Produced by JETRO Yamagata Last update 2009.12.15 This report contains Japanese characters, which may not be viewable by some computers. ******************************************************************** 2009.12.15 Venture Business Front Line - No. 132 "CFO - Chief Financial Officer" by Edward Kuroki The definition of Chief Financial Officer (CFO), according to the website businessdictionary.com, is "Senior-most executive responsible for financial control and planning of a firm or project. He or she is in charge of all accounting functions including (1) credit control, (2) preparing budgets and financial statements, (3) coordinating financing and fund raising, (4) monitoring expenditure and liquidity, (5) managing investment and taxation issues, (6) reporting financial performance to the board, and (7) providing timely financial data to the CEO. Also called chief finance officer, comptroller, controller, or finance controller." In recent years, the U.S. style of CFO has been studied and adopted by other countries. For example, the Japan Association for Chief Financial Officers (JACFO)[1] was established in 2000 and joined the International Group of Treasury Association (IGTA)[2] in 2001 and the International Association of Financial Executives Institutes (IAFEI)[3] in 2003. JACFO began introducing its own recognition systems to provide General CFO Certification, Global CFO Certification, Standard CFO Certification, and Professional CFO Certification. On November 19, 2009 in Newton, Massachusetts, the 7th Annual MIT Sloan CFO Summit was held, and more than 500 CFOs participated in this meeting to share their experiences and views of the world financial situation. The opening remarks were given by Jack McCullough & Jeremy Seidman, Co-Chairs, MIT CFO Summit, followed by Terry Stone, Executive Vice President and Treasurer, MIT. Joe Capezza, CFO of Health Net, David Goulden, CFO of EMC, Kurt Kuehn, CFO of UPS, Dagen McDowell, Anchor, Fox Business News (moderator), and Gunter Niedernhuber, CFO of BMW German Market were the keynote panel speakers who spoke on "Strengthening your Competitive Position in an Economic Downturn." [4] Out of these distinguished speakers, I had a special opportunity to directly interview one of the Co-Charis, Jack McCullough (45), who is Business Development Officer at Feeley & Driscoll, P.C. in Boston, Massachusetts, President at CFO RoundTable LLC in North Andover, Massachusetts, Board of Director, MIT Sloan Alumni Club of Boston, etc. [Kuroki] What are some of the changes you noticed about the opinions and attitudes of CFOs (in terms of the current economic climate) who participated the Annual MIT Sloan CFO Summit this year compared to the one last year? [McCullough] Their attitudes were far more optimistic this year than they were last year...though, not quite as positive as in 2007. In 2008, CFOs were still rather stunned by the economic collapse, which had happened only a few weeks before the event. This year, they have accepted the crisis, and have had a year's reflection to think of a how to survive and even thrive in the turmoil. Survive they will. [Kuroki]: What is the most memorable presentation made at the Annual MIT Sloan CFO Summit 2009? Why? [McCullough] My own, because I promised everyone a free BMW if they stayed until the end (I was teasing the CFO of BMW, who was one of our speakers). Seriously, I thought that they were all good, but the keynote panel was the most memorable, probably because the speakers had faced the greatest challenges in the most global environment. [Kuroki] What are some of the top challenges that CFOs are facing now? Why? [McCullough] In many cases, it is about surviving. Many of the CFOs in the Boston area work for venture-backed start-ups, and venture capital investments are not as plentiful as they used to be. So, CFOs need to do more with less - much less. For those companies where survivability is not an issue, the CFO has to focus on helping the top line (revenue numbers). Every company has lost customers because they simply do not exist, and those that remain are exerting considerable downward pricing pressure on their suppliers. So, it's the CFO's job to find a creative way to help the sales organization increase revenue in a downturn. [Kuroki] What are some of the challenges that people are facing in the "Venture Business" (start-up) industry? What fields are more successful than others? Why? [McCullough] Access to capital is the biggest one. Early-stage companies by definition don't have revenue... so if you don't have revenue you are dependent upon outside investment. Those investors are focused on clean energy these days.... it's not unlike the Internet companies in the mid 1990s. Investors don't really know which companies will be great, so they are betting on many of them, and if a few pan out, their returns will be outstanding. At the start of the dot com era, if you had one good investment and ten bad ones, you could really make out - if the one good investment was Amazon or Ebay. [Kuroki] What are some of the factors to be a successful CFO in the U.S.? Are they any different from CFOs outside the U.S.? [McCullough] In some countries, and 20 years ago in the U.S., the CFO was basically the best accountant in his