the.world.is.flat-第67章

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reforms　whose　needs　should　be　strikingly　urgent　for　any　human　being。　We　are　not　
competitive　because　we　don't　have　infrastructure；　you　need　people　to　pay　taxes。　How　
many　new　highways　have　been　built　connecting　Mexico　with　the　U。S。　since　NAFTA？　
＇Virtually　none。＇　Many　people　who　would　benefit　from　government　expenditure　don't　
pay　taxes。　The　only　way　for　government　to　serve　is　get　people　to　pay　higher　taxes；　
＇but＇　then　the　populism　comes　up　and　kills　it。〃　
A　Mexican　newspaper　recently　ran　a　story　abouthow　theConverse　shoe　company　was　making　
tennis　shoes　in　China　using　Mexican　glue。　〃The　whole　article　was　about　why　are　we　
giving　them　our　glue；〃　said　Zedillo；　〃when　the　right　attitude　would　be　how　much　more　
glue　can　we　sell　them？　We　still　need　to　break　some　mental　barriers。〃　
It　is　not　that　Mexico　has　failed　to　modernize　its　export　industries。　It　is　losing　
ground　to　China　primarily　because　China　has　changed　even　faster　and　more　broadly；　
particularly　in　educating　knowledge　workers。　As　business　consultant　Daniel　H。　Rosen　
pointed　out　in　an　essay　in　The　International　Economy　journal　（Spring　2003）；　Mexico　
and　China　both　saw　their　share　of　global　exports　grow　in　many　of　the　same　areas　during　
the　booming　1990s…from　auto　parts　to　electronics　to　toys　and　sporting　goods…but　
China's　share　was　growing　faster。　This　was　not　just　because　of　what　China　was　doing　
right　but　because　of　what　Mexico　was　doing　wrong；　which　was　not　steadily　honing　its　
competitiveness　with　micro…reforms。　What　Mexico　succeeded　in　doing　was　creating　
islands　of　competitiveness；　like　Monterrey；　where　it　got　things　right　and　could　take　
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advantage　of　proximity　to　the　United　States；　but　the　Mexican　government　never　had　
a　strategy　for　melting　those　islands　into　the　rest　of　the　country。　This　helps　explain　
why　from　1996　to　2002；　Mexico's　ranking　in　the　Global　Competitiveness　Report　actually　
fell　while　China's　rose。　And　this　was　not　just　about　cheap　wages；　said　Rosen。　It　was　
about　China's　advantages　in　education；　privatization；　infrastructure；　quality　


control；　mid…level　management；　and　the　introduction　of　new　technology。　
〃So　China　is　eating　Mexico's　lunch；〃　concluded　Rosen；　〃but　more　due　to　the　Mexican　
inability　to　capitalize　on　successes　and　induce　broader　reform　than　to　China's　lower　
wage　workers　per　se。〃　In　other　words；　it's　reform　retail；　stupid。　According　to　the　
Doing　Business　in　200S　report；　it　takes　an　average　of　fifty…eight　days　to　start　a　
business　in　Mexico；　compared　with　eight　in　Singapore　and　nine　in　Turkey。　It　takes　
seventy…four　days　to　register　a　property　in　Mexico；　but　only　twelve　in　the　United　
States。　Mexico's　corporate　income　tax　rate　of　34　percent　is　twice　as　high　as　China's。　
The　McKinsey　Quarterly　report　〃Beyond　Cheap　Labor〃　noted　that　since　2000；　as　China　
joined　the　WTO　and　started　to　take　advantage　of　the　flattening　of　the　world；　Mexico　
lost　270；000　assembly　jobs；　and　hundreds　of　factories　closed。　But　the　main　advice　
the　report　had　for　Mexico　and　other　middle…income　countries　feeling　squeezed　by　China　
was　this：　〃Rather　than　fixating　on　jobs　lost　to　China；　these　countries　should　remember　
a　fact　of　economic　life：　no　place　can　remain　the　world's　low…cost　producer　
forever…even　China　will　lose　that　title　one　day。　Instead　of　trying　to　defend　low…wage　
assembly　jobs；　Mexico　and　other　middle…income　countries　should　focus　on　creating　jobs　
that　add　higher　value。　Only　if　more　productive　companies　with　higher…value…added　
activities　replace　less　productive　ones　can　middle　income　economies　continue　down　
the　development　path。〃　
In　short；　the　only　way　for　Mexico　to　thrive　is　with　a　strategy　of　reform　retail　that　
will　enable　it　to　beat　China　to　the　top；　not　the　bottom；　because　China　is　not　focused　
on　beating　Mexico　as　much　as　it　is　on　beating　America。　But　winning　that　kind　of　race　
to　the　top　takes　intangible　focus　and　will。　
You　cannot　maintain　rising　standards　of　living　in　a　flattening　world　

