The world is changing

The most desired expertise of a management executive 5 years from now will be knowledge of global markets and experience of working in developing countries of Latin America, Eastern Europe and South East Asia; no more just basic general management.

The barriers are already falling or rather have already fallen in the last 10 years. Most of the countries have moved to open economies from Brazil to India, China to Indonesia. Even closed economies like North Korea will slowly move to free markets. [No, I am not kidding – economic isolation in this rapid age of globalization will lead to shortage of food, deceased workforce and decreased productivity. North Korean President Kim-Jong Il recently paid a visit to China to experience first-hand the effect of free markets.]

It is fascinating what’s happening right now in the world. Look at the rapid growth in Dubai; India is growing at a rate of 7% whereas China at an unimaginable rate of 9%. In comparison, most of the west European countries are growing at 2-3%. Chinese goods are filling up Mexican and Egyptian markets [forget the developed countries]. China is buying (I am serious) buying oil companies around the world. China has single handedly tripled the global steel prices in the last decade. In one word, China has single-handedly changed the face of global competition.

And we talk about China; any guesses which stock market had the highest return last year? Egypt. Can you believe it? Number 2 was Columbia, followed by Saudi Arabia, Russia and Turkey [based on the latest Economist issue].

As a result everyone is screaming “globalization”. The CEOs are scrambling through piles of international data, understanding where to create a presence, where to invest. The entire supply chain is getting disrupted – raw materials from Ghana, first assembly in china, second assembly in Taiwan, finishing touches in Germany and then shipped to the rest of the world.

So a corporate executive job is no more a country-specific job. Globalization has flattened the world (in Freidman’s words). No more….

Emphases in Marketing and Corporate Strategy, but

Emphases in Globalization and International Strategy or
Emphases in Global Management and International Finance

The world is changing and so shall you...