There’s a thought-provoking post by Umair Haque which has been popping up on Twitter among other places which tries to set out the challenges facing us all in the current difficult circumstances.
Haque, who is director of the Havas Media Lab, believes this is no mere recession but a shifting of the global economic tectonic plates where three things will be found to be true: tomorrow will not be like yesterday; 20th Century business isn’t fit for 21st Century economics; tomorrow’s market leaders have new DNA.
He goes on to ask five questions:
What is the role of marketing in a world where consumption must slow?
What is the role of distribution in a world where consumption, savings, and investment will accelerate in volatility?
What is the role of production in a world where consumption becomes savings?
What is the role of strategy in a world where the game is no longer about winning more consumption than rivals?
What is the role of innovation in a world where greater investment will flow to reinventing moribund industries?
This year, leaders of all kinds face a single, critical challenge: building 21st century organizations that yield new sources of advantage, powered by new rules of management.