I found this interview in The Telegraph with Ian Bremmer to be interesting and I’ve added his new book Superpower to my reading list. Regarding the comments made about China, I remembered reading this insightful article in the Harvard Business Review last year on Chinese innovation.
After reading Mr. Foster’s interview with Mr. Bremmer, I was left wondering about the nature of strategy in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous environment. When the world seems like it is going crazy, I believe the key to understanding is through knowing yourself.
Who are you?
What do you value?
What is your vision?
Answering these questions will help create the framework to create a successful strategy that balances the internal and external forces at work on an individual or organization. The framework will also help one to discern the steps that one should or should not take to achieve an organization’s goals. As Michael Porter noted, “the essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.”