INSEAD: report uncovers CEO views of how to stage an economic recovery

INSEAD, has worked in partnership with the consultancy Accenture and the Federation of Enterprises in Belgium (FEB) to prepare a report entitled, ‘Putting Europe Back on Track’, which was published at the European Business Summit 2010 in Brussels.

The report was backed by Microsoft and Shell and surveyed more than 250 chief executive officers and other leaders from the public and private sectors, to collect their insights on key aspects of the European economy.

These business leaders identified several factors that will influence Europe’s recovery and indicated specific avenues for action:

Europe can recover and become stronger. CEOs believe that Europe can recover from its current turmoil and be strengthened in the process. However, many are concerned by the slow pace of action and the disjointed way in which the dual objectives of ‘return to growth’ and ‘budget rigour’ are being pursued.

Innovation will be at the core of Europe’s recovery. European CEOs continue to see areas like cleantech as promising. They also consider that additional efforts are needed to allow small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to play their role fully in this area, and to create jobs in the process. They see the production of enhanced skills as critical to these new jobs.

The quality and diversity of its people will remain Europe’s biggest advantage, according to the report. This richness is critical for innovating. European CEOs consider that Europe is more than a 500 million people market; it is also a powerful idea based on the combination of growth and solidarity. Openness to the world and diversity remain highly critical to the future of Europe.

“To reinforce the foundation of talent in the region, it will be critical for Europe to foster its entrepreneurial spirit,” said J. Frank Brown, Dean of INSEAD. “Europe already has success stories for building entrepreneurial skills. However, scaling these successes will require even more ambitious collaboration between the public and private sectors.”

“With the global economy now coming out of recession, we’re seeing the contours of a different global economy taking shape with a resurgence of what Accenture calls the ‘multi-polar world.’  This is a world characterised by the diffusion of economic power and influence to a number of different poles around the global economy,” said Jo Deblaere, Accenture’s chief operating officer. “What Europe needs to do is look beyond the cyclical effects of the crisis and harness some of the underlying longer-term trends, such as ageing populations and increasing economic multipolarity, to its advantage.”