or her company. Today in the U.S., a CFO is expected to be a strategic thinker and great communicator, with good knowledge of the numbers, but not expertise. When I was a CFO, my controllers were typically better accountants than I was. But, I understood the numbers well enough that I could meaningfully discuss them and how they supported the strategic vision of the company. [Kuroki] According to the CIA, OECD and IMF source list of countries by public debt in 2007 , Japan is ranked No.2 (173.0% of GDP) and theU.S. is ranked No.22 (73.2% of GDP). On the other hand, according to the CIA source list of countries by external debt, the U.S. is No.1 ($42,343 per capita) and Japan is ranked No.8 ($4,528 per capita). In the meantime, some of the biggest holdings of US National debt are Mainland China ($798.9BN), Japan ($751.5BN) and United Kingdom ($249.3BN) according to the latest list of MAJOR FOREIGN HOLDERS OF TREASURY SECURITIES by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. In the light of recent economic crisis, how do you assess this situation? [McCullough] I am surprised that we are not #1 to be honest! But, there is no comfort in this for me. If countries have debts that exceed their GDP, I am concerned for them. David Walker, the former Comptroller General of the United States (de facto CFO of the US) estimates our national debt at $60 trillion, if the government had to record liabilities the way corporations now do (which includes the future payments of obligations related to medicare, medicaid, and social security). $60 trillion - that's about $800,000 for each family of four in the US, if his numbers are correct. That won't be solved by economic growth. Basically, we are borrowing from China, and making our children and grand children pay the bill. That's economically wrong, and it's morally wrong. [Kuroki] If you were the economic advisor to President Obama, how would you advise him for 2010? [McCullough] I am sure the people around him are smarter and better qualified than I am! That said, people in Washington of both political parties do seem to think that we can solve the economic crisis just by increasing government spending. It would be nice if this were true, because if it were, there would be no poverty anywhere in the world, but, it's not true. If the President genuinely wants to help the economy in the long term, he will have to propose unpopular programs such as a decrease in entitlement spending, and higher taxes, at least in the short run. George H.W. Bush (the father if that is not clear to you) did this and probably lost his reelection chances because of it. He raised taxes and put in spending caps, which resulted in deficit reduction - during the Clinton Presidency. President Obama may have to make unpopular choices and risk the same outcome. [1] JACFO - The Japan Association for Chief Financial Officers - www.cfo.jp [2] IGTA - The International Group of Treasury Association - www.igta.org, [3] IAFEI - The International Association of Financial Executives Institutes - www.iafei.org [4] http://www.mitcfo.com/2009/cfo/Agenda.aspx [5] http://www.ustreas.gov/tic/mfh.txt Contact: Edward Kuroki kuroki@validtechnology.com http://www.validtechnology.com ACKNOWLEDGMENT: Editorial and research assistance was provided by Freyja Sanger and Michiko Kuroki. 【日本語要旨】 CFO - 最高財務責任者 日本の国債残高は近年世界第2位(米国22位) - 国民総生産GDPの173.0% 、日本 の海外債務残高は世界第8位(米国1位)となった。昨年米国でも懸念されたデフ レ(通貨収縮)が日本では深刻な問題となっている中、IT分野を含め米国型組織 統制管理制度の導入により、CFO (最高財務責任者)の地位・役割が日本国内で も確立されてきた。日本CFO協会ではIGTA・IAFEIなどの国際機関と協力関係を 樹立し、日本独自の資格制度を取り入れたCFO教育並びに啓蒙活動を行っている。 ここ米国ボストンにおいては、先月19日第7回MIT Sloan CFO Summit (マサチ ューセッツ工科大学スローン経営管理大学院が主催するCFO首脳会議)が開催さ れ、世界中から500名以上のCFOが集まった。今回はこの会議で共同議長を務め たJack McCullough (ジャック・ミックカライフ)氏から貴重な話を伺った。 ミックカライフ氏は公認会計士として自らCFOとしての経験を持ち多数のベン チャー企業を育てた実績があり、CFO RoundTable社・社長も務める。 （インタビューの全内容を知りたい方は、筆者宛ご連絡ください。） バリッド・テクノロジー・グループ代表 黒木嗣也 ( くろき・つぐなり ) kuroki@validtechnology.com www.validtechnology.com ******************************************************************** 2009.11.02 Venture Business Front Line - No. 131 "The Nation of Georgia" by Edward Kuroki The Georgia-Russia War began on August 7th, 2008 during the last Olympic Game in Beijing China. The media displayed extremely graphic videos and photographs of civilian casualties through T.V., newspapers, and the Internet. The war ended on August 16th of the same year leaving behind many complicated after effects, in ways only war knows how. To many people, this tragic event was probably the first time to hear of this somewhat obscure country, the Republic of Georgia (or even the term, “Caucasian region”), although this little republic has played many important roles both historically and politically in the world. One such example is the theory that the origin of grape wine production can be traced back to Georgia based on archeological researches. Another example lies in the name of Joseph Stalin, who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee from 1922 until 1953. What many people may not know about this famous yet controversial leader is that he was born in the small town of Gori in Georgia, where the very house he was born in still stands as a memorial and a museum. There are many other numerous examples which indicate that the