Better Business Bureau SMLLC

Dr. Kenichi Ohmae, the famous guru on Business and Corporate Strategy who is described as “Mr. Strategy” worldwide, accepted Basil Tsaras’ invitation and came to Athens on June 7, 2007 to reveal to the Greek audience the “secrets” of “Innovative Strategy” and share his experiences with the Greek fellow Managers on how to “Build Successful Strategies.”

Ohmae covered most of the current and important issues on Business and Corporate Strategy and provided answers to questions, such as:

• Why yesterday’s economic theories no longer work? How does the accelerating power of complexity in today’s economy affect strategic thinking?
• How can you identify the areas which really hold the key to success in your industry? How can you apply the right mix of resources to them, in order to put yourself into a real position of competitive advantage?
• How do you leverage technology and the other new platforms for growth? How can you anticipate technological obsolescence – and jump ahead of it?
• How can the true strategic thinker respond flexibly to the inevitable changes in the situation that confronts his company?
• What the strategy of the Greek companies and for Greece as a country should look like in an era where it’s tougher to define competitors, companies, and customers than ever before?

Ohmae based his presentation on his seminal work (The Mind of the Strategist) and showed that the keys to business success in the West are the proven techniques of the Far East successful strategic planning and its conservative execution. Strategy in the classic military sense is deploying your forces to achieve a competitive advantage. Concentrating on the thought processes behind Japan’s successful strategic thinking, Ohmae described what strategic thinking is and presented concepts and concrete examples for its application. According to his own research, only by integrating the three C’s in a strategic triangle Customer, Competitor, and Company, a sustained competitive advantage exists.

Furthermore, Ohmae extensively talked about what he calls as “The Next Global Stage”. He presented the challenges and the opportunities that are present in our borderless world of today. Dr. Ohmae showed during his presentation that in order for someone to succeed, he/she must act on the global stage, leveraging radically new drivers of economic power and growth.

Legendary business strategist Kenichi Ohmae – who, in “The Borderless World,” published in 1990, predicted the rise and success of globalization, coining the very word – synthesized today’s emerging trends into the first coherent view of tomorrow’s global economy – and its implications for politics, business, and personal success.

Ohmae explored the dynamics of the new “region state,” tomorrow’s most potent economic institution, and demonstrated how China is rapidly becoming the exemplar of this new economic paradigm. The Next Global Stage offers a practical blueprint for businesses, governments, and individuals who intend to thrive in this new environment.

Ohmae concluded his presentation with a detailed look at strategy for Greece as a country and for the Greek companies in an era where it’s tougher to define competitors, companies, and customers than ever before.

The Japanese Ambassador in Athens, Mr. Takanori Kitamura opened the event whilst by the end of the day a panel discussion was held dealing with available strategies for Greece with the presence of Greek politicians led by a leading Greek journalist.

Described as “Mr. Strategy” worldwide, Dr. Kenichi Ohmae has an unsurpassed reputation as a public speaker and management consultant focusing on global business strategy. The Economist selected him as one of five top management gurus in the world. As an author he has published over 100 books including The Mind of Strategist, Triad Power, Beyond National Borders, The Borderless World (Harper Business), The End of the Nation State and The Evolving Global Economy. He has also contributed numerous articles to major publications (e.g., Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, Foreign Affairs, New York Times) and the Financial Times describes him as “Japan’s only successful management guru”.

For a period of twenty-three years, Dr. Ohmae was a partner in McKinsey & Company, Inc., and co-founder of its strategic management practice. He has served companies in a wide spectrum of industries, including industrial and consumer electronics, financial institutions, telecommunications, industrial machinery, food, rubber and chemicals. His special area of expertise is formulating creative strategies and developing the organizational concepts to implement them. He left to run for the Governorship of Tokyo in 1995.