The third and last day of Summer Davos began with a Japanese breakfast. I was asked to summarize the discussion at the end, so I concentrated on listening what other members had to say. The topic went many different directions at different levels such as the government, corporations and individuals, in particular, young generation. Some of the arguments I felt had been around for over three decades and I felt we were going round and round the same argument with little action.
I managed (hopefully) to summarize the discussion at the end and felf convinced myself that we need to have many people (in particular, young generation and movers and shakers) exposed to this type of Forum so that they themselves can feel the pulse of the world–how quickly it is changing and the dynamism found in countries such as China.
I was lucky to join Takeshi Natsuno, professor of Keio, on our ride to Beijin airport. It was pure luck (after the fiasco with denied gmail access!). What was even better was that I had almost 3 hours solid to talk with him! We talked about various issues, and in particular, I asked a lot of questions about IT, China etc. etc. It was great opportunity for me to get to know Natsuno san. (We did the session together at Academy Hills early this year after Winter Davos and I moderated the ideaslab session of Keio University last September, so we knew each other.) It was such luxury for me to have a chance to talk with him over many issues ranging from politics in Japan, how to present uniqueness of Japan to the world etc. to how U Stream, YouTube and Nikoniko Doga works. Going overseas to participate in the international conference also provides opportunity to meet with the Japanese and spend quality time with them, in addition to discuss various issues with people outside of Japan.
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.
