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2019 | Buch

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Architects of Change

Designing Strategies for a Turbulent Business Environment

verfasst von: Jeremy Ghez

Verlag: Springer International Publishing

Enthalten in: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

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Über dieses Buch

What is the difference between a fire fighter and an architect? One deals with crises as they arise while the other is capable of building something that can withstand all weathers.

Using this analogy, Architects of Change provides you with the tools to grasp, leverage and harness the dynamics that shape tomorrow's markets. It encourages you to nurture an entrepreneurial mind-set to transform the way a business – or even an entire industry – operates. Tackling crucial topics related to geopolitics, creative destruction, fake news, resilience and creativity, this book gives you the tools to analyse your environment and future trends in order to reinvent the way you do business. It teaches you how to:

· Identify actors of change

· Conduct simulations about the future

· Assess threats of political instability

· Build a strategy for a profitable and sustainable firm amid ongoing uncertainty

· Become an architect of change yourself.

Containing original interviews with industry insiders, including a world-famous expert on brands and luxury, the former CEO of a major think tank, a thought leader from CISCO, the former chairman of the US National Intelligence Council, and a former chief political scientist of a large Asian bank, this book helps you to understand the type of imagination and creativity this business environment requires not only to survive, but thrive.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Frontmatter

1. A Tale of Two Professions

Abstract

Because of legitimate anxieties about a changing world, public opinions across the globe are feeling as if they are losing control of their fate, and, perhaps more disturbingly, of that of their children. Ghez provides an overview of what is driving those fears of social demotion in the current business environment that is undergoing three concurrent crises: one of financial nature, one of efficiency, and one of legitimacy. Nevertheless, humanity has never been as wealthier, as healthier, as educated, and as empowered today. This business environment is therefore tailor-made for individuals who want to make a difference and fix this broken system, the architects of change that Ghez introduces in this chapter.

Jeremy Ghez

2. Case Study: When James Bond Met Q

Abstract

James Bond and Q are nothing alike. And yet, they need each other to succeed. There is a fundamental lesson for architects of change in this comparison: leaders who do not take courageous decisions like Bond aren’t real leaders. But leaders who fail to emulate Q by constantly reinventing their approaches may not have the long-term impact it takes to be an architect of change. The challenge does not lie in deciding who to listen to but to strike the right balance between the Bond story of the company, based on the current headlines, and the Q story of the company, based on the potential long run transformations of a company that could get it out of the stalemate.

Jeremy Ghez

3. The World We Live In

Abstract

No one ever takes a decision in a vacuum. Architects of change need to understand the environment in which they are doing business in order to be better able to state the issue they are trying to tackle, to identify the levers of actions that are likely to be most useful and to develop a meaningful strategy to maximize impact. In this chapter, Ghez explores six megatrends that are shaping the business environment: geopolitical rivalries, global cooperation, identity politics, inequalities, global warming, and technology. After explaining each, he discusses their implications for architects of change looking to make a durable impact in this business environment.

Jeremy Ghez

4. Case Study: The Change-Maker Game

Abstract

In this chapter, Ghez explains how the change-maker game works. A future front page of a famous daily talks about the person of the year who transformed the world in a dramatic and unprecedented way. The game’s objective is to think about the identity of this person, about what that person is doing and where, with what skills and personal qualities. This game is an important exercise in mental gymnastics for architects of change: It helps them determine whether their targets and objectives are on par with the changes that the business environment is going through, and, even more importantly, if their skill set is still likely to help them make a difference tomorrow.

Jeremy Ghez

5. The Road to Reinvention

Abstract

Reinvention is the process that helps actors move forward in a changing business environment that is likely to undermine them if they do not transform. In fact, changes in the business environment can require businesses to rethink their most basic business equations and their skills sets. Competition will also drive reinvention by encouraging creative destruction, the process through which influential actors reinvent in order to preserve their advantage, and differentiation, the way relatively weaker actors reinvent in order to create a world of their own with no rival. Architects of change embrace reinvention as much as out of taste as out of necessity: unless they move as fast as the business environment, their actions and activities are unlikely to be impactful.

Jeremy Ghez

6. Case Study: Founding a Popular Pizza Place in Paris

Abstract

Opening up a new restaurant is no easy task, especially when the time to choose prices comes. In this case study, the protagonists argue about what makes most sense in terms of pricing to maximize impact—and the answer is by no means trivial. The protagonists also wonder about what reinvention means in an industry as classic as the restaurant industry. Architects of change can draw important lessons from this case. In particular, they must not look for a one-size-fits-all solution to a well-known problem but a unique fix, that they perhaps develop through a grueling process of failing fast and failing forward, and that people will value for the difference it brings to the table.

Jeremy Ghez

7. The Power of Analysis

Abstract

Being analytical is not a very easy objective to achieve in a highly polarized and ideological landscape, in which trends are not as linear as the human brain would want them to be. In this chapter, Ghez explains how architects of change can remain analytical in this landscape by discussing the virtues and the limits of the PESTLE (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental) framework. He then explores other tools that can further help architects of change grasp the complexity of the business environment, with a particular emphasis on the role metaphors play in influencing our understanding of the landscape. Architects of change will need to show a high degree of intellectual honesty in order to be excessively influenced by the consensus of those around them.

