MARCH 2015/ NO. 2
TAGS: EU, PIM FORTUYN, AKZONOBEL, AEGON, DSM, WOLTER KLUWER, KPN, HEINEKEN, SHELL, PHILIPS, AHOLD, REED ELSEVIER, RANDSTAD, ASML, CANON, NIKON, BLACKROCK GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT, US

The EU has a supra-national structure

“The EU has been developed to a supra-national structure carried by a spoiled, conceited and selfish euro-elite who pay little attention to what moves ordinary people”, Professor Pim Fortuyn in 1997
Dutch multinationals are facing strong competitors from outside the EU, who are confronted less with the difficult market circumstances prevailing in Europe. According to research by the Dutch Financial Times FD, this concerns multinationals such as AkzoNobel, Aegon, DSM, Wolters Kluwer, KPN, Heineken and Shell. Philips and Ahold are stuck in the middle, and Reed Elsevier and Randstad are the only outperformers.
Ten years ago, ASML, Canon and Nikon were tough competitors, however ASML has since completely outmaneuvered Canon and Nikon.
In mid-April 2014, BlackRock Global Asset Management, worth some US$ 4,300 billion, gave an emerging warning to Dutch multinationals listed on the AEX Amsterdam Exchange, to invest in growth rather than in shareholder value. For example: from the total profits in 2013 of these 25 leading multinationals on the AEX, 77.3% was been paid-out to shareholders! BlackRock recommended that the boards change short-term shareholder value into long-term sustainable growth. Earlier, in February 2014, BlackRock made the same recommendations to the big corporates in the US.

We need growth

We need growth, but can we expect that growth will occur in a supra-national structured Europe? If the European population no longer believes in growth, society will slowly die. Growth is an expression of dynamics, creativity and renewal. A stagnating society chases away capital and loses confidence. Politicians look for solutions for growth such as industrial policies, the knowledge economy (Lisbon 2000), technology and innovation. We spend 35% of our income on housing, however its quality decreases with an increasing gap between the gleaming offices and residential neighborhoods. We spend 25% of our income on healthcare and education where we have been cutting costs for some 15-20 years. We spend 15% of our income on food which is still full of fat and sugar, and where obesity is becoming a huge threat to society.

Where will growth come from?

Basic occupations have to be upgraded: we need professionals who are able to build good houses and infrastructure, technicians who can run trains, strong teachers and passionate nurses. They are the builders of society. We must get rid of bureaucrats and graduates who do not contribute to society. We need practical education and schools which educate professionals, creative minds, subtle technicians and ambitious entrepreneurs.

The same choices are required in business

In a similar way to a firm’s core competence of strategic intelligence and strategy, where strategic choices can be made between exploiting of one’s current advantages and exploring new ones. Exploitation requires concentration on the job at hand, whereas exploration demands awareness to recognize new possibilities. If we want to make the switch from exploitation to exploration, we must make a deliberate cognitive effort to disengage from the routine to roam widely and pursue fresh paths. Although everyone has access to the same wealth of information, it is strategic intelligence that makes the difference in exploration. The challenge is to think how strategic intelligence might be applicable to you and your organization?
“A wealth of information creates a poverty of attention, and that is exactly the reason why organizations desperately need the phenomenon of strategic intelligence”
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