Global Branding in the Digital Age Four top Korn/Ferry experts on the issue of global branding—Sakie Fukushima, Managing Director of the Tokyo office; Andy Knox, Managing Director in the Los Angeles office; Horacio McCoy, Chairman of the firm’s Mexican operations; and Didier Vuchot, head of the Paris office and Vice Chairman of Europe—give their perspectives on the executive talent needed to build the brands of the future.
Sakie Fukushima Managing Director of Korn/Ferry’s Tokyo Office
“When I think of a true global manager, I think, for example, of a Japanese person who can become the president of Coca-Cola in the United Kingdom. In other words, a candidate for whom nationality no longer matters.”
Is there any one sector of the consumer industry that is recognized as the breeding ground for outstanding global managers? Horacio McCoy: When I think of global management trendsetters, four companies come to mind: Procter & Gamble, Colgate-Palmolive, Philip Morris/Kraft Foods and Unilever. These companies have led the way for all the others.
Andy Knox: I agree that those companies, as well as some others in the categories of food, soft drinks and tobacco, are the historical leaders. I would add major commercial banks to that list, because in the 1980s, they went on a blitz to attract the best consumer packaged goods people into the financial services sector. Their theory was that the process was similar whether the product was shampoo or a credit card. However, there is enormous concern about managers who come out of these traditional companies, especially those who have been there for a long time. Can these executives make decisions at the lightning speed needed? It is a legitimate question, because these companies have not always stayed ahead of the market. At the moment, the ideal manager is someone who has had the best of both worlds—a person who comes out of one of those leading companies, but who has also had experience at a relatively smaller company that is tied to the new economy. The entertainment industry is a good place to find executives who are nimble in terms of leadership and management style and who can bring everything together in the context of competition in our rapidly evolving world.