Study Explores Leadership Challenges in Asia 2.0

As Asia continues its transformation from “workshop to the world” to a region of “rising consumption and increased innovation,” a new Korn/Ferry Institute study finds that “only a small fraction of executives and managers in the region currently have what it takes to succeed in this markedly different environment.”  The study examines the impact of the shift from Asia 1.0, where the region’s growth was being fueled by the availability of low-cost labor in order to “provide cheaper products to seemingly insatiable Western consumers," to Asia 2.0.  In the latter, Asia’s portion of the world’s middle class will grow from 28 percent in 2009 to 66 percent in 2030.  The corresponding need for more creative and innovative work, such as the development of “entirely new categories of products and services” to meet the needs of new markets, requires a different kind of leadership.  This cannot be filled simply by importing expatriates into the region, but will rely instead on the ability of companies to develop new skill sets within their Asian leadership.  The study emphasizes that the current shortage “is not due to Asian culture” but “stems from the opportunities this generation of Asians have had and the markets they’ve worked in.”  The study concludes that those companies will succeed who “focus on hiring candidates with experience to fit future leadership needs” and, among other things, use “structured challenges and ‘stretch’ assignments to get them ready to be leaders.”