Dr Jim Goodnight, CEO of SAS, said that with global standards and regulations, particularly in the technology sector, the old saying of “think globally, but act locally” no longer apply.

According to Dr Goodnight, one myth that he hopes people can put aside is the notion of a perfect leader with flawless judgment and omniscient vision. “If innovation is an idea plus action, then leadership must be vision plus action,” said Dr Goodnight.

 “Over the past 30 years while I have been growing SAS, Asia has grown into an economic powerhouse,” he added. He also said that although Asia might not have intended to become a leader, it now finds itself on the cusp of global leadership as its economic importance and interdependence increases.

 “If it is true that the 21st century belongs to Asia, then those business and political leaders within Asia will have to decide what that leadership will look like—and those decisions will affect the rest of the world.”

A person’s idea of what makes a leader is often dependant on the one’s background and culture. “It’s perhaps safest to say that one’s view of leadership is shaped by one’s past, as much as one’s vision,” Dr Goodnight noted. It becomes important to distinguish between leadership and management to determining how leaders and leadership makes a difference.

Dr Goodnight also shared his insights of how business leaders can motivate employees by recognizing unique rewards and motivators.

According to Dr Goodnight, management is about measurable results, marked progress and the day to day business of running an enterprise. Conversely, leaders concentrate on building and honing their strengths; and finding others who can make up for their limitations.  Leadership is less about hierarchy and more about collaboration.

Dr Goodnight said that a recent survey from MIT Sloan released a study on leadership which concluded that there are four capabilities that are necessary:

The first is “sense-making” which literally means the ability to make sense of the world around you. It refers to understanding the context of the company and, the customers.

The second capability is “relating” which revolves around building relationships within and across an organization. Dr Goodnight opined that this is probably an area most lacking in Western culture, where it is still common for CEOs to issue top-down edicts to employees that might well quash whatever creative idea was just about to spring from the bottom up.  But it is in this area where companies and cultures that foster this sense of collaboration will benefit going forward.

The third capability is “visioning” which is the ability to create a compelling picture of the future.  It is not enough to be able to articulate the past; a leader must be able to paint a picture of what the future could look like.

The final capability is “inventing” or developing new ways to achieve the vision.

“Thinking globally, but acting locally” no longer applies Dr Goodnight said as leadership decisions are global decisions that must take into account rapidly changing political and economic landscape. Great leadership from business and government executives will be essential for Asia to meet global expectation and fulfill its economic potential. Moving forward regional partnerships will play an important role in shaping the global leadership of the region.

In concluding, Dr Goodnight noted that leaders need followers, but good leaders know that today’s follower might become tomorrow’s leader. “In today’s dynamic global economy, technologies, innovations, and markets can appear almost anywhere. Managers must balance the day-to-day tactical with the forward-looking strategic – and even the smallest misstep can be devastating. Good leaders need to work with other good leaders.”

Mr Kaoru Yano, President of NEC Corporation, urged businesses and governments to look further into the opportunities presented by the rise of ubiquitous networks forming all over the world.

In today’s age of communications, consumers, business and governments alike all have an opportunity for success with the advent of ubiquitous communications. This was the message from Mr Kaoru Yano, President of NEC Corporation when he was in Singapore as the Infocomm Development Authority’s (IDA) Distinguished Infocomm Speaker (DIS) in May. He was also here to celebrate NEC Solutions Asia Pacific’s 30th anniversary celebrations in Singapore.

Ubiquitous communications refers to a network that is always available for any device. Such networks often have converged communications platforms such as data, voice, video and wireless communications as a key feature and is a goal in the rollout of new communications networks like the Singapore Government’s Next Generation Network (NGN).

According to Mr Yano, converged networks offer opportunities for both consumers and businesses. Constant connectivity to high speed networks means that consumers can receive emails, video on demand (VOD), access online financial services as well as carry out e-commerce transactions. For businesses, providing such constant connectivity to consumers can be both lucrative and fruitful, but for it to succeed, a change in management style to one that is responsive to meet rapid changes in consumer needs and wants is needed.

Mr Yano gave the example of popular online world Second Life where real world companies such as Nissan, Toyota, Adidas and Sony BMG are creating virtual stores where gamers could go and ‘test’ their latest products. These are real world companies that realised the power the online world had amongst its members and how this could be carried back into spending in the real world.

As IDA’s Distinguished Infocomm Speaker for May, Mr Kaoru Yano was also here to kick off NEC Solutions Asia Pacific’s 30th anniversary celebrations in Singapore.

On the other hand, such constant access brings with it a certain amount of threats from cyber crime. Potential dangers such as access to harmful content, phishing, loss of confidential data, cyber attacks, loss of privacy, a growing digital divide and possible system wide failure leading to loss of access need to be addressed by both businesses and governments for a ubiquitous network to be fully successful.

To counter these threats, Mr Yano said that businesses, academic institutions and governments need to work together in developing strong back end support for NGNs. Businesses have to ensure the robustness of the network while governments must enforce laws to punish cybercriminals such as hackers, who threaten the security of the ubiquitous network.

Mr Yano sited the example of Japan’s train services that allows commuters to pay for tickets using their mobile phones. This e-ticketing application was the result of a multi-industry collaborative effort, involving the banks, rail company and phone service providers, and it was important to create new services that did not exist before. “Players from different industries should also band together to create new services that not only provide information but also generate revenue,” said Mr Yano.