ASK A QUESTIONWelcome to Bangkok
Geoffrey Garrett
Dean and Reliance Professor of Management and Private Enterprise; Professor of Management
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
The world economy has entered a new phase of globalization, nowhere more evident or more important than the ASEAN region of more than six hundred million people. Emerging economies have become the fastest growing markets for western multinationals as well as their pivotal role in global supply chains. Interwoven ownership, supply and distribution networks powered by cutting edge technologies are creating unprecedented interdependencies. The opportunities for business to help people make real their aspirations for a better life are immense. But the challenges of managing the complexities of globalization are daunting.
During the Wharton Global Forum Bangkok, industry and academia will come together to debate ideas and explore new pathways for exploiting the possibilities and mitigating the pitfalls of today’s borderless world, and Asia’s central role in this rapidly changing business environment. The forces of globalization are equally compelling and controversial. The opportunities in Asia—from infrastructure to manufacturing to cutting-edge technological innovation to middle class consumption—have the potential to create better lives for hundreds of millions of people as well as to drive economic growth worldwide. But getting there will require leadership, good governance and great judgment. The aim of the Bangkok Forum is to enhance your and Wharton’s ability to help realize the opportunities that lie ahead.
The knowledge generated and disseminated by Wharton’s faculty and the global leadership of the School’s preeminent alumni, both in industry and politics, has a pivotal impact not only on global business but also on society around the world. We are delighted to convene these leaders in thought and action during the Wharton Global Forum Bangkok: Asia in a Borderless World. I offer my profound thanks to the members of our organizing committee who have worked tirelessly to shape the Forum content and to develop what is sure to be an exciting event.
I very much look forward to seeing you in Bangkok, March 12-14, 2015.
Sincerely,
Geoffrey Garrett