Remapping your strategic mind-set

Extracted 09AUG2011 from https://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Strategy/Globalization/Remapping_your_strat...

AUGUST 2011 • Pankaj Ghemawat  

Shake up your thinking by looking at the world from the perspective of a particular country, industry, or company. “Rooted” maps can help you unearth hidden opportunities and threats... 

Rooted maps correct a misperception reinforced by conventional ones: that the world looks the same regardless of the viewer’s vantage point or purpose. In the real world, though, geographic distance and differences in culture and policy matter. To better reflect this reality, rooted maps depict the world from a specific perspective and with a particular purpose in mind...  data-driven versions—particularly those drawn at the industry or company levels—have serious business applications... The distances depicted in rooted maps represent vast untapped opportunities to create value across borders in ways that recognize differences rather than trying to obliterate them...