If you missed the previous posts about Day One of the World Business Forum, please catch them here and here. Otherwise, proceed!
Day Two
Once again, I got to Radio City Music Hall nice and early, so I could snag a good seat, and once again I was successful (it was almost exactly where I sat (see above) when I saw the Pretenders perform there about 20 years ago). I wanted a good seat, because the day's line-up of speakers was quite impressive. It began with the Morning of The Global CEOs:
Since Nally is the Chairman of Pricewaterhouse Coopers I suppose I shouldn't have been too surprised that he mostly spoke about issues surrounding global accounting. His message, however, was not nearly as dull as it sounds, and one that could easily be transferred to virtually any industry category.
People have lost their trust and confidence in business, and in order to regain that trust, business must focus on two key areas: transparency and collaboration. (I'm pretty sure Nally was psychically channeling Hugh Hough, though I'm not sure exactly how.)
Francisco Gonzales
Gonzales is CEO of BBVA, one of the ten largest banks in the world, and according to him, the only big bank unfazed by the financial crisis. He attributes this to BBVA being focused on more traditional banking practices and relationships with customers, and not on investments.
Gonzales was the second speaker to use the term "short-termism" as the root cause of the financial crisis. BBVA is the second most profitable bank in the world (I wonder what's the first?), and Gonzales attributes its success to providing customer-based innovation in a business atmosphere of trust and integrity. Given the paucity of those qualities in so much of this country's banking sector, BBVA's arrival in the US next year could be something to watch for.
Peter Vosser
I found it interesting/ironic/weird that the first speaker to mention Copenhagen 2015 was the CEO of an oil company (Royal Dutch Shell, to be precise). Vosser said his industry must not only find more energy, but do so "at a reduced cost to the environment." Go, Pete, go!
Vosser called for a global cap and trade policy for carbon, and that Americans shouldn't be afraid of such a thing, because it would provide "great opportunity for wealth generation." (Ah yes, we Americans do like our wealth generation.) Furthermore, he called on American government and industry to lead the way in the battle against climate change.
Morris Chang
No, he did not speak of the pompitude of love, but rather how his company, Taiwan Semiconductor, is optimistic about its future, and blazing full speed ahead with innovation, primarily in the nano-solar field. Chang also mentioned the high percentage of Taiwanese college students who are studying engineering, and praised their work ethic (Jeff, rising from his daily nap, concurs).
Roger Agnelli
When asked to describe Brazil's outlook on the economy, Agnelli—CEO of Vale, the world's second largest mining company—said, "good."
Good, indeed, thanks to China. When the moderator described China as "the Walmart of the natural resources market—big and demanding," Agnelli said, "I pray for China every day."
It was very interesting to hear how much more positive CEOs from China and Brazil are compared to their US and European counterparts. Thank God no Russian CEOs were there, the glee could have been blinding.
Gary Hamel
I'm not sure what this means, but I took more notes during Hamel's presentation than I did any other. Hamel, a London School of Economics professor, spoke about the need to completely redefine and rebuild business management. he cited three challenges future management must address:
1. How do you build a company that can change as fast as change itself?
2. How can you build a company where innovation is everyone's job?
3. How can you inspire extraordinary performance?
The answer to these questions is, of course, beer. Ha ha, just kidding. There are no answers today because, according to Hamel, "they lie outside the envelope of our current capabilities."
Hamel did identify one company he felt was moving in the direction toward the future of management, W.L. Gore (makers of Gore-Tex). There is no hierarchy at Gore, rather a lattice, where all employees are equal until raised to leadership position by their peers.
Irene RosenfeldI was really looking forward to hearing how Rosenfeld turned Kraft around in only three years as CEO. I was woefully disappointed. Rosenfeld's presentation felt canned, trite and insincere.
She spoke slowly and deliberately, as if she were addressing a classroom of high schoolers. She smiled disingenuously as she talked about how Kraft closed plants and relieved 19,000 people of their jobs. But it was all worthwhile, because their innovation group came up with a breakthrough that truly altered the nature of their business, Oreo Cakesters.
Accompanying Rosenfeld's dumbed-down oratory were stock image slides so insufferably corny, they caused my eyes to roll so far back into my head, I was actually able to witness my brain cells as they atrophied. For example: "we needed to raise the bar," visual—a high jumper going over a bar; "we build a platform for innovation," visual—a platform diver standing on a …you guessed it, a platform; "we had to accelerate the process," visual—a blurred grouping of runners' legs.
Rosenfeld spoke of Kraft's quest for unearthing the company's "higher purpose." She and her executive team explored this issue for months, reaching out to employees and other stakeholders for their input. Finally, after extensive research and exhaustive soul-searching, the management team arrived at Kraft's higher purpose, "Make today delicious."
The crowd rocketed to its feet and roared its approval.
Paul Krugman"Apocalypse Now has given way to Apocalypse On Hold." That was how Krugman, the only Nobel Prize winner present (or at least presenting) that day, assessed the present global financial situation.
Krugman explained how the financial meltdown happened (and introduced a new term, "Bernanke Banking"), and predicted the US would not see "normal levels of employment" for another five years. Then he moved on to world trade.
World trade. Globalization. Lots of charts and graphs. I'm sorry, I love Krugman's columns, but his presentation was just a little too eco-wonky for me (and the few others I spoke to afterwards). While globalization has its problems, Krugman believes the bottom line is, it's "a happy story."
Bill Clinton
The big finish. The piece de resistance. El enchilada grande. Before Clinton took the stage, I noticed a crew removing the teleprompter (for the first time throughout the two days). I guess he didn't want to deal with the same accusations the right was throwing at Obama earlier this year. (Those of you who follow me on Twitter will recognize this message. In fact, I was tweeting throughout the two days, which was kinda interesting, and yes, you can tweet and listen at the same time.)
Clinton said the world today is in a state of "interdependence," which is far more encompassing than globalized. We are all deeply connected, and "divorce is not an option." He cited the three persistent challenges the world must deal with moving forward.
1. Unequal. In terms of poverty, education and healthcare.
2. Unstable. See the financial crisis, China, swine flu and terrorism.
3. Unsustainable. As a result of climate change.
To prove the concept of interdependence, Clinton discussed about how the US war on drugs in Colombia, and the lifting of the assault rifle ban during the Bush administration ("by people who think that the Second Amendment means that every American has the right to own an Uzi") has negatively affected our relations with Mexico.
He believes that the energy sector has the greatest opportunity for job growth in the near future, and that the recent healthcare "debate" has made him "laugh, cry and gag."
In summary
It was a long and intense two days. There were a lot of very smart people sharing a lot of good information on business issues both within and outside the walls of a company. The themes of responsibility and community were echoed often. Anyone playing Buzzword Bingo would have done well with the words "recovery," "innovation" and "values."
I count myself fortunate to have been able to attend the World Business Forum, and hope I'll be able to return in the future—perhaps even as a speaker. Granted, that idea may seem a bit far-fetched right now, but if there's anything I took away from the past two days, it's that odds can be overcome, and great things can be achieved with grit, imagination, passion and a little bit of luck.
–Hank Stewart
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