Beating the Global Odds

The Answer to Global Overload Contending with the 24/7 news cycle and an endless barrage of choices and information has stymied leadership and decision-making strategies among those at the top. But we all know, this is not a just a problem for the elite. The broad-based reaction to this chaotic, unmanageable assault has been to retrench, and to focus on immediate, controllable decisions.  In the process, we lose sight of the horizon. More dangerous still, is the shift we’ve seen from value creation to wealth creation, where information technology 1.0 has enabled a transaction-based society in which the “deal” is more important than the value it drives or the relationships it is based on.   On our current path, the odds of a better future are slim. What we need is a new value proposition. Beating the Global Odds is the answer to the dangers of too much of a good thing.  There’s no going back, but there is the opportunity to set things right. In this book, Paul A. Laudicina, Managing Partner and Chairman of the Board of global consulting firm A.T. Kearney, provides a fast-paced and engaging tour of how we got to this point and what we can do about it. Drawing on examples from everything from world history and current media to anecdotes from his vast network of CEOs and the world’s most innovative thinkers, Laudicina helps bring our world of seemingly fuzzy and disconnected pixels into sharp focus.  The result is a compelling case for change and call to action—not only for global leaders but also for everyone who struggles with the question of how we can inspire and seize a better future…  how we can beat the global odds.

Foreword xi Introduction Seizing the Future Is (Fortunately) Not a Game of Chance 1 Chapter 1 Global Brain Freeze 13 Nonstop Overstimulation Brings Disorientation Chapter 2 Fast and Fickle 27 The Ever-Shorter Half-Life of Everything Chapter 3 Rudderless World 45 Angry Populism, Incapacitated Government, and Stray Capitalism Chapter 4 Lighten the Load and Make It Sesame Street Simple 73 Chapter 5 Repair Your Social Fabric 87 Why Relationships Always Trump Transactions Chapter 6 Don’t Wait for the Next Big Thing 101 Chapter 7 Open the Aperture 125 Widen Your Lens, But Do So with Discernment Chapter 8 Turning Pixels into a Clearer Picture 147 Applying Scenario Thinking to Make a Better Future Possible Epilogue: The Next Chapter 177 Afterword 181 Selected Bibliography 187 Acknowledgments 191 About the Author 195 Index 197