Sunday, June 05, 2005
Book on globalization by Tom Friedman - The World is Flat
Great book though his anecdotal driven style of writing is a bit irritating at times. He traces the evolution of globalization and the forces that are making the world flat. He also examines what we need to do here in the U.S. to remain competitive. Globalization esp. the off-shoring of white collar jobs to countries like China and India has created fear of job losses at home. I believe that over the long run jobs will be gained - it may not be the jobs that we are familiar with today, it will be different kinds of jobs. End of the day - it is not a zero sum game, human creativity creates wealth for all. Also, successful companies across the globe are based on American corporate values of fair play and meritocracy. However, those who don't embrace it will be worse off (maybe a lot worse off since many of the social safety nets will slowly disappear). I think there are a few things that are imperative for us to do...
1) As corporations, we should design products that can be sold in these emerging economies. I don't just mean sticking a Chinese label but ground up design of products that an average Chinese or Indian will buy. Atleast in the software field, I don't see anything beyond localization being done. This is clearly not enough. Just like the Chinese build products that consumers here want to buy we should do the same,
2) As individuals, we have to take responsibility and initiatives to thrive in this new world order. It could be any number of things. If you are young, I would strongly advise you to do a stint abroad in your field.
Great book though his anecdotal driven style of writing is a bit irritating at times. He traces the evolution of globalization and the forces that are making the world flat. He also examines what we need to do here in the U.S. to remain competitive. Globalization esp. the off-shoring of white collar jobs to countries like China and India has created fear of job losses at home. I believe that over the long run jobs will be gained - it may not be the jobs that we are familiar with today, it will be different kinds of jobs. End of the day - it is not a zero sum game, human creativity creates wealth for all. Also, successful companies across the globe are based on American corporate values of fair play and meritocracy. However, those who don't embrace it will be worse off (maybe a lot worse off since many of the social safety nets will slowly disappear). I think there are a few things that are imperative for us to do...
1) As corporations, we should design products that can be sold in these emerging economies. I don't just mean sticking a Chinese label but ground up design of products that an average Chinese or Indian will buy. Atleast in the software field, I don't see anything beyond localization being done. This is clearly not enough. Just like the Chinese build products that consumers here want to buy we should do the same,
2) As individuals, we have to take responsibility and initiatives to thrive in this new world order. It could be any number of things. If you are young, I would strongly advise you to do a stint abroad in your field.
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