From the monthly archives:

March 2014

Global Dimensions of China´s Development

March 30, 2014

China is today the main driver of global economic growth. The country´s economy was worth over $9 trillion in 2013 and it grew by 7.7%. But where is China going from here, and can we continue to count on China´s role as driver of the world economy?   Below is an interesting conversation with Wang […]

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Consulting on the Cusp of Disruption

March 29, 2014

In October last year, Harvard Business Review published an article written by Clayton M. Christensen, Dina Wang and Derek van Bever, titled Consulting on the Cusp of Disruption. I read it when it was published, and I have not stopped thinking about it since. Having some time on a flight from Zagreb to Zurich today, […]

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World GDP over five years

March 28, 2014

The Economist has published a brief video on how the world economy has developed over the past five years. See below. World GDP

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Looking for the Origins of the Modern Business Ecosystem

March 26, 2014

Platform and ecosystem research generally uses two founding texts as a reference point for the modern ecosystem. There is James F Moore’s work beginning with his 1993 Harvard Business Review article “Predators and Prey: A New Ecology of Competition”. Here’s a link to Moore’s later work on ecosystems in developing countries. And there’s Iansiti and […]

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Pula Kulturring

March 24, 2014

When thinking about vacations and deciding where to go this summer, if you are considering Croatia then a good option can be Pula. We have got to know Pula quite well over the past five months and last Friday, March 21st, a Bearing team presented a pre-feasibility study of the potential of Pula Kulturring in […]

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Place Branding

March 21, 2014

The globally competitive environment in which we live and act makes it important for places, no matter their size or composition, to clearly differentiate themselves and to convey why they are relevant and valued options. Undoubtedly, places have always competed with each other, but today, following to economic and cultural globalisation and the increasing mobility […]

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European Union reformed Cohesion Policy

March 18, 2014

The European Union may be one of the richest parts of the world, but there are large differences in prosperity levels both between countries and inside individual countries. The wealthiest country, Luxembourg, is more than seven times richer than Romania and Bulgaria, the poorest EU members. For the inner market and freedom of movement of […]

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MIPIM – Real Estate Heaven in Cannes

March 17, 2014

During MIPIM, an overall impressive international property event hosted in Cannes for the 25th consecutive year last week, what struck me the most was a statement by one of Bearing’s partners who works with real estate development since the mid 80s. This sole event, he said, is enough to provide him with a year’s worth […]

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Are you ready for disruption?

March 16, 2014

We live in times of rapid change. Individual businesses as well as entire industries are disrupted by the rapid development of new innovations. As Bill Gates said in an interview in The Atlantic that was published three days ago, ‘The Idea That Innovation Is Slowing Down Is … Stupid’. In the interview, Gates argues: "Take […]

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MIPIM luncheon about Challenges in a Time of Globalisation

March 15, 2014

Driven by globalisation, we now live in hyper competitive global markets. This means markets not only for products and services but also for places and cities. The global competition of cities is estimated to host 2,7 million towns, 3 thousand large cities and 455 large metropolitan areas with a population over one million. All of […]

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Talent Attraction

March 14, 2014

One of the most important growth factors for all places and regions is the winning the battle for talents. Talent attraction has turned into a global competition, and the battle for talents is becoming a strategic element for most places willing to nurture their growth. A key factor in attracting talent is the relationship between […]

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Sustainable Patterns of Growth

March 7, 2014

Michael Spence is a Canadian / American economist and recipient of the 2001 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, along with George A. Akerlof and Joseph E. Stiglitz. He is most known for his research on how the job market works. Last year we wrote about his latest book The Next Convergence – The Future of […]

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Innovation Driven Growth in Regions

March 5, 2014

The OECD has published a report on “Innovation-driven Growth in Regions: The Role of Smart Specialisation”. The report aims to bridge the gap between theory and implementation through case studies that illustrate the conditions in which the concept of smart specialisation can be used to design better public policies for boosting innovation driven growth in […]

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The Importance of Creating a fun Business Atmosphere

March 2, 2014

A classic quote says “Work is not supposed to be fun that is why it is called work”. But I stand to object. Give or take we spend about 2200 hours at work every year, which gives about 110 000 hours at the office during an adult life. For that reason, I have decided to […]

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Dubai Government on how it overcame the crisis

March 1, 2014

The Government of Dubai’s Department of Finance on Thursday released a report which highlights how it overcame the 2009 global financial crisis. The report is an interesting explanation of how active and bold place management can overcome financial problems. It does not explicitly mention the risks that were taken but it can be read in-between […]

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