Nordic companies have coped well with globalisation, but need new blood
面对全球化，北欧公司虽应付自如，仍需新鲜血液
Feb 2nd 2013 |From the print edition
NOVO NORDISK HAS the sheen of a global champion. Its corporate headquarters near Copenhagen is decorated with freshly cut flowers and thought-provoking sculptures, with little bowls of fruit and nuts dotted here and there. The CEO and his fellow executives work from a large open-plan office.
That is all as it should be. Novo produces half the world’s medical insulin and frequently generates shareholder returns approaching 30%. The world market for insulin is growing fast: about 346m people already suffer from diabetes and the number will grow as the emerging world gets richer. Novo is well placed to remain the world’s leading insulin producer for years to come.
The Vikings’ modern descendants believe they can turn globalisation to their advantage. They excel at producing born-global companies. Ericsson, founded in 1876, started selling phones in China in the 1890s. They also outperform more muscular competitors. Torben Pedersen, of the Copenhagen Business School, points out that Nordic countries are past masters at adjusting to rules dictated by big countries such as Germany or America. Surely they can cope with China and India?
Alas, the logic that destroyed brawnwork such as shipbuilding and textile manufacturing is now moving on to brainwork. The best Nordic companies are transforming themselves from export machines into global networks. Ericsson, for example, has reduced the number of workers it employs in Sweden from 31,000 in 2001 to 18,000 today. Medium-sized companies are taking advantage of low production costs in the Baltic states as well as in China and India. In turn, foreigners are invading the Vikings’ strongholds. Volvo, Sweden’s fabled car company, has been swallowed by a Chinese upstart, Geely. Danisco, a Danish food-ingredients company, has been taken over by America’s DuPont. Ericsson has sold its handset division to Sony. Nokia is a shadow of its former self.
The Nordic countries have an impressive number of globally competitive companies. Denmark is a world leader in hearing aids (Oticon), shipping (Maersk), toys (Lego), drink (Carlsberg) and windpower (with more than 200 companies that account for a third of the world’s wind-turbine market). Novo Nordisk is at the centre of a biotech cluster, dubbed Medicon Valley, that stretches from Copenhagen to Malmö in neighbouring Sweden and has an annual turnover of 作者: showcraft 时间: 2013-2-8 19:25
