Praise for Beating the Global Odds

“With Beating the Global Odds, Paul Laudicina offers not only a provocative look at the major challenges of our time, but also the very real opportunities we have to convert headwinds into advantageous tailwinds. As countries, companies and individuals seek to solve the calculus for sustainable growth, this brisk and compelling volume by one of the world’s foremost business strategists couldn’t have come at a better time.”

—Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO, The Coca-Cola Company

“Diagnosing the causes of decline is relatively easy. Inventing and applying remedies is a great deal more difficult. By drawing on a huge diversity of sources, by encouraging us all to become ‘discerning omnivores,’ and by applying the sum of his own peerless experience, Paul Laudicina helps us understand not just what needs to be done but also how to do it.”

—Sir Martin Sorrell, CEO, WPP

“Seminarian, scholar, Senate staffer, from Chicago to the top of A.T. Kearney, from whiz kid to wise man: Paul Laudicina has written a book as singular as his career. Beating the Global Odds shows how to turn complexity into promise, and pixels into the Big Picture. Don’t wait for the Next Big Thing; here is how to do it. The book is a concise and gripping breviary for the knowledge economy of the 21st century—the distilled wisdom of a thinker and a doer, a rare breed in the boardrooms of the world.”

—Josef Joffe, Editor, Die Zeit, Hamburg; Senior Fellow, Stanford University

“This book is sensational. It is a must read for anyone interested in the process of innovation, and in the future of the global economy. Paul Laudicina uses a direct and personal style to transmit difficult—and sometime iconoclastic—ideas about a myriad of subjects. You will learn about complex systems, the comeback of scenario-based strategic planning, the need for expanding managers’ peripheral vision, charter cities, and many other new ideas. After finishing this book you will see the world through different (and more powerful) lenses. But that is not all: this is also a very entertaining book. Once you start reading it, you will not be able to put it down.”

—Sebastian Edwards, Henry Ford II Professor, UCLA Anderson School; Former Latin American Chief Economist, World Bank

“Business leaders often provide practical insights based on their experience. And thought leaders offer lessons based on their theories and analysis. Paul Laudicina is both a transformational business leader and a world-class thinker. With an engaging style, Laudicina blends in these pages the insights he gained from successfully turning around one of the most respected consulting firms with the best lessons management theorists and social scientists have to offer. This is an indispensable book—crisp, original, easy to read, practical and inspirational all at the same time.”

—Moisés Naím, Senior Associate, Carnegie Endowment; Author, The End of Power: Why It’s Easier to Get, Harder to Use and Nearly Impossible to Keep.

“Today’s volatile, hyper-kinetic world requires fresh approaches to step back to strategize, to connect and to innovate. Beating the Global Odds is an incredibly rich resource to navigate you and your organization through the ‘information smog’ to new, clearer possibilities. Laudicina does a masterful job taking an extremely complex subject and making it accessible and useful. This book is a ‘must read’ for leaders globally.”

—Kevin Cashman, Senior Partner, Korn/Ferry International; Author, The Pause Principle: Step Back to Lead Forward

“The world is getting more complex. We know that. We want to master this complexity but we don’t know how. Paul Laudicina has done us a great favour by sharing tools and ideas to help us understand and steer our way through an even more complex and challenging world. Mukesh Ambani’s foreword is an additional gift.”

—Kishore Mahbubani, Dean, Lee Kuan Yew School, National University of Singapore; Author,The Great Convergence: Asia, the West, and the Logic of One World

“Top-class decision-making in our over-complex, unpredictable world is an art. Paul Laudicina’s new book offers highly valuable advice for shaping the future towards sustainable value generation.”

—Jürgen Hambrecht, Former Chairman, BASF; Member of the Supervisory Boards, Daimler AG and Deutsche Lufthansa AG

“If you aspire to lead and win, you need to get this book, read it, and give it to everyone on your team. Beating the Global Odds clearly and pragmatically shows you how to develop the mindset, passion, and relationships that drive our future—so that you can create what matters most in a world fraught with change and opportunity.”

—Saj-nicole Joni, CEO, Cambridge International Group Ltd.; Author, The Right Fight

“ ‘Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is.’ Sage advice from the coach of the century Vince Lombardi. Beating the Global Odds shows us how to turn the desire to win into action—through concrete, pragmatic, realistic advice. Count me in.”

—Kevin Roberts, CEO Worldwide, Saatchi & Saatchi

“Beating the Global Odds is a timely wake-up call for today’s CEOs, who must work harder than ever to seize the opportunities—and manage the acute risks—that our ever-more complex global business and policy environment has handed them.”

—John Quelch, Dean, China Europe International Business School (CEIBS), Shanghai

Copyright © 2012 by Paul A. Laudicina. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600, or on the Web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages.

For general information on our other products and services or for technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the United States at (800) 762-2974, outside the United States at (317) 572-3993 or fax (317) 572-4002.

Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. For more information about Wiley products, visit our web site at www.wiley.com.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Laudicina, Paul A.

 Beating the global odds : Successful Decision-Making in a Confused and Troubled World / Paul A. Laudicina.

p. cm.

 Includes bibliographical references and index.

 ISBN 978-1-118-34711-9 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-118-41671-6 (ebk);

 ISBN 978-1-118-42030-0 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-43187-0 (ebk)

 1. Strategic planning. 2. Organizational change. 3. Decision making. 4. Change (Psychology). 5. Diffusion of innovations. I. Title.

 HD30.28.L378 2012

 658.4'03—dc23

2012022596

To my fellow partners around the world, and the entire A.T. Kearney family, who have generously set sail with me on our successful journey together these past six years.