world would not be the same without this country, which is spread out over 69,700 sq km (country comparison to the world: 127) -- slightly smaller than South Carolina with 4,615,807 people (country comparison to the world: 119). Georgian is the official language of Georgia. It is spoken by 71% of its people, and also spoken by some Russians (9%), Armenians(7%), Azeris (6%), and others (7%). Similarly, the country is rather homogenous with its population made up of 83.8% Georgians, 6.5% Azeri, 5.7% Armenian, 1.5% Russian, and 2.5 % other (1). Surprisingly enough, Georgia Ranks 11th at Ease of Doing Business according to the IFC-World Bank Doing Business 2010 Report (2). Even in the U.S., a melting pot of cultures and languages, one must look long and hard in order to meet individuals who are fluent in both English and Georgian languages. It is even more rare that this individual simultaneously bridges the cultures of Japan and America - someone who is fluent in English, Japanese and Georgian languages. In a small town of Andover (a suburb of Boston, Massachusetts) such person works as a third grade teacher at The Pike School (3). Her name is Aiko Virginia Onishi and she encompasses a unique mixture of diverse knowledge and experiences gained from her life as a traveler into the unknown. The following interview was conducted based on her experience in the town of Oni, in the Racha Region of the Republic of Georgia, where she worked as an English Instructor/Community Development Liaison for the Peace Corps from March 2002 to May 2004 (4). Q. What made you go to the Republic of Georgia? Originally, I joined the Peace Corps as a way to expose my soul to the world. I was first assigned to Turkmenistan as an English Instructor, but this experience was short lived because soon I was one of the 350 volunteers evacuated out of Central Asia due to the tragic event of 2001, 9-11. I waited for 6 months back at home in Wheeling W.V. teaching EFL (English as Foreign Language) to international students. When I heard that my next assignment was to the Republic of Georgia, I felt ready then ever to go and be, not just a traveler but also a teacher. Q. What was your first impression on Georgia? Grey. But not the image of poverty I imagined. People were well dressed, there were cars, and hospitals and schools stood in towns. But there was this silent sense of despair... The buildings from the Soviet days were square, concrete, cold and dark. Q. Please describe the place you lived in terms of ethnic group, religion, and language. My region Racha was made up of mostly Georgians but because it was so close to the borders of southern Russia, we had some Russians and people from a special ethnic group known as Ossetians (this area, Ossetia, has often been the target of war between Russia and Georgia in recent years). Georgians are very serious people when it comes to religion and everyone is an Orthodox Christian. On Sundays they go to church (no heating/cooling) and stand (no pews or seats) for hours during worships, all crammed into a small church building. In addition to this, every school excursion is to a church! The language was Georgian although older people were fluent in Russian as a result of being part of the Soviet Union. Georgian alphabet is one of the original alphabets in the world. Q. How were you perceived by looking Japanese and teaching English under a U.S. Government program? Georgians love Japan and Japanese people. I took advantage of that because I think they were more skeptical about Americans (there was definitely the perception that America was the new Soviet in Georgia- the new political bully whose motives were still ambiguous). It was that or they stereotyped all Americans as rich people with money to throw away. So by hiding behind my Japanese facade I was able to avoid these stereotypes a bit. People see Japan as a country of long history, warm hospitality, and deep culture (which is similar to Georgian ways of life). In the end, they stopped trying to make sense of me via nationality or ethnicity and accepted me as, me. Q. What are some of the challenges that Georgia was facing then and is facing now? I’m not sure how prevalent it is still, but when I was there the degree to which corruption permeated government systems was very frustrating and discouraging. In addition to this, the biggest challenges I saw and probably still see is the disparity between the poor and the rich. Only a handful of people live in great comfort. This inevitably is connected to the disparity between the life styles of the city and all the other parts of Georgia. In Tbilisi, Georgia’s capital, you see the fruits of independence, the immersion of the Western Civilization and great “progress “ in the ways of life- internet cafes, expensive boutiques, Marriott Hotels, modern homes with washing machines and dish washers. But you step outside of this capital city and you see that people are still waiting for electricity, running water, good education, and other basic means to survival. Q. If you were the Secretary of State, what would you do for/with the Republic of Georgia? I witnessed first hand, teachers in my community going unpaid and schools still lacking basic resources (books, infrastructure, and