ManpowerGroup 2011 Annual Report Download - page 12

10 ManpowerGroup 2011 Annual Report Shareholder’s Letter
As compelling and rewarding as 2011 was, we all
know that is nothing more than yesterday’s news.
Today, 2012 and beyond, is here and there will be
nothing easy about it. The world is desperately trying
to adjust to a new ecosystem. The Human Age
continues to emerge as global upheavals converge
and conspire to stretch structures, systems and
norms to what seems to be the breaking point.
It is requiring an adjustment and redefinition of
almost every aspect of our lives. This complex and
chaotic era is one of dramatically increased and
unpredictable risk and is resulting in fundamental
structural changes on many fronts – clearly talent
and the labor market.
THE WORLD IS ADJUSTING
TO A NEW ECOSYSTEM…
Financial, economic, demographic, geopolitical,
technological, ecological, and value systems
have been redefined, redesigned and reinvented.
The ecosystem that has been dominant in the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD) for the last 50 years is no
longer sustainable in today’s environment, as
an economic bifurcation is growing between the
“rich” OECD countries and emerging markets,
increasing the risk of nationalism and protectionism.
The world of work continues to undergo pivotal
transformations, all connected if not in their cause,
then certainly in their effect, as we adjust to a new
ecosystem: the Human Age.
The degree of instability in the global economy and
the financial markets, along with political-social
instability in many societies leads us to the conclusion
that the series of crises we are experiencing is
much more than a traditional recession. We are
living in a period of fundamental change from one
system of capitalism to another. The Human Age
is creating an entirely new ecosystem in which
each element of our environment, and the way they
interact, is changed.
While the world is not flat, “glocalization” is the
way of the world in the Human Age. Nearly every
situation is specific and localized, yet we are more
interconnected around the globe than ever before.
The growing economic bifurcation is in turn causing
social bifurcation to rise. Exclusion phenomena are
becoming more concerning, and could accelerate
social tensions to increased violence. The younger
and older generations feel increasingly “excluded”
or “lost,” and the magnitude of these exclusions has
become a serious social problem worldwide. The
talent mismatch – the paradox between the scarcity
of talents and high unemployment, and a world of
work trend that we identified nearly a decade ago –
is not only massively contributing to the world’s
various degrees of bifurcation, but will continue and
become more acute.
Clearly, all of this has implications for so many
things, but I would argue the most dramatic is talent
and the labor market. The Human Age is creating
new challenges for innovation, productivity and
talent. Those new challenges call for new solutions,
grounded in proven expertise and backed by a
trusted brand. That’s where we come in.
WE HAVE SYSTEMICALLY
POSITIONED OUR
COMPANY WELL FOR
2012 AND BEYOND…
Over the past 12 months alone, we made many
strategic moves to position ourselves for success –
sustainable success based on the simple axiom of
if our clients win, we win. We know based on the
agility required to win in the Human Age, we have
to anticipate our clients’ needs. I clearly believe
we are building strong and connected brands that
offer our clients the service and solutions they
can bank on as they make it through this high wire
act chapter in the Human Age.