Tailored logistics: the next advantage

How many top executives have ever visited with managers who move materials from the factory to the store? How many still reduce the costs of logistics to the rent of warehouses and the fees charged by common carriers? To judge by hours of senior management attention, logistics problems do not rank high. But logistics have the potential to become the next governing element of strategy. Whether they know it or not, senior managers of every retail store and diversified manufacturing company compete in logistically distinct businesses. Customer needs vary, and companies can tailor their logistics systems to serve their customers better and more profitably. Companies do not create value for customers and sustainable advantage for themselves merely by offering varieties of goods. Rather, they offer goods in distinct ways. A particular can of Coca-Cola, for example, might be a can of Coca-Cola going to a vending machine, or a can of Coca-Cola that comes with billing services. There is a fortune buried in this distinction. The goal of logistics strategy is building distinct approaches to distinct groups of customers. The first step is organizing a cross-functional team to proceed through the following steps: segmenting customers according to purchase criteria, establishing different standards of service for different customer segments, tailoring logistics pipelines to support each segment, and creating economics of scale to determine which assets can be shared among various pipelines. The goal of establishing logistically distinct businesses is familiar: improved knowledge of customers and improved means of satisfying them.     

Factor one: the next great war

This article is the first of four that will conclude the present series. One by one they will consider the principal factors that were responsible for creating the specific 19th century modes of writing about the future—the tales of the war-to-come, the organization of future societies, the certain triumph of man and mechanism, and the analysis of social trends and future possibilities. In this article I. F. Clarke looks at the ways in which the first industrial societies invented La Guerre qui vient, Der Zukunftskrieg, and The Next Great War—fictional devices dedicated wholly, solely and exclusively to showing the nation-states of the 19th century how the next war should, or should not, be fought.     

Urbanization: the challenge for the next century

This article summarizes a new 1996-97 report from the World Resources Institute, the UN Environmental Program, the UN Development Program, and the World Bank, which describes a future with increased levels of urbanization that were reshaping the physical and social environment. Urbanization increased economic growth and environmental degradation. By the year 2000, 50% of the world population will live in urban areas. Cities are the center of economic activity. Consumption is the highest in cities. Cities produce the most pollution and waste. Three issues are particularly crucial to survival: the water supply, sanitation, and water resource management. Neglect of these and other environmental issues is likely to have important consequences in both developing and developed countries. The greatest growth in urban areas is occurring in developing countries. Cities in developing countries have huge populations living in poverty. The poor in either rural or urban areas are confronted with lack of access to clean water, to sanitation, and to housing. There is overcrowding and exposure to industrial wastes and air pollution. There is a need for policy reform, stronger institutions, and enlightened political leadership. Cities need to improve their environment and to strengthen local government and implement poverty reduction programs. Reform of urban policies must be accompanied by effective urban governance. Community-based approaches are essential. Broad-based support is needed for changes in strategies and practices and for attainment of a more sustainable environment.     

非洲:新一轮投资热点

走出去,已成为中国企业寻找机会、拓展市场的新选择.亚洲和欧美等地,现在基本上都能找到中国企业的印迹,而非洲也正在成为中国企业新的投资热点.据商务部统计,近年来中非贸易高速发展,中非贸易在过去5年增长了近3倍.2005年,中非贸易总额达到397亿美元,同比增长近37%,中国已成为非洲仅次于美国和法国的第三大贸易伙伴,目前在非洲设立的中资企业逾600家.在前不久举办的首届非洲投资论坛上,非洲研究专家和投资非洲的企业家们就中国企业在非洲投资现状、中国企业投资非洲的机遇、非洲招商引资举措及优惠条件以及中国企业在非洲投资的成功经验等做了具有说服力的介绍     

After the Supreme Court decision: what's next for reform

A Republican sweep in the November elections could lead to repeal of most of the Affordable Care Act, to be replaced with legislation to achieve limited coverage expansion. A Romney victory and split Congress would likely result in Republicans using their administrative authority to modify or disrupt implementation of the act, with provisions altered or repealed where bipartisan agreement exists. An Obama victory and split Congress would likely result in continued implementation of the act but with a delay to some elements.     

Multinational corporate structures: The next stage

Present multinational structures will become obsolete as a result of political and economic changes including intensified competition. Whether through choice or as the result of external pressures, enterprises are likely to adapt to the changes by adopting, partially or completely, three emerging types of organisational structure-integrated, collaborative, or flexible. The process of adaptation will be determined by a range of influences, from the quickening pace of commercial and technological development to the tightening of business legislation.     

