More than 100 CEOs and top managers of Vietnamese companies in banking, retail, trading, construction and manufacturing attended the Shape the World Conference held in Hanoi on 15 May 2011.
Consulus, a regional brand consultancy, teamed up with Babylons Vietnam to organise the event with the aim of challenging local enterprises to stretch beyond their comfort zone to shape the future of Vietnam.
Mr Nguyen Vu Kien, Deputy Director General at the International Relations Department of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, opened the conference, sharing how the Vietnamese government supports local companies in their brand building efforts through the “Vietnam Value” programme, as well as a stronger legal framework for intellectual property protection.
More than just a logo
“While Asia accounts for two thirds of the world’s population and produces 90 percent of the world’s products, it owns only 30 percent of the great global brands,” Mr Lawrence Chong, CEO at Consulus, said at the start of his presentation.
He stressed that business model, corporate culture and leadership, not flashy logos or advertising campaigns, were the keys to a brand’s success.
To help Vietnamese enterprises redefine their role in the national agenda, Chong shared strategic insights into the new world order and the opportunities it has brought about. Using Apple as an example, he showed how a company could achieve sustainable growth by using the 3 State Framework, 9 Dimensions and 3 Signs, tools developed by Consulus.
Shaping the world starts with purpose
Animal analogies proved to be useful in further illustrating the difference between brands that shape the world and those who don’t.
According to Chong, “lion” brands have a business model, culture and design experience that were all purpose led, while “deer” brands often run fast but without purpose.
Mr Trinh Van Can, Deputy Director at HRD 360, agreed with the observation and said, “Right now we only pay attention to performance but we never thought further about creating national brands.”
Learning from real cases
Speakers from Consulus shared cases that showed how this purpose-driven method could work in industries as varied as retail, luxury and marine.
Using the case of system integrator, Omega Integration, Ms Helena Pham, Strategy Consultant at Consulus, emphasised the practicability of brand core values in grooming future leaders and brand purpose in creating desired service experience.
Mr Felix Fong, Head of International Markets at Consulus, shared how design and strategic research can influence stakeholder confidence and help luxury brands gain competitive advantage.
Putting theory into practice
Participants were given the opportunity to put theory into practice during the workshop portion of the conference. After breaking into smaller groups, they were tasked to apply the 3 State Framework to a case example and present their brand strategy recommendations.
“The topics were very useful to entrepreneurs and top managers, who wish to build their companies into ‘lion’ brands in the new times,” Mr Pham Quoc Dung, Business Development Director at MTC said after the conference.
“The speakers were very professional, and the conference was well organized to give detailed analyses and solutions,” Mr Truong Duc Thanh, Marketing Director at Chau Tien, said.
