穆泰康：擔任可口可樂CEO讓我學到了什么
Muhtar Kent
2017-02-06
|
多年來，我對領導力這一主題作了很多思考，并盡我所能建立一種領導力文化，從而為可口可樂公司（Coca-Cola）帶來長久而可持續的競爭優勢。 于我而言，領導力即是為你所做的任何事情（無論你在其中發揮什么樣的作用）創造價值，并獲得比你想象中更好的結果。 最卓越的領導者也在不斷學習中。他們從錯誤和成功中學習——學習不僅是年輕時的任務，而是貫穿他們的整個職業生涯。 當然，我也一直在努力做到這一點。在此過程中，傾聽他人意見也是非常重要的。無論你處于什么樣的領導地位，你都必須不斷尋求良好的建議和忠告。 在職業生涯的每個階段，我都獲得了關于領導力的新的領悟。早期，我學到了兩個重要經驗，即培養同理心并重視金錢。后來，我學會了如何與他人協作、建立信任網絡。 而最近，我的注意力則聚焦于對未來的展望、溝通重點上面，利用可信度和各種關系來促進公司與瓶裝廠作為一個齊心協力的團隊并肩戰斗。 我一直都十分看重如何從長遠角度考慮為公司的利益相關者創造價值，也許很多人認為，這對于一家擁有130年歷史的老牌企業是自然而然的。然而，并沒有什么事是自然而然就能發生的。 在去年的股東大會發言上，我說我們的經營不是只關注下一個季度，而是下一個25年。 在我看來，歸根結底這意味著我們要做現在應該并且必須要做的事，以此來強化我們的發展前景，而非削弱它。 其核心在于，可口可樂是一個品牌企業，而我們的品牌無非就是我們的承諾。如果說一個良好的品牌就是一個承諾，那么一個卓越的品牌便是堅持這個承諾。堅持我們的承諾意味著我們永遠不能陷入自鳴得意或是驕傲自滿，而是需要敞開胸懷，時刻擁抱改變和進步。 過去幾年里，我們向后退了一步來反思我們的業務，并思考如何才能夠走得更快、發展更高效、且更具創業精神。 在一點上我們也已經取得了進展。我們拓寬了我們產品組合和包裝選擇，以滿足不斷變化的消費者口味，重振品牌市場，進一步改善我們的全球生產系統，轉變在北美市場的業務，我們的營收增長在消費包裝品公司中也使數一數二的。然而，精益求精之路永無止境。 在過去近四十年的商業生涯中，我常常講，做好工作只是一個起點——打好基礎。是為持續性地重復成功創造條件。因而，成功便是關于向一個沒有確定性結果的未來作出承諾，然后采取行動兌現這一承諾。 今年五月，我將把可口可樂（ko）首席執行官這根指揮棒交接給詹姆斯·昆西（James Quincey）——一位合適的領導人，在合適的時機帶領公司進入下一個征途。而我將繼續擔任公司董事長，并全力支持詹姆斯的工作。 詹姆斯和他的團隊將為可口可樂書寫新的篇章——不僅應對并解決我們所面臨的挑戰，而且將進一步發揮我們品牌、人員和系統的潛力。 對領導的評判終究是通過他們的成績來作出的。我非常看好可口可樂的前景，在未來十年甚至更久，它將會獲得前所未有的蓬勃發展。 對我而言，這也將是我的職業生涯，以及領導這一偉大公司所做出的努力的最終評判。（財富中文網） 作者：穆泰康（可口可樂公司的董事長兼首席執行官） 譯者：司慧杰/汪皓 |
Over the years, I’ve given a lot of thought to the topic of leadership and doing what I can to build a culture of leadership that gives The Coca-Cola Company a sustainable, long-term advantage. To me, leadership is all about creating value in whatever you do—and whatever role you are in—and leaving something better than you found it. The best leaders keep learning, too. They learn from their mistakes and their successes—not only when they’re young, but throughout their careers. I’ve certainly tried to do this. And listening to others has been absolutely essential to this process. No matter how far you go as a leader, you have to keep seeking advice and good counsel. At every career stage, I’ve picked up new leadership insights. Early on, I learned vital lessons about developing empathy and respecting cash. Later, I worked on collaborating with others and building networks of trust. More recently, it has been about setting a vision for the future, communicating priorities, and leveraging credibility and relationships to help our company and bottling system work together as one united team. It has also been important for me to maintain a long-term perspective on creating value for stakeholders, something many might think would come naturally in a business with 130 years of history. But nothing is automatic. When I spoke during our shareowners meeting last year, I explained that we’re building this business not only for the next quarter, but also for the next quarter of a century. To me, making such a statement really comes down to doing what’s right and necessary now so that our future prospects are not harmed, but enhanced. At its heart, Coca-Cola is a brand business, and our brands are nothing more than promises. If a good brand is a promise, then a great brand is a promise kept. Keeping our promises means never falling into the traps of complacency and arrogance while always being open to change and improvement. In the last few years, we’ve taken a step back to look at our business and examine how we can become faster, more entrepreneurial, and more efficient. And we’ve made progress. We’ve broadened our portfolio and packaging choices to serve evolving consumer tastes, revitalized our marketing, facilitated the improvement of our global bottling system, transformed our business in North America, and achieved some of the strongest revenue growth among consumer packaged goods companies. But getting better remains a never-ending journey. Over nearly 40 years in business, I’ve often said that doing an excellent job is only the starting point—the foundation. It’s about creating the conditions to sustainably repeat success. And, in this case, success is connected to making a promise into the future without a pre-determined outcome—and then taking action to deliver on that promise. In May, I’ll pass the baton of Coca-Cola (ko) CEO to James Quincey, the right leader at the right time to take our business forward. I’ll continue to serve as chairman of our board, and James will have my full and vigorous support. James and his team will write the next chapter in Coca-Cola’s story—one that not only addresses the challenges we face, but also further unlocks the potential in our brands, our people, and our system. Ultimately, leaders are judged by what they leave behind. And I feel very good about Coca-Cola’s prospects to flourish as never before during the balance of this decade and beyond. For me, this will be the ultimate measure of my career—and my leadership of this great business of refreshing the world. |
