OK, Barbie (and the others) didn’t really call BS on Thomas Friedman, the NY Times Columnist and best-selling author of the highly influential and prescient book, “The World is Flat”. But they could have!
In the book Mr. Freidman argues that the convergence of several disruptive factors - the growth of the internet, outsourced supply chains, the development of search and workflow software capabilities – has completely flattened the world into a connected integrated global marketplace.
The fact that this book was written in 2004, before Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and other social media sites were widely adopted global platforms for connecting, collaborating and communicating, is pretty freaking incredible! With the social networks reaching mega-adoption rates globally along with the advent of Big Data and the Cloud, well, the world must now be flat as a pancake and smooth as glass, right?
In the book Mr. Freidman argues that the convergence of several disruptive factors - the growth of the internet, outsourced supply chains, the development of search and workflow software capabilities – has completely flattened the world into a connected integrated global marketplace.
The fact that this book was written in 2004, before Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and other social media sites were widely adopted global platforms for connecting, collaborating and communicating, is pretty freaking incredible! With the social networks reaching mega-adoption rates globally along with the advent of Big Data and the Cloud, well, the world must now be flat as a pancake and smooth as glass, right?
WRONG!
Now, I am a big fan of Thomas Friedman and was completely blown away when I was able to meet him recently in Singapore where he spoke about global trends impacting the future.
But the glaring fact is this - Best Buy, Google, The Home Depot and Barbie and many others came to China with bags of cash and they all retreated shortly after with their tail tucked between their legs! Yep, the one common denominator is that each of these firms FAILED!
"Jeff, how can that be?" you ask. "These firms hire crazy-smart MBAs from the Ivies! They are cashed-up to their eyeballs and have experience executing extremely efficient business models. Breaking into the world’s most populace nation should be a lay-up!" you say. "Especially in such a FLAT WORLD!"
Well, after living overseas for the last 14 years and doing business everywhere from New York to New Delhi, India, I can assure you that things are still really, really different. So, I agree the world certainly isn't round anymore but it ain't exactly FLAT either.
No, I believe the world is BUMPY!
Now, I am a big fan of Thomas Friedman and was completely blown away when I was able to meet him recently in Singapore where he spoke about global trends impacting the future.
But the glaring fact is this - Best Buy, Google, The Home Depot and Barbie and many others came to China with bags of cash and they all retreated shortly after with their tail tucked between their legs! Yep, the one common denominator is that each of these firms FAILED!
"Jeff, how can that be?" you ask. "These firms hire crazy-smart MBAs from the Ivies! They are cashed-up to their eyeballs and have experience executing extremely efficient business models. Breaking into the world’s most populace nation should be a lay-up!" you say. "Especially in such a FLAT WORLD!"
Well, after living overseas for the last 14 years and doing business everywhere from New York to New Delhi, India, I can assure you that things are still really, really different. So, I agree the world certainly isn't round anymore but it ain't exactly FLAT either.
No, I believe the world is BUMPY!
CAUTION!! BUMPS AHEAD!
The BUMPS that caused these organizations to blow their tires and crash and burn are many and varied, including political issues (Google), censorship (Facebook), not understanding local buying behavior (Best Buy) and completely overestimating their brand’s relevance (Barbie), among others.
I am sure there are some fantastic Harvard Case studies where you can deep dive into the many “bumps” these organizations faced trying to penetrate the China market. The point I am trying to make is that while I love Friedman’s book and believe the world is crazy hyper-connected today, you must not be fooled into believing your ideas, business model, brand and corporate culture will translate to a foreign market the same it does in your home country.
Embrace the bumps! Know they are out there, study them, understand them and design your market penetration strategy to either leverage or step over the bumps or you will wind up like these other firms...saying BS to the notion the world is flat!
Let me know what you think! Do you believe the world is flat? Are you calling BS on this post? Go for it! Would love to hear your opinions. Why do some companies continue to fail in China (and other global markets) while others make it big?
Please also help me out by sharing this with your contacts who are interested in further flattening the world!