The next forty years : A reprise

The following paper is a republication of the introductory pages to Norman Macrae's book, The Next Forty Years, published by The Economist in 1972. Each year, Norman Macrae, deputy-editor of The Economist, researched and wrote a lengthy survey on a subject about which he claimed little, if any, expert knowledge. In 1971 Macrae tried to turn himself into a business futurologist. Based on interviews with industrialists and using relevant literature about multinational corporations and business, Macrae attempted to forecast the most logical course for international business trends and organization between 1972 and 2012, and especially 1972–1992. Some of his views were highly unconventional, and deliberately so. More than 20 years later, his views still often seem controversial, but are as relevant as ever.     

Alternative space futures: The next quarter-century

Space developments do not exist in a vacuum! The shape of future space activities will depend on a combination of social, economic and political forces, creating the determinants for different patterns of space utilization. Forecasts of alternative space futures can therefore be explored by integrating different scenarios of world development and space trends. Here, alternative world trends are related to the underlying dynamics of space development, in terms of the economic, military and scientific utilization of space. The importance of space as a political issue is thus emphasized, in that the outcomes of policy choices to be made both now and in the future will help shape the social and economic contexts in which space technology will be used in the decades ahead.     

Pursuit of complete markets: the missing perspectives

India's financial sector reform path has been a measured, cautious and steady process, aiming to attain standards of international best practice, but fine-tuning the process keeping the context in view. Although much has been achieved, this paper focuses on the remaining gaps. But post-crisis the pursuit of complete markets is no longer the holy grail of regulation. In particular, underlying needs and systemic risk assessment should drive the regulatory framework for cash markets, not the elusive search for market completion and efficient derivatives markets.     

Democracy and risk-based decision-making: the next step in public involvement

Risk assessment has struggled to reconcile public views and opinion with the results of science-based objective assessment. In this paper, we attempt to tease apart subjective and objective considerations that risk management decisions entail. Through the use of examples from the New Zealand Environmental Risk Management Authority, we argue that risk managers need to use quantitative tools in order to develop an objective understanding of the biophysical outcomes of an activity. Decision-making should then enter a phase where democratic methods are used to allow people to weigh these physical outcomes subjectively. We believe allowing subjective democratic decisions, based on objective reality, will help enable risk management to bridge gaps between practitioners and the public.     

全球化背景下的新兴市场投资

在过去20年里,新兴市场从规模小且流动性差的封闭股票市场发展成为超过全球平均收益水平的投资场所,在全球投资组合中的份额逐渐增加,已成为多元化投资组合中的基本组成部分。受市场容量和供给限制等不利因素的影响,目前新兴市场的发展势头有所减速,但它仍然是一个为投资者提供多元化和长期超额收益的重要市场。     

全球化：前景、潜力与问题

本文扼要阐述了经济全球化发展的前景和潜力,并运用李嘉图模型对全球化可能导致的经济损害作出论证分析进而说明,尽管经济学家在极大程度上趋向于将全球化视为基本良性的现象,但全球化仍然对某些国家（包括发达国家）带来经济损害,及对部分人群可能造成极其痛苦的后果。不过,源自于全球化的不断增长的竞争压力,会加强创新和增长,从长远来看,的确对每个国家有利。     

Accounting Education: The Impact of Globalization

This report investigates the impact of globalization on accounting education as set forth by members of a panel at the annual meeting of the American Accounting Association held in New York in August 2009. It addresses the work of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and the International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB) in coordinating accounting education globally, research by the International Association for Accounting Education and Research (IAAER) in support of the IAESB, the work of the International Accounting Standards Committee Foundation (IASC Foundation) and its impact on accounting education, and the impact of globalization on accounting education in Japan.     

Insights from history: The next great empire

An analysis of the evolution of the phenomenon of Empire is presented, together with some general observations on the nature of empires. It is concluded that empires are becoming more frequent and larger in size. Extrapolation of the results leads to some intriguing speculations about the future.     

Management in central government: The next steps

The Government's response to the latest report from the Efficiency Unit represents a compromise between those who believe that the Civil Service has gone far enough down the management road and the radicals who want even greater reform. Time will tell whether the new structures for providing public services will be better managed than the present centralised system. What is needed now is a new interpretation of the constitutional role of civil servants.     

Chemicals and energy: The next 25 years

The chemical industry can no longer rely on a rapid expansion or production based on a single feedstock. New sources of raw materials and energy will have to be used. The uncertainties include costs, social and political factors, new competitors, and the developing botanical and biochemical technologies. The author examines energy use in the OECD area and discusses the factors affecting energy efficiency. He concludes that the chemical industry is likely to maintain a petrochemical base much longer than might be expected. Although competition from Eastern Europe is imminent, OPEC products are unlikely to have a significant impact before 1987. For the next decade the growth rate of the chemical industry in Western Europe will probably be around 5%. Options after petrochemicals include a return to the pathways used 30 years ago, and the new possibilities promised by the use of shale oil, nuclear power, and natural products. At present oil prices, coal is not competitive above about $\text{\$10}\text{ton}$, and for the rest of the century the upper limit is around $\text{\$20}\text{ton}$.