Management Change 2001.3

Author: McKinsey High-Level Management Series / Country: United Kingdom
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2001-09-01
Features:
Introduction (April 2001) From the merger of HP and Compaq in the United States to the acquisition of Blue Sword Beer by China Resources and the acquisition of Kelon by Galanz, nearly every merger has attracted widespread attention. Mergers have become an important means for companies to achieve unconventional growth. Major mergers have had a significant impact on the development of industries and even the entire economic system. However, not all mergers ultimately succeed. The article "Why Do Mergers Fail?" in this issue discusses not the merger process itself, but the development of the company after the merger. The ability of a merged company to maintain revenue and growth is the standard for judging the success of the merger. McKinsey's research shows that failing to focus on the important factor of revenue is one of the reasons why many mergers are not profitable. The loss of revenue growth momentum for post-merger companies is due to their excessive focus on achieving cost synergies or their lack of attention to the overall revenue growth of the post-merger system. Compared to widely known CEOs, people know very little about CKOs. CKO (Chief Knowledge Officer) emerged in the early 1990s, and their role is like a plumber, channeling various pieces of information through different pipelines to the right people. Compared to other managers, Chief Knowledge Officers can adopt a more strategic perspective to observe and intervene in matters that cross formal business boundaries. The cover story "Managing Knowledge Managers" discusses the unique role of Chief Knowledge Officers in enterprises. Compared to any other time, intangible assets, rather than tangible assets, have become the decisive factors. For developing countries, talent drain is one of the key factorsing economic development. With the intensification of the global talent war, the solution for developing countries to address talent drain is to leverage overseas diaspora to contribute to their national economy. By creating diaspora networks, establishing convenient and fast information exchange systems with their home countries, and specifically encouraging productive investments, diaspora can be encouraged to participate in domestic economic construction. The article "The External Brain" argues that this strategy will reduce the losses caused by talent drain in developing countries. In the global talent war, emerging markets may not be losers, but potential winners. Corporate governance is a topic that McKinsey has been concerned with for a long time. The article "The All-Inclusive Family" in this issue discusses the corporate governance issues of family-owned enterprises. Investors in developed countries often view family-owned enterprises with suspicion. They believe that family members are only concerned with their own interests, not the interests of the company itself. This article takes family-owned enterprises in Latin American countries as an example for analysis. In most emerging markets, the number of mobile phone users exceeds that of fixed-line phone users, creating opportunities for companies to provide financial services through mobile communication. To seize this significant opportunity, financial institutions and telecom companies need to establish solid cooperative relationships. Mobile banking services allow unbanked individuals to access basic banking services, a pioneering effort that has attracted service providers to turn their attention to this emerging market. For details, please read the article "Can Mobile Banking Go Global?". Is it profitable to develop wireless communication services in emerging markets?...