professional development). There is no doubt that education is truly the key to changes in the country. I would work with Ministers of Education in various communities to set basic infrastructure guidelines (to make sure all the school buildings had basic things like windows, clean wooden stove, desks and chairs) and hold schools and communities accountable for maintaining the resources. In addition, I would spend a significant amount updating teaching materials (even in the most remote areas of the community) and pilot different programs over the course of the years to monitor its effectiveness. Classroom management trainings should be offered (students were still getting beaten by stove wood for misbehaving-which incidentally, was because the children usually didn’t get enough food or sleep the night before). Finally, there should be research to implement food and nutrition programs to rural communities. Q. As part of Georgia's agribusiness, the exportation of Georgian Wine is important. Why do you think Georgian Wine is not popular in the Western World? Except for in very limited cases, the wines that get produced out of Georgia are made by everyday people just for everyday uses. They lack the resources to advertise, produce, and export these wines. Not to mention the legal loopholes they would have to go through to get anything out of Georgia without numerous people getting ‘paid’. After the independence in 1991, there was a generation of people who were learning the ways of free and open market. They needed to learn a whole new way to do business to keep up internationally. Obviously, when they go up against some of the more developed countries who have been doing this for decades, there is a skill based disadvantage. Finally, it’s nearly impossible for Georgians to leave their country and a visa to the “Western World” was still considered a golden ticket when I was there, awarded to only a handful of very well connected, rich, lucky people. This could be another problem, but I don’t know how that has changed. I think, and hope their business will catch up. The wine is divine!! Q. According to "Georgia Sector Competitiveness Overview" by the International Finance Corporation June 2009 (5), it states that "With liberalization and deregulation, the Georgian economy has taken off in recent years." What did you think about the economic/living condition when you were there? Again, the way Peace Corps worked in Georgia, they sent volunteers into the more rural communities (no volunteer was stationed in the capita city). In Oni, people were making ends meet, especially senior citizens and that meant growing their food in their yards, sharing materials with neighbors, and reusing everything. Georgia was relatively wealthy under the Soviet rule, so I saw many resort facilities and infrastructures that were left to decay. Roads in Oni were all dirt or broken concrete. I have read articles about deregulation and its impact on businesses in Georgia in recent years, but I think the effects of these initiatives have not reached the areas of Georgia where we worked as volunteers. But perhaps this gives people hope and motivation to be part of this new trend that will pour out of the capital city. To obtain the entire content of this interview, please contact the author. (1) https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gg.html (2) http://www.doingbusiness.org/economyrankings/ (3) http://www.pikeschool.org/ (4) http://www.peacecorps.gov/ (5) http://www.ifc.org/; http://www.ifc.org/ifcext/georgiasme.nsf/Content/Surveys Contact: Edward Kuroki kuroki@validtechnology.com http://www.validtechnology.com 【日本語要旨】 グルジア（英語表記・Georgia「ジョージア」） 日本・ロシア間貿易の関心が高まる中、旧ソ連の支配下にあった独立国に目を 向ける時期が到来した。例えば、グルジア(英語表記 Georgia「ジョージア」) である。183国のデータを基に作成された「Doing Business 2010 report」(様 々な角度からビジネス展開の容易・難易度を数値化したレポート)によると、 ジョージアは11位。ロシアは何と120位。他旧ソ連・国は、アゼルバイジャン 38位、キルギス41位、アルメニア43位、ベラルーシ58位、カザフスタン63位、 モルドバ94位、ウクライナ142位、ウズベキスタン150位、タジキスタン152位 である。因みに、1位はシンガポール、4位 米国、15位 日本、19位 韓国、46 位 台湾、89位 中国、129位 ブラジル、133位 インドとなっている。他民族国 家グルジア(ジョージア)は日本の約5分の1の面積で、人口は約440万、農業、 食品加工業、鉱業を主産業としているが、黒海とカスピ海に挟まれた歴史的・ 文化的(そして特に近年、地理政治学的)に重要な国である。ワイン発祥の地と しても考古学的に証明されている。ゴリ市はヨセフ・スターリン出生の地でも ある。米国でもグルジア(ジョージア)の知名度は低いが、ちょうど昨年の北京 オリンピック開催時期に勃発した「グルジア(ジョージア)・ロシア戦争」をき っかけに関心が強まった。今回は、2002-2004年に渡り米国連邦政府・平和部 隊から英語教師としてグルジア(ジョージア)へ派遣され、英語・日本語・グル ジア(ジョージア)語に堪能な大西愛子さん(米国・マサチューセッツ州在住)か ら情報提供を受けた。紙面の都合上、14問答の中から抜粋して以下に掲載する。 （インタビューの全内容を知りたい方は、筆者宛ご連絡ください。） バリッド・テクノロジー・グループ代表 黒木嗣也 ( くろき・つぐなり ) kuroki@validtechnology.com www.validtechnology.com ********************************************************************* 2009.10.01 Venture Business Front Line - No. 130 "Pain Management through Expressive Art Therapy" by Edward Kuroki During the hottest week in August 2009, the International Expressive Arts Therapy Association (IEATA) held its 8th Biennial International Conference (1). It was hosted by Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The IEATA was founded in 1994 to promote the use of integrative, multimodal arts processes to assist in personal and community growth. Expressive arts therapists, artists, educators, psychologists, and alternative therapy consultants from many parts of the world gathered at this conference to demonstrate the latest findings