经济学人269:麦肯锡的未来 居于管理咨询的顶端

　　Business
商业报道
The future of the Firm
麦肯锡的未来
McKinsey looks set to stay top of the heap in management consulting
麦肯锡看起来打算一直居于管理咨询的顶端
IT IS one of the engines of global capitalism¹.
麦肯锡是全球资本主义的引擎之一。
2222222_副本.jpgNot only does McKinsey provide advice to most of the world's leading companies.
他们不仅为大多数世界领先的公司提供建议，而且还开创了这样的想法，
It also pioneered the idea that business is a profession rather than a mere² trade—and a profession that thrives on raw brainpower more than specialist industry knowledge or plain old common sense.
商业并不是单纯的贸易，而是一种职业，是依靠脑力劳动而不是专业的行业知识或是浅显易懂的旧常识。
Yet McKinsey's name has suffered a succession of blows in the past 15 years.
然而，麦肯锡的名字在过去的15年却遭受了一连串的打击。
The Firm, as it calls itself, was deeply involved in the Enron debacle:
就公司本身而言，如他们自己所说，深深的陷入了安然事件：
the energy company's boss, Jeff Skilling, was a McKinsey veteran who praised the consultancy for doing God's work, and the McKinsey Quarterly published articles on Enron as enthusiastically as Hello! runs pieces about the Beckhams.
安然能源公司的老板，也曾是麦肯锡的一名老将，杰夫·斯基林，赞扬咨询工作是上帝的使命，并在《麦肯锡季刊》上发表有关安然文章，热情满腔的好像在于贝嫂打招呼一样。
In 2010 Anil Kumar, a McKinsey consultant³, admitted passing inside information to Raj Rajaratnam of Galleon⁴, a hedge fund. Last year Rajat Gupta, a former McKinsey managing partner, was also convicted of passing inside information to Mr Rajaratnam.
在2010年，麦肯锡的顾问，阿尔尼·库马尔承认向帆船的拉贾拉特南透露了对冲基金的内部消息。去年前麦肯锡经理合伙人，拉雅·古普塔，也被怀疑向拉贾拉特南先生传递内部信息。
Life is getting tougher for professional-services firms.
如今专业服务型公司面临着越来越多的困难，
Midsized consultancies are already suffering: Monitor Group went bankrupt last year—Deloitte later bought it for 120m—and Booz & Co and Roland Berger are agonising about their futures⁵.
去年中型咨询公司摩立特集团的破产印证了这个事实—德勤后来用了1.2亿美元买下了它—博斯公司和罗兰贝格也在烦恼自己的期货。
If the legal profession is anything to go by, worse is to come:
如果不是法律界的存在，还会有更糟糕的事发生：
Dewey & LeBoeuf collapsed⁶ last year after borrowing heavily in a dash for growth, and other elite⁷ law firms are struggling to win business.
杜威和勒伯夫为了增长而借了大量的贷款，在他们破产后，会有大量的精英律师事务所努力赢得业务。
So, are McKinsey's best days behind it?
所以，麦肯锡的黄金时光会接踵而来吗？
Two new publications offer some interesting answers.
两个新的出版刊物提供了一些有趣的答案。
The Firm, by Duff McDonald, is a generally admiring book that nevertheless asks hard questions about the organisation⁸'s future.
达夫·麦当劳的公司，普遍让人羡慕，却也仍然会考虑一些有关组织未来的难题。
Consulting on the Cusp of Disruption, by Clayton Christensen and two colleagues, is a penetrating⁹ article in the October Harvard Business Review, arguing that the comfortable world of the strategy consultancies is about to be turned upside down.
克里斯坦森和他的两位同事10月份在《哈佛商业评论》上发表了精辟的文章中提到咨询行业正处于风口浪尖，他们认为处于舒适世界的战略咨询公司即将天翻地覆。
McKinsey's success depends above all on an unimpeachable¹⁰ reputation for integrity.
麦肯锡的成功全部依赖于他们无可指摘的诚信声誉。
It cannot continue to serve most of the world's leading companies if its consultants¹¹ are willing to spill secrets.
如果他们的顾问把内部秘密泄露了出去，他们就不能继续服务于世界领先公司。
