Archive for December, 2008

Chile has arrived on the doorstep of developed nation status following years of economic reform, and Thunderbird School of Global Management in Glendale, Ariz., has assisted in the transformation. Mario Castillo, the head of foreign direct investment in the Chilean Economic Development Agency (CORFO), has used Thunderbird as a resource since graduating from the MBA school in 2000. | Video: Getting Started in Chile (2:06) |
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By Karen Walch, Denis Leclerc, Ken Price and Joerg Schmitz

Miracles abound in the world of quantum physics, where energy and subatomic particles seem to follow their own rules that defy logic. In this realm of the very small, scientists have discovered new possibilities that move the perceived boundaries of the universe. Something similar happens in the realm of negotiation when business managers and other global leaders bring an interdisciplinary, cross-cultural perspective to the process. We call this Quantum Negotiation™.
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Japanese automaker Infiniti announced its arrival in Western Europe with a whisper instead of a shout at the International Geneva Motor Show in March 2008, and performance car enthusiasts looking for a change of pace took notice. “We’re small in Europe, and we needed to make a big splash,” said Andreas Sigl, the head of marketing communications for Infiniti Europe. “So we decided to do things a little differently.” | Video: Infiniti rolls into Europe (2:55) |
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Marketing From the Navel, by Brian Critchfield

In the last column, I laid out the basic model for marketing from the inside out, or marketing from the navel. I laid out these steps in chronological order from what needs to be done first to what needs to be done last. Although each of these steps individually are critical for creating customer evangelists, together they have the potential of creating a company that is truly “buzz-worthy.”

The first and most important step is to begin with a cause. Guy Kawasaki referred to this in his book, The Art of the Start, as “making meaning.” Every truly successful business has a cause that is beyond making money. Truly great brands solve one of life’s great ills. In Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba’s book, Creating Customer Evangelists, they refer to creating a cause as focusing on “making the world, or your industry, better.”
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Runaway inflation may follow the economic downturn if the United States and other developed nations aren’t careful. That’s what Thunderbird Professor F. John Mathis, Ph.D., sees when he looks into the future. “At that time there will be so much liquidity in the economy that we’re going to be running an inflation risk,” he said Nov. 26 from his office at Thunderbird School of Global Management in Glendale, Ariz.
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Global organizations worried about losing decades of knowledge when senior leaders retire can thank the recession for at least one thing. Thunderbird Professor Michael Moffett, Ph.D., said market turmoil has thwarted the retirement plans of many top executives and given a reprieve to companies scrambling to develop a new generation of talent.
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Business schools teach pessimistic theories based on ugly values that condone selfish behavior, but Thunderbird President Ángel Cabrera, Ph.D., told students Dec. 2 that MBA programs committed to teaching responsible management have few options.
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By Jose D. Roncal and Jose N. Abbo
Authors of The Big Gamble: Are You Investing or Speculating?

It’s difficult to predict what the next bubble will be, or when it will develop. But there are early warning signs, one of the most important being an abundance of liquidity. Markets are driven by liquidity — a high-toned word for plain old cash.
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