and their work. Among them, a presentation made by Ms. Aya Kasai was particularly interesting. It was conducted interactively between her and the audience, about 30 multiracial and multicultural people, in a classroom situation utilizing various art supplies and materials. She received her academic training in Counseling Psychology with a concentration in Expressive Arts Therapy from the California Institute of Integral Studies. The title of her paper was "Arts and Health Care: Finding Hope and Overcoming Illness through Rituals and Imagery -- IMAGES OF PAIN, IMAGES OF PAIN RELIEF: MULTIMODAL EXPRESSIVE ARTS THERAPY AND PAIN MANAGEMENT." In general, the mechanism of pain is very complex, and considered highly subjective. Most people seek medical attention for pain of any type. Pain management is a very big business. It is estimated to cost the American public alone approximately $100 billion each year in health care, compensation, and litigation (2). According to the International Association for the Study of Pain, pain is defined as an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience ssociated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage (3). But let's face it, it is not always easy to describe the pain that we experience and feel. Some hospitals apply pain measurement scales, e.g., the McGill Pain Questionnaire or the Dolorimeter Pain Index; however, the characterization of pain depends mostly on conventional verbal and non-verbal skills. Can Ms. Kasai’s approach solve some of these issues and bring effective relief from pain? Let me borrow some of the statements that she made at the conference. She points out that pain problems in hospitals interfere with rehabilitation and treatment, inhibit recovery (negative body image), and affect patients' mood (irritation, depression, anxiety). Furthermore, she explains that pain problems can lead to refusing physical therapy, panicking and screaming during wound care, complaints with medication, repeated or prolonged hospitalization and fear of discharge. Her approach is based on the power of expressive processes; it's my interpretation that it can take the form of art or not-art. She points out that a patient can create or imagine something tangible that both the clinician and patient can look at and talk about together. According to her, this provides a shared experience and an understanding of a patient's state of body, mind, and soul. She emphasizes that arts safely and gently enable expression for people in vulnerable states. She showed numerous examples of expressive objects created by hospitalized patients in California. Some of them are humorous, and some are serious. She shared the results of a study that she conducted with 30 patients from a wide range of medical and personal backgrounds. She guided the patients to project and describe multi-modal (visual, auditory, kinesthetic/somatic, verbal) images of both pain and pain relief so that the patients’ relationship to pain, and their inner resource for managing pain can be better understood both by the patients and the clinicians. Her method is certainly supplemental to regular medical regime to treat pain including pharmacologic measures. Her approach seems appropriate and effective for addressing various psychological states caused by pain. She addressed these states and assisted patients in exploring to change their relationship to pain and therefore their experience of pain. It might be feasible to create computer softwares that enable simulations of these expressive processes to bring the same effect. This would demystify the mechanism of pain while providing relief from pain for patients. (1) www.ieata.org (2) PNAS, October 9, 2001, vol. 98, no. 21, 11845?11846 (3) www.iasp-pain.org Contact: Edward Kuroki kuroki@validtechnology.com http://www.validtechnology.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Editorial and research assistance was provided by Catherine Wadelton (Rehearsal Technology Corporation), Freyja Sanger and Michiko Kuroki. 【日本語要旨】 表現アートセラピー(美術療法)を用いた疼痛管理 今年ボストンの夏は例年と比べて涼しかったが、8月に入って蒸し暑い週があ った。その短い夏が招いたかのようにIEATA(国際表現アーツセラピー協会)主 催の隔年総会がレズリー大学で行われた。そこで注目を集めたのが日本人・笠 井綾さんが発表・実践した表現アートセラピーを用いた疼痛管理手法（痛みか らの解放・緩和策）であった。笠井さんは表現アートセラピストとしてカリフ ォルニアを本拠に活躍している。国籍・人種に関係なく、疼痛は医療行為を受 ける第一理由である。ビジネス的には、様々な鎮痛剤を含む薬物療法他、多種 の心理療法なども行われている。米国国内だけで、一般健康管理・保障賠償金 ・訴訟費用も含めて年間1000億ドル以上が疼痛分野に消費されている。ところ が疼痛の構造は非常に複雑で、特に疼痛を数値化・視覚化する分野は主観的な 手法が用いられている。笠井綾さんの手法は、主観性の中から客観性を見出し て、患者と治療を施す側の共通言語として活かされている。これは今後の疼痛 管理分野で、関連するアルゴリズムを用いて解析・シミュレーションすると医 学分野に大きく役立つデータになると思われる。 バリッド・テクノロジー・グループ代表 黒木嗣也 ( くろき・つぐなり ) kuroki@validtechnology.com www.validtechnology.com ********************************************************************* 2009.09.01 Venture Business Front Line - No. 129 "Bartering" by Edward Kuroki The concept of bartering has existed since pre-historic times. Even very small children seem to know how to get what they want by offering what others are looking for without using any money. For example, they trade toys on the playground and food in the school cafeteria. However, until recently modern businesses haven’t used bartering effectively. Mark H. McCormack, the author of "What They Still Don't Teach You at Harvard Business School" expressed in his book, "I am convinced that most companies don't maximize their barter possibilities. Instead of aggressively reducing costs by trading their services with those of their suppliers, they seem content to pay top dollar for everything." This attitude, however, is changing rapidly even at Fortune 500 companies like General Electric.