Strategies in the news (October 10, 2022)
Staying on Top (a supplement to The Strategy Toolkit)
1. The promise and pitfalls of a national hydrogen strategy
“Where things get more heated is over which form of low-carbon hydrogen to back, and how it should be used. The flagship projects at both HyNet and the East Coast Cluster are blue-hydrogen plants. That has sparked criticism from green-hydrogen champions. The blue sort can never be fully emissions-free, they say. It relies on natural gas, which is volatile in price and insecure in supply—about half of Britain’s gas is imported. The government ought to start with the tech it wants to end up with, lest it “end up with stranded assets”, says Graham Cooley of itm Power, a Sheffield-based electrolyser manufacturer.
“Blue-hydrogen advocates retort that production will be kept clean by the government’s low-carbon hydrogen standard, which sets a cap on the emissions that hydrogen-makers can generate to be eligible for subsidies.”
https://www.economist.com/britain/2022/07/25/britains-hydrogen-strategy-is-ambitious-if-imperfect
Sustainability strategists need to balance the relative merits of blue hydrogen versus green hydrogen in reducing the use of grey hydrogen, both in terms of end-to-end degree of “low carbon” and in terms of safely scaling demand in various end-use markets…
2. Software strategies for the return of an iconic vehicle as an EV
“All car bosses must weigh developing software in-house with relying on third parties for systems that may soon define a marque’s image. Mr Blume may rethink Mr Diess’s go-it-alone strategy.”
https://www.economist.com/business/2022/07/28/volkswagens-new-boss-faces-some-enduring-challenges
The automotive industry is mid-way through being disrupted by the software industry. Everyone in Silicon Valley thinks of vehicles as smartphones-on-wheels, with Tesla as Example #1. Car manufacturing CEO’s all struggle with strategic options for putting software at the core of their companies: buy, build, partner…
3. How a wrestler became a master strategist in politics
“Mulayam Singh Yadav belonged to a generation of leaders who were born out of mass movements. He was known as a master strategist and his political moves kept both allies and opponents guessing.
“He astutely mixed regional and federal politics to remain relevant throughout his active career.
“His drive - combined with the skill to bounce back from seemingly hopeless political setbacks - made him a formidable adversary in Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state…
“A former wrestler, Mulayam Singh Yadav was known to pin his political opponents down with his understanding of grassroots politics and his ability to connect with the masses. At the same time, he had friends in most political parties.”
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-63113938
Yadav, like just about everyone, was a strategist instinctively. Understanding a person’s background and formative years is key for other strategists in dealing with the Yadavs of the world...
4. How to negotiate in France
“The industrial action at TotalEnergies, which coincides with strikes at two Exxon Mobil refineries in France, comes as workers across Europe demand higher salaries to cope with surging inflation and a cost-of-living crisis.
“President Emmanuel Macron, whose government is under mounting pressure to act as the strike grinds on and more fuel stations run out of some products, called for a quick end to the crisis.
"Negotiations are under way and on track...I hope that in the coming hours, the soonest, this can be resolved. Blocking is not a way to negotiate," Macron said during a visit to the Mayenne in western France.”
Sorry to be the contrarian, cher le President, but it appears to everyone else that blocking actually is quite effective in these circumstances…
5. The design strategies of acoustic automobile styling
“The electrification of mobility presents humanity with a rare opportunity to reimagine the way cities might sound…
“When the researchers first began working with Renault, Misdariis told me, the collaborators struggled to find a common language in which to talk about acoustic design. “When a graphic designer says to you, ‘This is a red triangle,’ there is no different interpretation possible,” he said. “But if you say, ‘I would like a warm sound’—what is a warm sound? What is a round sound? What is a rough sound? A green sound? What is a smiling sound? We know what happy music is, but what is a two-second sound that is happy?” Misdariis added, “It is the sound designer’s job to translate high-level visual representations into sound parameters—this is a very tricky point of our discipline.” The Renault team eventually developed tools for visually sketching sounds, frequencies, and modulations. “We needed these tools to create efficient sound design,” he said.”
Another unintended consequence of the computerisation of the automobile is the ability to shape the acoustic environment of any new automobile brand. And once again Tesla leads the competition…