The 2010-2011 Global Competitiveness Report was released by the World Economic Forum few days ago. The overall ranking showed some changes such as the U.S. going down two places to fourth, while Japan moved up by two, to sixth. Switzerland took the No. 1 position, followed by Sweden and Singapore.
We (ICS, in collaboration with Keizai Doyukai) have been involved for the past several years with the Executive Opinion Survey that contributes to the report. I was one of the panelists on Competitiveness last year in Dalian, China, during the Annual Meeting of New Champions when the Competitive ranking was announced.
The fact that Japan went up two places this year may not feel quite right, considering the recent economic and political conditions. The reason it went up two places is because the ranking is relative. The situation in other countries has worsened while that of Japan stayed the same, according to Jennifer Blanke of the World Economic Forum.
The fact remains that the items related to government and public sector raise many problems and issues, while those for the private sector show strength. I wonder how much these items reflect the present and the future, as I get an impression that the items seem to indicate the status from a while ago.
Yoko Ishikura is a Professor at Hitotsubashi University ICS in the Graduate School of International Corporate Strategy in Japan. She has held positions as a professor at the School of International Politics, Economics and Business of Aoyama Gakuin University in Tokyo, as a consultant at McKinsey and Company Inc. Japan and a visiting professor at Darden School.
Professor Ishikura is a consultant to a number of multinational companies and has been a frequent speaker at management conferences, seminars, and workshops throughout the world. She was a member of the Regulatory Reform Committee for the Japanese government and the International Competitiveness Commission for METI. She is currently a Forum Fellow of the World Economic Forum.
She is the author of Strategic Shift from OR choices to AND paradigm, Building Core Skills of Organization , and the co-author of the following publications: Managing Diversity in the 21st Century, Strategy for Cluster Initiatives in Japan , and Building a Career to the World Class Professionals – all in Japanese. Her books in English include: Asian Advantage, Hitotsubashi on Knowledge Management and Trust and Antitrust in Asian Business Alliances.
Professor Ishikura’s current research interests are focused on global competition, innovation, and knowledge management. She received her BA from Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan; MBA from Darden School, University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia; and DBA from Harvard Business School.
