World Out of Balance

Rating:
Summary: Tomorrows Business World Will Be Different
Review: As has been said, nothing is certain but change. And with increased transportation and communications the business world is changing faster than it ever has before. With changes of this magnitude and frequency, it is likely that the traditional slow moving companies of the past are indeed a thing of the past.

Two Examples:

We've all watched the AT&T breakup as then president Bob Allen traded the breakup of the corporation for permission to enter the computer business. The AT&T companies failed to understand how to make the move to an open competitive environment and this has been reflected in their stock prices.

There was a time when the computer industry was characterized by the term "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" -- IBM and Univac, Burroughs, NCR, DEC, CDC, GE and RCA. Where are these companies now, the industry is Microsoft, Intel and the companies that implement their technologies.

Such changes will happen in the future. The internet, the collapse of the two superpower world, the emergence of the European Common market, the changing world of Islam, rising Government intervention and more.

Successful transition will require flexibility and foresight. Without making any guarantees, this book at least points out how to approach the problems.

Rating:
Summary: A useful guide to a changing global business environment
Review: This book is a fascinating and useful guide to the challenges that companies face in today's networked global economy. Over the past few decades, corporations have become increasingly dependent on global networks of suppliers and customers. Yet at the same time, the political and economic environment has become increasingly hard to predict. In order to survive in this rapidly changing world, it is critical that businesses understand global trends and the risks and opportunities they imply. This book shows you how to do just that.

The book is a great way to get up to speed quickly on the main trends that are shaping global politics and economics. But it also presents a simple yet powerful framework for understanding how these trends might affect your business-either positively or negatively. It not only describes the key macro trends, it also analyzes them for their potential impact on business strategies.

The discussion begins with six drivers that are shaping the global environment: technology, globalization, demographics, consumers, the environment and regulation. There is a chapter on each driver summarizing the key trends and illustrated with fascinating and useful facts. There are new ways of looking at familiar issues-like the demographics of aging in developed and developing countries-and surprising discussions of less familiar topics-such as the political consequences of water scarcity around the world.

After laying out the drivers, Laudicina brings them together to build three scenarios for how the world might change over the next few decades. Laudicina also describes a number of low-probability, high-impact "wild card" events that could change all of the rules of the game.

The final chapter offers a practical methodology for mapping your own organization's risk profile so that you can begin to leverage the drivers and scenarios to better understand the specific risks and opportunities that your company faces. Avoiding the typical checklist approach to risk management, it presents a process to engage all levels of your organization in thinking strategically about the future of the company in a changing world.