????目前，什么才是公司最佳的增長策略？任何一位CEO的回答肯定都是“在那遙遠的地方”。商界領袖們對發達國家蕭條的市場已經灰心，紛紛把目光投向海外，為未來的增長尋找動力。

????正如《財富》雜志（Fortune）上周指出的那樣，對于許多公司而言，進軍海外確實是非常有效的途徑。許多公司高管也許都認為有必要進軍新興市場，以期達到投資者對業務快速增長的期望，但許多人卻錯誤地認為在美國本土制定的商業計劃放之四海皆準。

????康奈爾大學約翰遜管理學院（Cornell's Johnson School of Management）國際與公司關系部副主任蘭迪?艾倫認為，實際上，絕大多數公司在進入新興市場，開辟新業務之前，并沒有做足功課。

????新興市場或許確實充滿了吸引力，但許多公司頭腦發熱，誤以為輕易就能在這些市場實現高速增長。所以，在興匆匆奔赴海外市場之前，公司需要考慮以下幾個關鍵的問題。

????金磚四國（BRIC）假象

????德勤咨詢公司（Deloitte Consulting）的新興市場專家戴維?馬丁表示：“實際上，并沒有所謂的金磚四國”。金磚四國是高盛投資公司（Goldman Sachs ）杜撰的一種說法，指的是巴西、俄羅斯、印度和中國這四個國家。高盛認為在這四個國家開展業務的時機已經成熟。

????但金磚四國其實是一種虛假的分類。首先，自從2008年經濟衰退以來，大公司對俄羅斯市場一直意興闌珊。而且，一般情況下，不應該把國家按群體分類，因為每個國家要求的戰略各不相同。即便在同一個國家，地區差異也會形成不同的市場。比如，針對中國城市與農村地區的差異，公司在制定商業計劃時便需要區分對待，充分考慮從消費者偏好到交通等各個方面的因素。

????馬丁說，許多公司都認為，通過精簡一些功能來降低產品的價格，恰好能適合新興市場的需求，其實這完全是一種愚蠢的想法。他說，雖然許多市場確實需要價格更加低廉的產品，但是，“根本沒有那么幼稚的消費者。對于自己購買的產品究竟是幾等貨色，他們清楚得很。”

????君子協定？

????跟消費者偏好一樣，各新興市場的法律機制也各不相同。在美國，合同對公司的商業活動具有強大的約束力。但在新興市場，合約協議的效果卻要大打折扣。西北大學凱洛格管理學院（Northwestern's Kellogg school of management）副教授本杰明?瓊斯表示，在許多市場，交易是否牢靠更多是取決于長期持久的關系，而不是一份簽過字的文件。但這種關系同樣會因為政局氣候的變遷而受到威脅。

????安然公司（Enron）在印度的大博電廠項目就曾經遇到這種問題（當然還有其他問題）的困擾。1992年，在印度政府的支持下，安然與大博電廠（Dabhol Power Company）啟動了一個價值29億美元的電廠合作項目。然而，從1994年開始，一位反對派政治候選人持續反對安然，并獲得了勝利，引發了一系列法律糾紛，最終迫使安然退出了該項目。

????除此之外，公司在國外還會面臨知識產權保護的問題。比如，在中國，產權信息就很難得到保護。就在上周，中國相關部門在昆明查處了22家假冒蘋果（Apple）零售店。

????瓊斯建議，如果公司希望避過專利問題，可以有兩種方法。第一種是采取與福特（Ford）T型車裝配線相同的策略：制造商在不同工廠生產產品的組件，加大反向還原的難度。瓊斯提出的另外一種方法是與當地公司或政府建立合作伙伴關系，“確保他們能成為利益共同體的一部分。”

????你并非唯一的主角

????不論采取哪種方法，新興市場的消費者和公司正在重新審視與發達國家公司的互動模式。如果公司希望在海外業務中實行西方的經營模式，肯定會大失所望。

????埃默里大學戈伊蘇埃塔商學院（ Emory University's Goizueta Business School）市場營銷專業的教授賈格迪什?塞斯表示：“許多發達國家依然存在殖民心態，比如‘我們在國內研發了新產品，實現了商業化，現在我們該把東西買到國外去了’。”

????殖民心態已經沒有市場。實際上，許多國家要求跨國公司轉變經營模式，之后才能進入他們的市場。以印度為例，印度關稅法規使進口計算機組件的成本遠遠低于進口計算機整機的費用，這迫使制造商不得不在印度國內進行生產。

