Risks to Seize Competitive Advantage (McGrawHill, 2005). For more information, please visit www.atkearney.com.
WORLD OUT OF
BALANCE NAVIGATING GLOBAL RISKS TO SEIZE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
PA U L A . L A U D I C I N A
McGraw-Hill
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PRAISE
FOR
WORLD OUT
OF
BALANCE
Timely and provocative, World Out of Balance is a helpful companion to CEOs and other decision-makers facing growing uncertainty and complexity in global markets. Author Paul Laudicina draws on years of experience in laying out a compelling battle plan for leaders determined to reach their goals despite a bewildering array of obstacles. THOMAS D’AQUINO President and Chief Executive Canadian Council of Chief Executives
World Out of Balance is a wake-up call to today’s chief executives, who must work hard to seize the opportunities—and manage the risks—that an increasingly complex global environment offers. JOHN QUELCH Senior Associate Dean for International Development and Lincoln Filene Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School
In World Out of Balance, Paul Laudicina provides a uniquely valuable insight into the driving forces of the new global environment for busin