Foreword

I believe the book you are about to read is one of the most remarkable books you will ever come across. In terms of density of wisdom, the author has managed to compile it all into a concise and compelling package—giving you, the reader, an exceptionally high return on the investment of your time as you savor each page. In writing this book, Paul practices what he advocates: broad, multidisciplinary insight bringing simple clarity to a world of increasing complexity.

As for the man behind this book, I am honored to call Paul Laudicina a good friend—and more. My organization and its leadership have benefited enormously from Paul’s wise counsel and incisive insights, not to mention his uncanny knack for having a pulse on almost everything. It probably was always going to be a difficult task for Paul to distill his wisdom into something so tangible. I am delighted that his book has achieved this almost impossible feat.

In leading a global institution of excellence such as A.T. Kearney, Paul has amassed tremendous learning over the past few decades. His ability to laterally connect issues and draw meaningful insights never ceases to amaze me. A vastly traveled, informed, and connected man, Paul brings a wealth of personal experiences to all his dealings—at all levels. In the pages that follow, you and I get to travel alongside him.

Given the convulsions and changes the world is undergoing today, Beating the Global Odds couldn’t have arrived at a better moment. As I write this Foreword, we are still trying to manage—and make sense of—the consequences of multiple global economic shocks. Nations that were ever so powerful and dominant in the past are grappling with sovereign survival. Nations that enjoyed economic supremacy are contemplating austerity. And nations that are ambitious and enterprising are on a new trajectory of finding their rightful place. This global reset has changed the world and has forced us to think in radically different ways to yield compelling, simple, and actionable insights.

Governments, corporations, civil society, and individuals all now have to reinvent themselves to beat the global odds, whether they want to or not. Business has a major role to play, not only to help provide stability but also to instill new confidence that the future could be brighter than the present. Paul also writes about the inescapable importance of values-based leadership. I have personally believed in values-based value creation in whatever we have done. Making a difference to the lives of millions of Indians has been a core value and driving force of my company since its inception. The foundation of radically innovating to fulfill unmet needs and aspirations of people has resulted in the fundamental transformation of whole industries. The rules of the game have changed, and sometimes the game itself has changed!

Given my own personal journey of enterprise and entrepreneurship, this book’s insights have special resonance for me. The dictionary defines an entrepreneur as “a person who organizes and operates a business or businesses, taking on greater than normal financial risks in order to do so.” This definition is inadequate in my view. I say this because I believe entrepreneurship is not just about risk taking for business. Entrepreneurship is also about risk taking for one’s community, for one’s country, and for the benefit of the entire world. Decision-making is not just about making choices. It is influenced by your ambition and what you are willing to sacrifice to make things happen. In every major initiative, we have tried to demonstrate the ability to think big, the ability to think of a large family of stakeholders, and the ability to think of our nation, and, increasingly, of the world beyond. For us, high stakes decision-making has always been in this context: high stakes for the broadest group of stakeholders.

Paul touches upon many requirements that may appear soft but are no less critical for success, such as the importance of relationships. We have always believed that relationships should come first whether with the broader group of stakeholders, with customers, or with business partners. Relationships based on trust and tolerance make efforts sustainable in the long run.

Paul also talks about information and complexity and the need to cleverly find the needle in an ever-growing haystack. We have always believed in decision-making based on first principles, which naturally clears up the clutter and allows us to focus on the most important requirements for success. Of course, perseverance and the courage of conviction play vital roles in this process as well. Sometimes the going has become tough, but our “no exit at any cost” approach has seen us through some difficult times.

Finally, Paul discusses strategic planning, especially through the medium of scenarios. We have always believed that a good strategy is only as good as its execution. What links the two is planning. We put unbelievable emphasis on getting the planning right. We develop a dynamic strategy emanating from a rich set of plans with fallback contingencies in place for course corrections, which will invariably be needed in this world of “continuous convulsive change” that Paul so rightly notes will be the steady state going forward. Envisioning the long-term future is a difficult task, but innate intuition coupled with astute and sometimes paranoid planning can help bring about the desired outcomes. Technology has fundamentally changed the way business is conceived, configured, and deployed. Big data is the next opportunity to harness intelligence and insights to help bring about exponential business growth.

We live in an ideas economy, and things change at breakneck speed. Planning thus needs to be a real-time and continuous process. It also needs to be nimble and agile, allowing the organization to take the right turns without stopping or slowing down. For that we need intelligent, committed, and mature teams with peripheral vision. Paul’s latest book offers a compelling blueprint for such teams charged with delivering the future. Beating the Global Odds provides tangible advice for such teams to become extraordinary and world-class. Paul also offers an entertaining and inspiring guide to any individual who struggles with mastering the demands of a 24/7, 360-degree world of change, challenge, and opportunity.

Contrary to what some may think, the future is exciting and promising. I hope we all will beat the odds. Rather, I know we will—and this book helps us understand just how that is possible.

Mukesh Ambani
Chairman and Managing Director, Reliance Industries Mumbai

Introduction

Seizing the Future Is (Fortunately) Not a Game of Chance

As we begin, I can’t do better than quote pioneering French aviator and author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry: “As for the future, your task is not to foresee it, but to enable it.”

SOURCE: Fuse/Getty Images

If you’re looking for a roadmap to a better future for your company, your country, our world, and your career and personal life, I trust this book will help.

Today’s society—a swirl of businesses, governments, organizations of all kinds, and individuals—has been rendered confused and paralyzed by a multitude of shocks, crises, and high-speed changes that we are all more familiar with than we’d like to be. A technology-driven and connected world has exponentially increased our inputs and choices. At the same time, there is a lack of a fundamental, shared sense of purpose on which people and organizations can build things that last—inspiring and sparking actions that will yield longer-term benefits both within and across borders.

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!