Acknowledgments
Writing this book has been on my mind for almost 15 years. In the early 1990s, as Dean of the School of Business Administration at George Mason University (GMU), my friend and colleague, Stuart Malawer, distinguished Professor of Law & International Trade at GMU, invited me to coteach a course on global strategy and trade at St. Peter’s College, Oxford University. This unique course brought students from different disciplines and different parts of the world together to study emerging issues in the field of international commerce. It helped me develop the approach to teaching global strategy contained in this book, which I have refined over the last 20 years.
I have others to thank. Vijay Sathe, my colleague at the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management, and I collaborated in numerous executive programs, both in the United States and abroad. These experiences have also helped me refine the contents of this book. Mason Carpenter, the editor of this series, provided valuable feedback on a draft of this book. And, of course, I am indebted to the late Peter F. Drucker. His guidance and friendship meant a lot to me. Considered by many the “father of modern management,” Peter’s unique perspectives on modern capitalism and on the roles of the private sector, nonprofits, and the government have helped shape the thinking of CEOs, academics, analysts, and commentators alike. I hope this book contributes to this process.
And, as aspiring authors quickly learn and seasoned writers already know, writing a book is a mammoth undertaking. Fortunately, I had a lot of encouragement along the way from my family and friends, and I take this opportunity to thank them all for letting me spend the time and for their words of encouragement. I am grateful to all of them and hope the result meets their high expectations. It goes without saying that I alone am responsible for any remaining errors or misstatements.
Cornelis A. “Kees” de Kluyver
Dean and James and Shirley Rippey
Distinguished Professor
Lundquist College of Business
University of Oregon