Paulo Ferreira, the president of Luna Brazil, has an ambitious plan to turn around the dismal performance of the plant he oversees in Campinas. The wrinkle is, he needs the buy-in of the powerful local union, which is still smarting from a 10-year-old labor conflict and lately has begun to step up its demands and picket outside the factory. Headquarters, running out of patience with the dispute, wants Paulo to consider converting the plant to a distribution center. But that would mean hundreds of layoffs, which would decimate the local community that Paolo loves.
Paulo Ferreira, the president of Luna Brazil, has an ambitious plan to turn around the dismal performance of the plant he oversees in Campinas. The wrinkle is, he needs the buy-in of the powerful local union, which is still smarting from a 10-year-old labor conflict and lately has begun to step up its demands and picket outside the factory. Headquarters, running out of patience with the dispute, wants Paulo to consider converting the plant to a distribution center. But that would mean hundreds of layoffs, which would decimate the local community that Paolo loves.
Paulo Ferreira, the president of Luna Brazil, has an ambitious plan to turn around the dismal performance of the plant he oversees in Campinas. The wrinkle is, he needs the buy-in of the powerful local union, which is still smarting from a 10-year-old labor conflict and lately has begun to step up its demands and picket outside the factory. Headquarters, running out of patience with the dispute, wants Paulo to consider converting the plant to a distribution center. But that would mean hundreds of layoffs, which would decimate the local community that Paolo loves.
In the coming decades, as the pace of technological change continues to increase, millions of workers may need to be not just upskilled but reskilled-a profoundly complex societal challenge that will sometimes require workers to both acquire new skills and change occupations entirely. Companies have a critical role to play in addressing this challenge, but to date few have taken it seriously. To learn more about what their role will entail, the authors-members of a collaboration between the Digital Data Design Institute at Harvard's Digital Reskilling Lab and the Boston Consulting Group's Henderson Institute-interviewed leaders at some 40 organizations around the world that are investing in large-scale reskilling programs. In synthesizing what they learned, they became aware of five paradigm shifts that are emerging in reskilling: (1) Reskilling is a strategic imperative. (2) It is the responsibility of every leader and manager. (3) It is a change-management initiative. (4) Employees want to reskill-when it makes sense. (5) It takes a village. The authors argue that companies will need to understand and embrace these shifts if they hope to succeed in adapting dynamically to the rapidly evolving new era of automation and AI.
In 2020, Alejandro Simón, CEO of Sancor Seguros Group, a nearly 75-year-old cooperative that had become Argentina's insurance leader, had to decide about the Group's digital transformation strategy. The Group's values and history needed to be considered during the analysis, especially regarding its relationship with individual agents selling Sancor Seguros Group's products, who drove much of the Group's revenues. Sancor Seguros Group had always taken into consideration agents' input when making important decisions, which extended to the Group's recent efforts on its digital transformation. Yet, not all of them had adapted to new technologies. However, the use of digital channels to sell goods and services accelerated after almost two months of a mandatory quarantine that restricted out-of-home activities to buying essentials such as food and medicines. Would the momentum gained by these digital channels persist, serving as the platform for agents to catch up with the industry's newest global trends? Accordingly, how could Sancor Seguros Group help agents capture the value created by new technologies? How should the Group approach its presence on less personalized channels, like the ones offered by brokers or digital channels? The Group could also concentrate its efforts on long-term actions and focus on revamping its product offering.
In 2018, Francisco Staton, Managing Director of Arcos Dorados in Colombia had to decide on the company's strategy to expand its food ordering and delivery business in the country. Arcos Dorados stood as McDonald's largest independent franchisee, and Colombia was one of the 20 markets and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean where the company operated. Arcos Dorados had analyzed the conditions under which the company would offer delivery services at its restaurants, following the announcement of agreement entered into by McDonald's corporation for offering delivery globally through a last-mile delivery company. As there were local limitations not addressed by the global agreement, Arcos Dorados' Colombia's management team were considering two potential alternatives that could help to address them. The first alternative hinged on stepping up the company's efforts to consolidate its own delivery service. With the second alternative, the company would pursue partnering with last-mile delivery platforms under more favorable conditions than the ones agreed upon by the global agreement. What would be the best alternative to move forward?
Toyota Argentina (TASA) and the union representing automotive industry workers in the country had been working together since 2011 to address the challenges faced by Toyota's manufacturing plant in Zárate (Argentina). In 2019, after achieving all the goals set forward in its plan for the "Reborn Plant," Daniel Herrero, TASA's CEO, looked forward to the future.
In 2011, Daniel Herrero, CEO of Toyota Argentina (TASA) since 2010, was about to meet with the Secretary-General of the union representing automotive industry workers in the country. The company produced vehicles in Argentina since 1997 at their plant at Zárate, and, in 2005, Argentina became one of the four countries selected by Toyota Motor Corporation to assemble models using the Innovative Multipurpose Vehicle (IMV) platform. However, Toyota's manufacturing plant in Zárate (Argentina) had been performing poorly compared to similar plants, affecting its competitiveness, and TASA's management held the union responsible for most of the plant's inefficiencies. Anything was possible as a result of the meeting, from shutting down production at TASA and focusing on their distribution business, to complete capitulation to all the union's demands.
Toyota Argentina (TASA) and the union representing automotive industry workers in the country had been working together since 2011 to address the challenges faced by Toyota's manufacturing plant in Zárate (Argentina). The strategy for moving forward was built on an agreement signed by both parties called the "Reborn Plant." In 2015, with slow progress at Zárate plant and the macro-conditions rumbling on, Daniel Herrero, TASA's CEO, reflected on what to do next.
In 2003, mathematics professor Sergio Fajardo was elected mayor of MedellÃn, Colombia - one of the most violent cities in the world at that time. As mayor, Fajardo faced a host of daunting challenges. Rampant gang violence had raised MedellÃn's homicide rate dramatically, and a history of corruption had undermined the public's trust in the local government and law enforcement institutions. The under-resourced local police did not communicate clearly with the mayor, and the city was approaching bankruptcy. To address these concerns, Fajardo would need to not only develop a strategy, but also convince the majority of his 21-member city council - among whom he had only one ally - to support it. Fajardo needed to decide how to prioritize the many financial, legal, and cultural concerns in MedellÃn to bring the city closer to peace and prosperity.