(1) The effectiveness of bartering has been proven particularly during times of economic hardship. As mixed signs of economic recovery continue to be spread worldwide, numerous forms of barter exchange have been gaining popularity among companies and individuals. This “barter economy” is estimated to be around $8 billion a year. With the development of Web 2.0 technology, which enables consumers to share and interact with information on the web, companies like BixXchange (www.bizx.com), Craigslist (www.craigslist.org) and U-Exchange (www.u-exchange.com) have significantly increased their sales over the past few years. (2) Users are trading not only their goods but also their skills and labor for products; organizations such as NATE (the National Association of Trade Exchanges) and IRTA (the International Reciprocal Trade Association) are spreading this creative process nationwide and worldwide.(3) Presently, over 350,000 businesses in the United States are known to be involved in barter exchange activities and over 400 companies are specializing in barter trade. A small-scale example is a dentist in Lexington, Massachusetts. He is offering to barter dental services such as crowns, bridges, restorations, and cleanings in exchange for services the patient can provide. One must realize that most dental work in the U.S. is very expensive and many people do not have insurance for it. As a result, they often pay for it out of their own pockets. However, if a patient has skills in an area valued by the dentist, such as advertising and marketing, carpentry, electrical work, plumbing, or website design, the dentist is willing to provide appropriate services. Further examples of small-scale bartering can be found in a recently published article on msnbc.com titled "No cash for medical bills? Bartering pays." On a global scale, during last year’s food crisis in Southeast Asia the government of Thailand proposed a possible rice-for-oil exchange with Iran. The Malaysian government announced a plan to barter palm oil for rice with any nation. Unfortunately, there have been hundreds of cases, known as "bad swaps", where a country has bartered away its valuable resources without thinking strategically about how to set favorable prices for them. Bartering, therefore, has become an effective and widespread business practice that is used locally and globally. Roger Staiger, a professor at Johns Hopkins University's business school, was mentioned in USAToday.com (2/26/2009) by saying, ""This is part of the underground economy that does not contribute to the GDP (gross domestic product), but it absolutely contributes to helping people and fostering trade." Observing the still fragile economic recovery process, I agree with his assessment and urge people to become creative with this ancient practice of bartering. If you are an individual interested in bartering, you can find many useful tips and advice on the Internet. For example, "Suddenly Frugal " by Leah Ingram (dated FEBRUARY 25, 2009) provides "5 Tips for Bartering Goods and Services", including important considerations on “Tax Responsibilities of Bartering Participants”. (4) If you are Internet-savvy, Steven Wagenheim gives marketing tips for bartering.(5) (1) http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m4325/is_n3_v40/ai_n25022950/ (2) According to Inc.com (Jul 13, 2009), "Trading on BizXchange has climbed 68 percent," and according to PRI.com (22 June, 2009) "On the popular classified website Craigslist, traffic to the bartering category jumped 100 percent nationwide in the past 12 months." (3) Check www.nate.org and www.irta.com for details. (4) http://suddenlyfrugal.wordpress.com/2009/02/25/5-tips-for-bartering-goods-and-services/ (5) http://ezinearticles.com/?Internet-Marketing-Tips---Bartering&id=702752 Contact: Edward Kuroki kuroki@validtechnology.com http://www.validtechnology.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Editorial and research assistance was provided by Catherine Wadelton (Rehearsal Technology Corporation) and Michiko Kuroki. 【日本語要旨】 物々・物業交換 世界的に経済状態はまだスランプから抜け出したと言えない。このような中、 貨幣などの媒介物を交えない「物」と「物」もしくは「物」と「サービス」を 交換するビジネスが急激に増加している。これにはウエブを介して送り手と受 け手が情報発信を可能とするWeb 2.0技術が貢献している。米国ではFortune 500を含む350,000社以上が「物々・物業交換」を行っており、これを専門とす る会社は400 以上存在する。例えば、高騰を続ける医療費を支払う代わりに、 患者が医師・病院に対して経理・広報・配管工事・家屋補修工事などを提供す る。日本では考えられないが、一般庶民の生活防衛策である。実は、このよう な交換を通してそれ以上の効果を狙っているのである。「物々交換」の定義を 拡大すると面白い新規ビジネスが考えられる。 