Reigniting Innovation in the United States

Interesting article by McKinsey on how the US is slipping further and further behind in innovation. McKinsey conducted a series of interviews with CEOs of advanced industrial companies, and as they say there is “real cause for alarm. Seems the issues are:

Cutting-edge technology: the United States is competing against or even catching up with foreign companies and engineers
Demand: more than 50 per cent of the global middle class lives outside of North America
Talent: Significant scientific talent is building outside of the United State
Entrepreneurship: There is an increase of risk aversion towards new ventures in the United States, with large US corporations being most affected

McKinsey goes on to provide a set of remedies:

1. Clear the way for the cutting edge industrial technologies of the future
2. Rebuild infrastructure
3. Attract and retain talent
4. Reenergise the entrepreneurial spirit in the large US companies

The article can be found here

Can we mix Rivalry and Innovation? McKinsey says we can.

In a world full of talk about collaboration, why would we consider rivalry? Interesting thought. McKinsey have just released a document around innovation and rivalry that is worth reading.

The notion is that we can learn from the past – in this instance, the use of rivalry. Indeed, McKinsey argues that rivalry does not preclude collaboration, but we should try and integrate rivalry and collaboration. Three principles are discussed:

1. Forming Teams: competing teams are set up from different divisions, including a diverse array of experts, taking different approaches ot the same problem.
2. Appreciating differences: The various solutions should be held up next to one another, with the opportunity for ideas from one to be integrated into the other.
3. Conducting “market tests”: this involves bringing the solutions to an internal jury or group of customers to let them weigh and contrast the different solutions.

The article continues with a case study on GE, and how competition and collaboration has been used successfully to stimulate innovation in GE without disrupting a culture of collaboration.

In an era where collaboration is the catch cry, it is interesting to read and contemplate a hybrid model, especially one that has been pout in practice successfully.

Five forces reshaping the global economy – from McKinsey

The core drivers of globalization are alive and well, but executives are still grappling with how to seize the opportunities of an interlinked world economy.

In this sixth annual survey asking executives about the forces shaping the world economy, there is little change in how respondents view the importance of global trends compared with previous years—either for business in general or for their own companies’ profits. Clearly, the financial crisis and economic downturn have not shaken these key trends. Continued faith in the positive effects of globalization combined with a move away from short-term planning likely reflects rebounding optimism about global economic prospects and is consistent with the findings of other McKinsey surveys on the economy.

Read the complete report.