when　you　are　up　against　competitors　who　are　getting　not　only　their　fundamentals　right　
but　also　their　intangibles。　China　does　not　just　want　to　get　rich。　It　wants　to　get　
powerful。　China　doesn't　just　want　to　learn　how　to　make　GM　cars。　It　wants　to　be　GM　
and　put　GM　out　of　business。　Anyone　who　doubts　that　should　spend　time　with　young　
Chinese。　
Said　Luis　Rubio；　president　of　Mexico's　Center　of　Research　for　Development；　〃The　more　
self…confidence　you　have；　the　more　it　diminishes　your　mythologies　and　complexes。　One　
of　the　great　things　about　Mexico　in　the　early　1990s　was　that　Mexicans　saw　that　they　
could　do　it；　they　could　make　it。〃　A　lot　of　that　self…confidence；　though；　has　been　
lost　in　Mexico　in　recent　years；　because　the　government　stopped　reforming。　〃A　lack　
of　self…confidence　leads　a　country　to　keep　chewing　on　the　past；〃　added　Rubio。　〃A　lack　
of　self…confidence　＇in　Mexico＇　means　that　everyone　in　the　country　thinks　the　U。S。　
is　going　to　take　Mexico　to　the　cleaners。〃　That　is　why　NAFTA　was　so　important　for　
Mexico's　self…confidence。　〃What　NAFTA　accomplished　was　to　get　Mexicans　to　think　
forward　and　outward　instead　of　inward　and　backward。　＇But＇　NAFTA　was　seen　＇by　its　
architects＇　as　an　end　more　than　a　beginning。　It　was　seen　as　the　conclusion　of　a　process　
of　political　and　economic　reforms。〃　Unfortunately；　he　added；　〃Mexico　did　not　have　
a　strategy　for　going　forward。〃　
Will　Rogers　said　it　a　long　time　ago：　〃Even　if　you're　on　the　right　track；　you'll　get　


run　over　if　you　just　sit　there。〃　The　flatter　the　world　gets；　the　faster　that　will　
happen。　Mexico　got　itself　on　the　right　track　with　reform　wholesale；　but　then；　for　
a　lot　of　tangible　and　intangible　reasons；　it　just　sat　there　and　reform　retail　stalled。　
The　more　Mexico　just　sits　there；　the　more　it　is　going　to　get　run　over。　And　it　won't　
be　alone。　

Companies　and　the　Flat　World　

：：：：：　TEN　

How　Companies　Cope　
Out　of　clutter；　find　simplicity。　From　discord；　find　harmony。　In　the　middle　of　
difficulty；　lies　opportunity。　…Albert　Einstein　
As　I　conducted　interviews　for　this　book；　I　kept　hearing　the　same　phrase　from　different　
business　executives。　It　was　strange；　they　all　used　it；　as　if　they　had　all　been　talking　
to　each　other。　The　phrase　was；　〃Just　in　the　last　couple　of　years。　。　。〃　Time　and　again；　
entrepreneurs　and　innovators　from　all　different　types　of　businesses；　large　and　small；　
told　me　that　〃just　in　the　last　couple　of　years〃　they　had　been　able　to　do　things　they　
had　never　dreamed　possible　before；　or　that　they　were　being　forced　to　do　things　they　
had　never　dreamed　necessary　before。　
I　am　convinced　that　these　entrepreneurs　and　CEOs　were　responding　to　the　triple　
convergence。　Each　was　figuring　out　a　strategy　for　his　or　her　company　to　thrive　or　
at　least　survive　in　this　new　environment。　Just　as　individuals　need　a　strategy　for　
coping　with　the　flattening　of　the　world；　so　too　do　companies。　My　economics　tutor　Paul　
Romer　is　fond　of　saying；　〃Everyone　wants　economic　growth；　but　nobody　wants　change。〃　
Unfortunately；　you　cannot　have　one　without　the　other；　especially　when　the　playing　
field　shifts　as　dramatically　as　it　has　since　the　year　2000。　If　you　want　to　grow　and　
flourish　in　a　flat　world；　you　better　learn　how　to　change　and　align　yourself　with　it。　