Mr McDonald argues that the firm's size makes it impossible to avoid repeats of the Kumar problem.
麦当劳先生认为，该公司的体系使他们不可能避免库马尔问题的再次发生，
It is now a giant factory with 1,200 consultants rather than the cosy¹² club of old.
它现在是一个拥有1200名顾问的巨大工厂，而不是一个温馨舒适的老年俱乐部。
The firm has to keep growing, not least to provide its partners with the 1.5mor so a year that they earn.
该公司将保持继续增长，但其合作伙伴必须保证每年至少为他们提供150万美元左右供他们赚取。
But every time it grows it puts its most important asset at risk.
但是每一次增长，都是一次巨大的资产风险。
McKinsey's success also depends on its ability to remain at the cutting edge of business.
麦肯锡的成功还取决于其是否有能力保持在最前沿的业务。
But in recent years it has seemed to be on the wrong cutting edge.
但是在近些年来，它似乎也是错误的尖端。
Mr McDonald points out that whereas McKinsey has led the financialisation of basic industries such as oil and gas, it has had little if any role in shaping the giants of the internet economy,
麦当劳先生指出，以麦肯锡为首的金融化产业，如石油和天然气等，如果在塑造互联网经济的巨人，
such as Apple and Google.
像苹果和谷歌一样的任何角色。
The new lords of business are engineers in hoodies, not MBAs in pinstripes.
商业化的新主人变成了穿着帽衫的工程师，而不是穿细条纹衣服的MBA硕士。
Mr Christensen focuses on a bigger subject:
克里斯滕森先生专注于一个更大的主题：
how the forces that have disrupted so many other businesses, from steel to publishing, are disrupting consulting.
这种力量是怎样毁坏了其他的商业形式，从钢铁工业到出版商，全部都需要咨询。
The big three strategy consultants—the other two are the Boston Consulting Group and Bain—are masters of opacity¹³.
三大战略咨询—其他两个是波士顿咨询集团和贝恩—全部不透明，
But Mr Christensen argues that light is being let in on the magic.
但克里斯滕森先生认为，光芒是神奇的照射进来的，
Companies are getting better at measuring results and demanding value for money.
经过统计，参与过咨询的公司取得了更好地效果，确实物有所值。
They also have access to more business expertise¹⁴ than ever before: the big three have more than 50,000 living alumni.
而且他们比以前更有机会接触更多的业务专家：三巨头有超过50,000的生活校友。
The big three have been masters at bundling lots of different services into a single, high-priced package.
三巨头已经作为主人将许多不同的服务高价的绑定到一起，
But clients no longer want to pay fat fees for a bit of strategic advice from a senior partner and a lot of humdrum¹⁵ work from neophytes.
但是委托人应经不再想为从一个高级合作伙伴那得到一点战略建议和从一个初学者那得到许多单点无聊的工作而付出巨额费用。
Mr Christensen says low-priced competitors are beginning to dismember the consultants' business.
克里斯滕森先生说，低价位的竞争者已经开始要瓜分管理咨询的商业任务。
Eden McCallum cuts costs by deploying¹⁶ freelancers¹⁷, most of whom once worked for the big three.
伊甸园麦卡勒姆为削减开支而雇佣的自由职业者，其中大多数曾是三巨头的成员。
BeyondCore replaces overpriced junior analysts¹⁸ with Big Data, crunching¹⁹ vast amounts of information to identify trends.
超越核心用巨大的数据库和大量的信息取代价格过高的初级分析师，来确定趋势。
McKinsey clearly faces a more difficult market than it is used to.
显然麦肯锡现在面对着一个比过去更加困难的市场。
But it has overcome serious challenges before—such as in the 1980s, when it lost the intellectual high ground to BCG and then Bain before regaining²⁰ it.
但在20世纪80年代，在它落后于BCG和贝恩，失去了智力方面的制高点时，它克服了严峻的挑战。
The firm is fixing some of the problems from the Gupta era.
它从笈多时代开始就一直在修复这些问题。