Jeremy Ghez

8. Case Study: Strategizing at Amazon When Globalization Comes Under Pressure

Abstract

Amazon’s success depends on the access it enjoys to a single and global market. While this has been true for now, the firm’s CEO wonders whether he and others have taken globalization for granted. The case reviews the evidence and discusses the extent to which globalization could go into reverse mode. It then explores the options a firm like Amazon would have to hedge against this risk. The case has several implications for architects of change. In particular, it shows how important it is for them to consider what they are taking for granted and how much they depend on it. It also shows the importance for actors looking for impact of remaining nimble in a turbulent business environment.

Jeremy Ghez

9. The Significance of Anticipation

Abstract

The objective of anticipation is to generate a set of distinct, mutually exclusive scenarios that points to the major themes we should have on our radar screen. In this chapter, Ghez discusses the importance of anticipation and provides an overview of the tools that can help architects of change generate these scenarios. This exploration of the future can help them test the relevance of their current strategy or their approach given what the future could hold. It can also assist them in identifying the key dynamics shaping the future and shed light on the most meaningful levers of reinvention. Ghez concludes by discussing the limits of scenarios.

Jeremy Ghez

10. Case Study: Getting Ready for the World in Five Years

Abstract

How do you feed a big company with actionable insights about what its business environment will look like in the future? This is the question that Yu Yan ponders in this case study that shows how she goes about identifying key themes and the most impactful format for her analysis. She also wonders how she can make this analysis so natural and omnipresent that it would be invisible. This is an important case for architects of change that explores (1) the nature of the network you need to better anticipate future changes and (2) the possibility to make the taste of architects of change for forward-looking approaches a universal one inside a company.

Jeremy Ghez

11. The Purpose of Imagination

Abstract

In this chapter, Ghez explains the difference between risk and uncertainty. While the first is quantifiable and can be dealt with easily by flexible and agile actors, the second is not quantifiable, and requires resilience. Ultimately, resilience comes with imagination, or the ability to envision a new model that makes architects of change more fit to survive in a transformed landscape, when yesterday’s world fell apart and when flexibility is not enough. The purpose of imagination is to be able to generate new ideas and new strategies in a chaotic world in which nothing is linear, and which requires full and complete reinvention on the part of architects of change.

Jeremy Ghez

12. Case Study: Conducting a Pre-Mortem

Abstract

In this chapter, Ghez adapts the pre-mortem methodology and explains how it can help architects of change enhance their resilience and better deal with uncertainty in the business environment. In this two-step exercise, participants first consider very extreme scenario of bankruptcy, as well as the potential drivers that led there. This step helps them identify the forces that could undermine even the most successful companies. The second step lies in thinking about how the company could reinvent in order to not only hedge against these forces but perhaps even leverage them. The pre-mortem is an exercise architects of change must undertake on a continuous basis: it can be a very effective way to constantly reconsider avenues for reinvention.

Jeremy Ghez

13. The Meaning of Creativity

Abstract

In this chapter, Ghez provides a definition of creativity and discusses its implications for the knowledge economy that he renames the “creativity economy.” He argues that creativity requires three key ingredients: a solid understanding of facts, a good grasp of questions that remain open, and enough imagination about what can be invented. Creativity is what a strategy that carefully considers those three elements generates. This is important for architects of change who are also rule-breakers: they do not only prepare for the coming world but also shape it in a way that will make it easier for them to achieve their goals. This is their ultimate task as actors of change.

Jeremy Ghez

14. Case Study: Looking for Talent in a Chaotic World

Abstract

Daniel Trainme, the managing partner in a major HR consulting firm, considers how tech giants have redefined the world we live in and the consequences this has on their needs in terms of skills and know-how. In fact, succeeding in this business environment they helped create will require a lot of political savviness, cultural awareness, and a solid understanding of the local context—that is, qualities that the traditional “geeks” do not have. This case is important for architects of change who need to consider how a changing business environment affects the relevance of their human resources and the type of training efforts they must offer and undertake themselves to meet the challenges set by a new landscape.

Jeremy Ghez

15. A Tribute to My Kids (the Ultimate Architects of Change)

Abstract

Children display a remarkable ability to learn but have a harder time at concentrating and planning. In this chapter, Ghez shows how research has determined that this results from evolution: children need to be able to learn in a protected environment so that when they grow older, they can care for the following generation. But this means that as we do grow older, we are increasingly less able to learn. We may feel smarter, but we are not: instead, we confuse being smart with being sophisticated and knowledgeable. We may have a harder time questioning the world that surrounds us as a result. Ultimately, this concluding chapter shows how architects can emulate children in order to generate more innovative ideas.

Jeremy Ghez

Backmatter

Titel: Architects of Change
verfasst von: Jeremy Ghez
Verlag: Springer International Publishing
Electronic ISBN: 978-3-030-20684-0
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-20683-3
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20684-0