I　am　not　a　business　writer　and　this　is　not　a　how…to…succeed…in…business　book。　What　
I　have　learned　in　researching　this　book；　though；　is　that　the　companies　that　have　
managed　to　flourish　today　are　the　ones　that　best　understand　the　triple　convergence　
and　have　developed　their　own　strategies　for　coping　with　it…as　opposed　to　trying　to　
resist　it。　
This　chapter　is　an　effort　to　highlight　a　few　of　their　rules　and　strategies：　
Rule　#1：　When　the　world　goes　flat…and　you　are　feeling　flattened…　reach　for　a　shovel　
and　dig　inside　yourself。　Don't　try　to　build　walls。　
I　learned　this　valuable　lesson　from　my　bestfriends　from　Minnesota；　Jill　and　Ken　Greer。　
Going　to　India　gave　me　an　inkling　that　the　world　was　flat；　but　only　when　I　went　back　
to　my　roots　and　spoke　to　my　friends　from　Minnesota　did　I　realize　just　how　flat。　Some　
twenty…five　years　ago　Jill　and　Ken　（whose　brother　Bill　I　profiled　earlier）　started　
their　own　multimedia　company；　Greer　&　Associates；　which　specialized　in　developing　
commercials　for　TV　and　doing　commercial　photography　for　retail　catalogs。　They　have　
built　up　a　nice　business　in　Minneapolis；　with　more　than　forty　employees；　including　


graphic　artists　and　Web　designers；　their　own　studio；　and　a　small　stable　of　local　and　
national　clients。　As　a　midsize　firm；　Greer　always　had　to　hustle　for　work；　but　over　
the　years　Ken　always　found　a　way　to　make　a　good　living。　
In　early　April　2004；　Ken　and　Jill　came　to　Washington　to　spend　a　weekend　for　my　wife's　
fiftieth　birthday。　I　could　tell　that　Ken　had　a　lot　on　his　mind　regarding　his　business。　
We　took　a　long　walk　one　morning　in　rural　Virginia。　I　told　him　about　the　book　I　was　
writing；　and　he　told　me　about　how　his　business　was　doing。　After　a　while；　we　realized　
that　we　were　both　talking　about　the　same　thing：　The　world　had　grown　flat；　and　it　had　
happened　so　fast；　and　had　affected　his　business　so　profoundly；　that　he　was　still　
wrestling　with　how　to　adjust。　It　was　clear　to　him　that　he　was　facing　competition　and　
pricing　pressure　of　a　type　and　degree　that　he　had　never　faced　before。　
〃Freelancers；〃　said　Greer；　speaking　about　these　independent　contractors　as　if　they　
were　a　plague　of　locusts　that　suddenly　had　descended　on　his　business；　eating　
everything　in　sight。　〃We　are　now　competing　

against　freelancers！　We　never　really　competed　against　freelancers　before。　Our　
competition　used　to　be　firms　of　similar　size　and　capability。　We　used　to　do　similar　
things　in　somewhat　different　ways；　and　each　firm　was　able　to　find　a　niche　and　make　
a　living。〃　Today　the　dynamic　is　totally　different；　he　said。　〃Our　competition　is　not　
only　those　firms　we　always　used　to　compete　against。　Now　we　have　to　deal　with　giant　
firms；　who　have　the　capability　to　handle　small；　medium；　and　large　jobs；　and　also　with　
the　solo　practitioners　working　out　of　theirhome　offices；　who　＇by　making　use　of　today's　
technology　and　software＇　can　theoretically　do　the　same　thing　that　a　person　sitting　
in　our　office　can　do。　What's　the　difference　in　output；　from　our　clients'　point　of　
view；　between　the　giant　company　who　hires　a　kid　designer　and　puts　him　in　front　of　
a　computer；　and　our　company　that　hires　a　kid　designer　and　puts　him　in　front　of　a　
computer；　and　thekid　designer　with　a　computer　inhis　own　basement？　。　。　。　The　technology　
and　software　are　so　empowering　that　it　makes　us　all　look　the　same。　In　the　last　month　
we　have　lost　three　jobs　to　freelance　solo　practitioners　who　used　to　work　for　good　
companies　and　have　experience　and　then　just　went　out　on　their　own。　Our　clients　all　
said　the　same　thing　to　us：　'Your　firm　was　really　qualified。　John　was　very　qualified。　
John　was　cheaper。'　We　used　to　feel　bad　losing　to　another　firm；　but　now　we　are　losing　
to　another　person！〃　
How　did　this　change　happen　so　fast？　I　asked。　
A　big　part　of　their　business　is　photography…shooting　both　products　and　models　for　
catalogs；　Greer　explained。　For　twenty…five　years；　the　way　the　business　worked　was　
that　Greer　&　Associates　would　get　an　assignment。　The　client　would　te