It has elected two successive managing directors, Ian Davis and Dominic Barton, who have worked hard to restore its professional ethos.
它曾经有两位成功的董事总经理，伊恩·戴维斯和鲍达民，他们一直在努力恢复公司的专业精神气质。
Mr Barton urges companies to embrace long-term capitalism rather than quarterly capitalism and corporate²¹ responsibility rather than financial engineering: the very opposite of the Enron-era McKinsey's gospel.
巴顿先生敦促企业去拥抱长期的资本主义而不是季度的资本主义，去承担企业的责任而不是金融工程：与安然时代的麦肯锡福音刚好相反。
Old boys everywhere
老男孩无处不在
McKinsey also has two huge assets: talent and knowledge.
麦肯锡也有两个巨大的资产：人才和知识。
It retains an unrivalled ability to recruit hundreds of clever young people and turn them into an army of problem-solving worker ants.
它保留了无以伦比的能力，超募了数百个聪明异禀的年轻人，然后把它们变成一队解决麻烦的工蚁。
It also has an enviable network of alumni, many of whom are happy to hire their old employer: in 2011 more than 150 ex-McKinseyites were running companies with more than 1 billion in annual sales.
它也有一个令人羡慕的校友网络，其中许多人都乐意聘请他们的老雇主：在2011年，有超过150个前麦肯锡员工经营了自己公司，总年销售额超过了100亿美元。
The firm has also invested heavily in knowledge for decades:
该公司还在几十年里对知识投入巨资：
perhaps no other organisation has as much interesting data on global capitalism.
大概没有其他组织对于全球资本主义有这么多有趣的数据了。
Though lesser²² firms may be facing disruption, McKinsey dispenses²³ a special sort of consultorial fairy-dust that is hard to replicate²⁴, and as much in demand as ever.
即使较小的企业可能会面临破产，麦肯锡却省却了一些特殊的，难以描述的，却与以往一样有尽可能多追求的咨询童话。
The global ruling class is seized with a toxic²⁵ combination of status-obsession and status-insecurity.
全球统治阶级正在被一种混合的痴迷状态和不安全状态困扰，
Decision-makers also fear being swept away by one of Mr Christensen's disruptive forces.
决策者也担心被克里斯滕森先生所说的破坏性力量一扫而空，
They seek constant reassurance²⁶ and reaffirmation from prestigious²⁷ institutions.
他们寻求那些颇负盛名的机构来求得安慰和重申。
McKinsey knows better than almost anyone how to exploit this peculiar²⁸ mindset.
麦肯锡比任何其他人都懂得如何利用这种奇特的心态，
That will guarantee the Firm a solid future, even if no one can prove that its advice actually does any good.
这将保证坚实的未来，即使没有人能证明这些咨询建议确实有什么好处。
1.provide to 提供
What kind of new functionality will these effects provide to developers?
这些效果会向开发者提供哪些新功能呢？
The console uses the information you provide to verify the target system(s).
控制台会使用您提供的信息来验证目标系统。
2.rather than 而不…，与其…倒不如
His film is propaganda rather than documentary.
说他的影片是政治宣传而不是纪录片。
He is an explorer rather than a sailor.
与其说他是一个海员，不如说他是一个探险者。
3.involve in 使参与[陷入，牵扯到
Involve in company capex and fixed²⁹ assets policy development.
参与公司资本性支出及固定资产政策的发展。
A lot of laws administrative³⁰ statutes³¹ divisional regulations local statutes party disciplines. Legal explanations etc. involve in administrative obligations.
很多法律、行政法规、部门规章、地方性法规、党规党纪和司法解释等对行政责任都有所涉及。
4.go bankrupt 破产
That afternoon, congressmen considered letting states go bankrupt.
那天下午，国会议员考虑让州破产。
As lehman bros. showed, there are good reasons to avoid letting failed banks go bankrupt.
正如雷曼兄弟的事件所显示的，让失败的银行免于倒闭是有充分理由的。