バリッド・テクノロジー・グループ代表 黒木嗣也 ( くろき・つぐなり ) kuroki@validtechnology.com www.validtechnology.com ********************************************************************* 2009.08.03 Venture Business Front Line - No. 128 "CHINA-LATIN AMERICA" by Edward Kuroki A paper titled "China's Growing Influence in Latin America" was written by Professor He Li (李和) and published in one of the EAI (East Asian Institute at National University of Singapore) reports. (1) Prof. He Li has been teaching, publishing and consulting on China-Latin America politcal and trade issues since 1981 at various government and academic institutions. A close friend of his late father is a famous professor of Latin American history in China - Li Chun Hui (李 春 輝) - who used to serve as the president of the Chinese Association of Latin American History, and who influenced Prof. He Li's interest in Latin America. Latin America is known as the "backyard" of the United States. It has been politically and economically important ever since the Monroe Doctrine. As U.S. history clearly indicates, any intrusions by threatening nations were not tolerated by Washington, and Latin America has at times been the target of military and economic interventions.(2) After all, the U.S. has been the number one trading partner with Latin America, followed by the EU. Regardless of geographical, linguistic, and cultural disadvantages, Latin America has become a major trading partner of China and India, who are a rivalry to each other on many sensitive (nuclear) energy, political, military, etc. issues. Over the past decade, Latin American has increased trade tenfold with China and fourfold with India. Both China and India are hungry for natural resources to support their growing domestic needs such as oil. According to THE CIA WORLD FACT BOOK 2009, CHINA with its population of 1,330,044,605 (July 2008 est.) has 3.73 million bbl/day (2007 est.) of oil production, 6.93 million bbl/day (2007 est.) of oil consumption and 3.19 million bbl/day (2007 est.) of oil imports. India has a population of 1,147,995,898 (July 2008 est.), and it has 834,600 bbl/day (2005 est.) of oil production, 2.438 bbl/day (2005 est.) of oil consumption, and 2.098 bbl/day (2005 est.) of oil imports. Latin America has started to play an important role in fulfilling these needs. According to Prof. He Li, China pursues two strategic goals in the region: (a) secure raw materials needed to meet the demand for energy and agricultural products; and (b) maintain a high level of access to the market in order to assure the exports of its manufactured products. He points out that since the late 1970s China has tried to attract foreign direct investment; the policy is known as “welcome in" (yinjinlai). Today China also pursues a strategy of “going out” (zouchuqu) to encourage Chinese firms to investment abroad. Chinese investment in Latin America is on the rise, however some Chinese firms channel their funds to Latin America. But some of those same Chinese firms move them back as FDI (Foreign Direct Investment), sidestepping strict foreign-exchange controls and tax regulations. This practice, known as “round tripping,” is a feature of the Chinese investment abroad. (3) Prof. Li points out that China is still very cautious about Latin America since the risk is high although Sino-Latin American trade is complementary. One other area to be examined and explored by China is trade infrastructure (i.e., ports, railroads, and local highways). China's effort to build a large scale railroad infrastructure in the developing countries has been recognized in the past. China is now one of the world's top ship-builders. Regardless of the global recession, China's demand for more ships is likely to grow. There is no doubt that China's exchange with Latin America will increase in the years to come, and its thirst for oil, iron ore, and agricultural products will continue. One needs to assess a potential trade benefit with China and Latin America by studying China's relationship particularly with Africa, America, EU, India, Japan, and Russia. There may be synergies that could be applied to improve Latin America's infrastructure, which could lead to overall trade efficiency for all trading nations. (1) CHINA'S GROWING INFLUENCE IN LATIN AMERICA: CHALLENGES AND 　OPPORTUNITIES - http://www.eai.nus.edu.sg/BB411.pdf (2) http://www2.truman.edu/~marc/resources/interventions.html (3) Almost 96% of China's foreign direct investment went to the Cayman 　Islands and the British Virgin Island, both major sources of FDI into 　China as well, which is one of the open secrets of Chinese trade 　strategies. Additional note: Professor He Li teaches at Merrimack College where Bruce Stronach also held a faculty appointment. Bruce served as president of Yokohama City University (YCU) in Japan (as the first foreign president of a Japanese public university) and was named dean of Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ). Contact: Edward Kuroki kuroki@validtechnology.com http://www.validtechnology.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Editorial and research assistance was provided by Freyja Sanger, Michiko Kuroki and Elizabeth Berlik. 【日本語要旨】 中国・ラテンアメリカ 米国の裏庭と言われるラテン・アメリカに対する中国のFDI戦略も、「引進来」 (welcome in)・「走出去」(going out)また「返程投資」(round tripping)で 象徴される。中国国内のオイル(他天然資源)消費量は急増し、国内供給では到 底補えない状態が続いている。中国とライバル関係のインドも同じ状況下だ。 この資源不足をラテン・アメリカから入手することが中国のGrand Strategy (大規模な戦略)の一部になってきた。昨年シンガポール国立大学・東亜研究所 が発行するレポート中で、長年中国・ラテンアメリカ関係を専門にする李和教 授は「CHINA'S GROWING INFLUENCE IN LATIN AMERICA (中国のラテンアメリカ での拡大する影響力)」と題する論文を発表した。李和教授は、ラテンアメリ カは中国にとって危険度が高いにも関わらず、相互補足的利益貿易が可能であ ることを説明する。しかし、現状を維持させるにはラテンアメリカ内でのイン フラ整備また船舶輸送力向上が必至となる。日本にとっても、ラテンアメリカ との貿易は将来増加すると考えられる。中国の対アフリカ(貿易)政策とも比較 して、新しい対ラテンアメリカ策を練り直す必要があるのではないかと考える。 