????其他美國公司也在參與這些市場的競爭。大部分大型跨國公司已經劃好了自己的地盤。而中等規模公司不僅希望能在新興市場中分得一杯羹，也在人才領域展開了激烈競爭。

????例如，德勤的一位客戶計劃在未來兩年招聘20,000名中國員工。馬丁告訴這位客戶：“我曾與你的三位競爭對手進行過交流，也了解了另外四家。符合技術要求的工人有沒有20,000名我不能肯定，但我可以肯定地告訴你，這樣的工人總計肯定不到120,000人。”

????馬丁稱，這樣的發現無異于兜頭一盆涼水。謀求海外擴張的公司在行動之前最好能經歷一次這樣的洗禮。

????翻譯：劉進龍/汪皓

????Ask just about any CEO about the best growth strategy, and you'll hear about faraway places. Business leaders, frustrated with sluggish developed markets, are looking abroad for future growth.

????This can be a great approach for many companies, as Fortune pointed out last week. But while executives may feel the need to enter emerging markets to grow as fast as investors want, many mistakenly assume that a U.S.-born business plan will succeed abroad.

????In fact, an overwhelming majority of companies enter emerging markets without doing their homework before setting up shop in other countries, says Randy Allen, associate dean for international and corporate relations at Cornell's Johnson School of Management.

????Emerging markets may be attractive, but companies looking for an easy growth spurt are getting in over their heads. There are a couple of key points to consider before rushing abroad.

????A BRIC imagination

????"There is no such thing as BRIC," says David Martin, an emerging markets specialist with Deloitte Consulting. BRIC, a term coined by Goldman Sachs (GS), refers to the pack of countries -- Brazil, Russia, India and China -- considered ripe for new business.

????But BRIC is a false grouping. For one, Russia has been much less exciting to big business since the downturn in 2008. And, in general, countries shouldn't be clumped together because each requires a distinct strategy. Even within countries, differences between regions make for different markets. The differences between, say, urban and rural areas in China require distinct business plans that take into account everything from consumer preferences to transportation.

????While many companies think that making their products cheaper by removing features is the equivalent of tailoring them to emerging markets, Martin says, but they're wrong. While some markets may demand less expensive products, "you don't have unsophisticated consumers," he says, "they know what they're getting."

????Word is bond?

????Like consumer preferences, local legal systems in emerging markets can vary. In the United States, the contract is a strong binding force for businesses. But contract agreements in emerging markets can bend. In many markets, the strength of a deal depends more on a long-lasting relationship than a signed piece of paper, says Benjamin Jones, an associate professor at Northwestern's Kellogg school of management. Even those relationships can be jeopardized by fluctuations in the political climate.

????Enron suffered from this problem (among other things) with its Dabhol power plant in India. In 1992, the company began a $2.9 billion power plant project with the Dabhol Power Company, backed by the Indian government. Starting in 1994, an opposing political candidate ran on an anti-Enron platform, and won, setting off a legal back-and-forth that ultimately forced Enron to pull out of the project.

????Companies are also facing difficulties with intellectual property rights abroad. In China, for one, proprietary information is proving hard to protect. Just this past week, Chinese authorities have identified 22 retail outlets in Kunming city copying the the iconic Apple store .

????There are a couple of ways that companies are trying to sidestep patent issues, says Jones. One is the same tactic used on the Ford (F) Model-T assembly-lines: manufacturers build parts of products in different facilities, making them difficult to reverse-engineer. An alternative method is to form partnerships with local companies or governments, Jones says, to "make sure they have some skin in the game."

????You're not the only show in town

????Either way, emerging market consumers and businesses are redefining the terms of engagement with companies from larger economies. Companies looking to slap a Western business model on operations abroad are going to be sorely disappointed.

????"Many advanced countries still have a colonial mindset, of 'we invent here, we commercialize it, and now it's possible to market it there,'" says Jagdish Sheth, a professor of marketing at Emory University's Goizueta Business School.

????The colonial mindset won't work anymore. In fact, many countries require multinationals to transform their business models to gain access to their market. Take India, which has tariff laws that make it much easier to import computer components than finished computers, which pressures manufacturers to produce in their country.

????Other U.S.-based companies are competing for these markets too. Most big multinationals have already staked their claim. Now, medium-size companies are scrambling not just for a piece of the action, but for talent as well.

????For example, one of Deloitte's clients outlined plans to hire 20,000 Chinese employees over two years. "I've talked to three of your competitors," Martin told the client, "and I've read about four others. I can't tell you there aren't 20,000 people with the skill set you need, but I can tell you there aren't 120,000."

????It was a wake-up call, Martin said. For companies who are eyeing overseas expansion, it's far better to have one of those before you make the leap.