1 capitalism   

n.资本主义

参考例句：

• The essence of his argument is that capitalism cannot succeed.他的论点的核心是资本主义不能成功。
• Capitalism began to develop in Russia in the 19th century.十九世纪资本主义在俄国开始发展。

2 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

3 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

4 galleon   

n.大帆船

参考例句：

• The story of a galleon that sank at the start of her maiden voyage in 1628 must be one of the strangest tales of the sea.在1628年，有一艘大帆船在处女航开始时就沉没了，这个沉船故事一定是最神奇的海上轶事之一。
• In 1620 the English galleon Mayfolwer set out from the port of Southampton with 102 pilgrims on board.1620年，英国的“五月花”号西班牙式大帆船载着102名

5 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

6 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

7 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

8 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

9 penetrating   

adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的

参考例句：

• He had an extraordinarily penetrating gaze. 他的目光有股异乎寻常的洞察力。
• He examined the man with a penetrating gaze. 他以锐利的目光仔细观察了那个人。

10 unimpeachable   

adj.无可指责的；adv.无可怀疑地

参考例句：

• He said all five were men of unimpeachable character.他说这五个都是品格完美无缺的人。
• It is the revenge that nature takes on persons of unimpeachable character.这是自然对人品无瑕的人的报复。

11 consultants   

顾问( consultant的名词复数 )； 高级顾问医生，会诊医生

参考例句：

• a firm of management consultants 管理咨询公司
• There're many consultants in hospital. 医院里有很多会诊医生。

12 cosy   

adj.温暖而舒适的，安逸的

参考例句：

• We spent a cosy evening chatting by the fire.我们在炉火旁聊天度过了一个舒适的晚上。
• It was so warm and cosy in bed that Simon didn't want to get out.床上温暖而又舒适，西蒙简直不想下床了。

13 opacity   

n.不透明；难懂

参考例句：

• He insisted that the mineral content of the water determined the opacity.他坚持认为水的清澈程度取决于其中矿物质的含量。
• Opacity of the eye lens can be induced by deficiency of certain vitamins.眼球晶状体的混浊可由缺乏某些维生素造成。

14 expertise   

n.专门知识(或技能等)，专长

参考例句：

• We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
• You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。

15 humdrum   

adj.单调的，乏味的

参考例句：

• Their lives consist of the humdrum activities of everyday existence.他们的生活由日常生存的平凡活动所构成。
• The accountant said it was the most humdrum day that she had ever passed.会计师说这是她所度过的最无聊的一天。

16 deploying   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的现在分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Provides support for developing and deploying distributed, component-based applications. 为开发和部署基于组件的分布式应用程序提供支持。
• Advertisement, publishing, repair, and install-on-demand are all available when deploying your application. 在部署应用程序时提供公布、发布、修复和即需即装功能。

17 freelancers   

n.自由作家，自由记者( freelancer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A lot of proof-reading is put out to freelancers. 校对工作有很多是请外人做的。 来自辞典例句
• Its benefits plan for freelancers is highly competitive in the industry. 在本行业内它的福利方案是很有竞争力的。 来自互联网

18 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

19 crunching   

v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的现在分词 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄

参考例句：

• The horses were crunching their straw at their manger. 这些马在嘎吱嘎吱地吃槽里的草。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The dog was crunching a bone. 狗正嘎吱嘎吱地嚼骨头。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 regaining   

复得( regain的现在分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地

参考例句：

• She was regaining consciousness now, but the fear was coming with her. 现在她正在恢发她的知觉，但是恐怖也就伴随着来了。
• She said briefly, regaining her will with a click. 她干脆地答道，又马上重新振作起精神来。

21 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

22 lesser   

adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地

参考例句：

• Kept some of the lesser players out.不让那些次要的球员参加联赛。
• She has also been affected,but to a lesser degree.她也受到波及，但程度较轻。

23 dispenses   

v.分配，分与；分配( dispense的第三人称单数 )；施与；配（药）

参考例句：

• The machine dispenses a range of drinks and snacks. 这台机器发售各种饮料和小吃。
• This machine dispenses coffee. 这台机器发售咖啡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 replicate   

v.折叠，复制，模写；n.同样的样品；adj.转折的

参考例句：

• The DNA of chromatin must replicate before cell division.染色质DNA在细胞分裂之前必须复制。
• It is also easy to replicate,as the next subsection explains.就像下一个小节详细说明的那样，它还可以被轻易的复制。

25 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

26 reassurance   

n.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• He drew reassurance from the enthusiastic applause.热烈的掌声使他获得了信心。
• Reassurance is especially critical when it comes to military activities.消除疑虑在军事活动方面尤为关键。

27 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

28 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

29 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

30 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

31 statutes   

成文法( statute的名词复数 )； 法令； 法规； 章程

参考例句：

• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• Each agency is also restricted by the particular statutes governing its activities. 各个机构的行为也受具体法令限制。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法