バリッド・テクノロジー・グループ代表 黒木嗣也 ( くろき・つぐなり ) kuroki@validtechnology.com www.validtechnology.com ********************************************************************* 2009.07.15 Venture Business Front Line - No. 127 "SRA International Annual Meeting" by Edward Kuroki In October 17-21 of 2009, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization called "SRA International" will be hosting its annual meeting in Seattle, WA. "SRA" stands for Society of Research Administrators. SRA International was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Rosslyn, Virginia. Most of its approximately 5,000 members are engaged in research administration in a broad range of organizations including universities, hospitals, medical centers, industry, government and independent research organizations. ( http://www.srainternational.org) A "Research Administrator" is sometimes referred to as a "Research Manager" and the roles of the profession are becoming significantly more important and complex. According to SRA International, research administrators may work in research administration or research management, contracts and grants management, financial management, intellectual property and technology transfer, training and educational programming, human resources management, regulatory compliance, ethics and IRBs, information services, or any of a number of other areas. While the importance of promoting more research in the U.S. is officially recognized, as President Obama's 2009 stimulus package intends to grant $16 billion in R&D funding (nearly two percent of the 850 billion economic stimulus), a formal education program for research administrators has not been established, unlike in the field of business, where you can obtain an MBA (Masters of Business Administration). There are only few academic institutions in the U.S. who offer graduate certificate and degree programs in Research Administration. Emmanuel College in Boston is one of them, and they call it RAM. Many business schools offer courses in managing research and development; however, administration of multi-facet research processes is beyond their scope of study. Presently, the following organizations are leading the field of research administration in terms of brain storming and certificaiton, and SRA is becoming instrumental to connecting research administrators worldwide by networking with those involved in the field. - Association of University Administrators (www.aua.ac.uk) - European Association of Research Managers and Administrators (www.earma.org) - National Council of University Research Administrators (www.ncura.edu) - Research Administrators Certification Council (www.cra-cert.org) - Society of Research Administrators International (www.srainternational.org ) Kate McCormick is a CRA (Certified Research Administrator) and President of SRA International's Northeast Section (since April 2008). She is also the Senior Grants Administrator in the Dept. of Pathology at Harvard Medical School. She provided insightful comments with regard to her profession: Q. What is the biggest challenge in Research Administration? A. The biggest challenge in Research Administration is probably keeping up with ever-changing policies and regulations and making sure your PIs are in compliance, Q. What is the biggest challenge as Research Administrator? A. I work in an institution that highly values Research Administrators and for a department that respects what we do, but often our biggest challenge as Research Administrators is getting institutions and PIs to understand the importantance of what we do and that we are on their side and do our best to protect their interests. Q. Why is Research Administration important from global perspective? A. Research Administration is very important from a global perspective because research administrators enable scientists to connect with their international colleagues while ensuring that all policies and regulations involved are followed and that everyone's academic rights are respected. Research Administrators allow researchers to work on their science and collaborate with their colleagues, without having to worry about the administrative side of the research endeavors. Government and academic researchers are still seeking answers for these questions. Kate hopes to play a central role in connecting interested parties and individuals through SRA International's Annual Meeting this coming October, which could lead to setting international standards for research administrators. Contact: Edward Kuroki kuroki@validtechnology.com http://www.validtechnology.com 【日本語要旨】 研究統括管理者 最近米国ヨーロッパで注目を集めている専門分野職の一つにResearch Administrator (リサーチ・アドミニストレーター)がある。適切な日本語訳が 見つからないが、企業・政府・研究機関の「研究」を法規、契約、資金、知的 所有権、技術移転、教育、人事、倫理、情報伝達等の広範囲から統括的に管理 する専門職である。研究統括管理者とでも言えるのだろうか。世界でもこの分 野を専門にする団体は5つしかなく、その1つ米国バージニア州に本部を置くSRA (Society of Research Administrator) Internationalは1967年から啓蒙活動 を続けており、今年10月にはシアトルにおいて年次総会を開催する。Research Administratorを研究機関の営業担当者と捉えるのは大きな間違いであり、今 後この分野で正しい理解と見識を持つ人材または資格制度を育てることが大切 になってくる。オバマ大統領が発動した2009年経済復興政策の中には約160億 ドルの研究開発費が含まれている。このおこぼれにあずかろうとする米国外企 業・研究機関は後を絶たない。Research Administratorが手腕を奮う時であり、 また今後国際間での協力体制の構築も必要になってくる。制度・習慣の異なる 日本独自の対応も求められるのではなかろうか。 バリッド・テクノロジー・グループ代表 黒木嗣也 ( くろき・つぐなり ) kuroki@validtechnology.com www.validtechnology.com