Global Network members watched from around the world, while students at PUC Chile and Yale SOM posed questions to the author of "The World is Flat" about the future of globalization.
New York Times columnist and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Thomas L. Friedman delivered a talk at Yale SOM titled "Leading and Working in Today's Flat World," in an event that marked the two-year anniversary of the Global Network for Advanced Management. Students and faculty from across the network watched Friedman during the talk on April 1; PUC Chile students had the opportunity to ask questions via videoconference.
Friedman, whose 2005 book The World is Flat brought issues of globalization and the rise of emerging nations into the public discussion, predicted that the workforce will become even more competitive and highly skilled, as technology replaces human functions. “You will need more skills and the ability to learn and relearn new skills,” Friedman said. Meanwhile, the universal connectivity provided by social media and the internet pose new challenges for business and political leaders: “Being able to think and keep your wits about you and lead any kind of organization in this environment is going to be a huge challenge.”
