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The Inverted Pyramid.

Are you currently disrupted the business pyramid? To what extent is well worth its base? Are too many intermediate levels in the pyramid?

In 1983 French President Mitterrand agreed to Chinese American architect Ming Pei Leoh your remodeling project of the Louvre Palace esplanade. It sought input rationalize the flood of visitors while giving an air of ultramodern architectural design to the classic eighteenth century palace . Finally in 1989 inaugurated the work. Inside the underground lobby was located the famous inverted pyramid.

Dan Brown chose this scenario as an emblematic figure for "best seller" The Da Vinci Code (2003). Let me quote it as an image of a phenomenon that developed in previous years and in the late '90s was to transform society and Spanish business culture. I refer to the change that is occurring in the business pyramid.

Three "booms" successive transformed the Spanish business in the '90s:

 

A)The first "boom" is that of Telecommunications that, Parallel with the mobile, massively flooded the market. The only existing operator, Telefónica,was liberalized in 1998 entered the market and new domestic and foreign companies.

Above, in 1994 also had a monopoly on the mobile with Airtel entry. The market values ​​of the new players in the telecom sector is moving at breakneck pace.

We had to capture maximum market share in the shortest time, and forced it to invest huge amounts in network deployment and human resources. Hastily was captured by dozens of recent graduates or professionals with little experience under oversized salaries + incentives + High-end car + other social benefits. Investment Madness. No matter – TOPs is said – EBITDA popularicemos (in Spanish GAIIDA = Earnings Before Interest, Taxation,Depreciation and Amortization), financial ratio measures the company's operating performance before charges cited. It was the way “makeup” benefits of avoiding borrowing report generated.

As usual, this new market created by several large companies, business generates additional indirect subsidiary companies, and all this is the "boom". The bubble was served as the lending banks owned a significant part of the capital of such operators. Inexorably the market was saturated to the mid 2000, and immediately after the bubble burst and came EREs (Employment Redundancy).

  • Is it that these companies did not see that this globe would last only a few years: three, five, …?

 

B)The second "boom" in the late '90s is that of companies. com " and “TICs” (Information Technology and Communication). Although the phenomenon known new economy is more relevant in USA, its impact in Spain will also affect the business pyramid. The securities will revolutionize. Nothing is "worth" what really "is", and financial engineering acquires its zenith. It is the height of mergers and acquisitions (“M&A” English) and the rise of the Globalization. This is, also the beginning of the democratization of stock market investment for the middle class that is looking to increase their savings at the juncture of the boom. Also the bubble "Companies. Com" came to an end and this party also ran. Recall the case in Spain Terra.

  • Are they being also affected other non-equity securities?

C)The third "boom" is the real-estate. Needless to emphasize its huge impact in Spain. Most bubble between bubbles.

I have a friend mason, whenever needed reform at home there he was. I remember in the year 2005 and realized that the crash would have enormous dimensions, but again the "opportunity" took center stage and had no business to give up their cake.

  • But, perhaps the companies and all stakeholders were unaware that the bubble would burst eventually?

In all these years companies have acted as if the "momentum" of prosperity would never end no. The strong initial growth spiral saturating ends similarly to typical pyramid structures. The pyramid is a fun game math, series based on infinite populations, that work perfectly while the population in question is not depleted. From the case of Dutch tulips in the seventeenth century, many are the economic pyramid fraud. When expansion is exhausted, precursors few on top of money take over many of the base naive. And note how amazed cases are repeated throughout the history. Currently and in any establishment, enhances the concept of "sustainability" to avoid any pyramid schemes that, as I say, historically repeated fraud as well as due to a "boom" market.

Esquema Piramidal

But enough of the economic pyramid and the pyramid back to business at hand.

  •  ¿How should I act in markets Business Management "boom" to control the "momentum" and get the company is sustainable when it ceases?

 

Possibly the boom years have contributed to a certain evolution of the business pyramid, which has grown significantly in height. Namely, have created new middle management levels, and in some cases have also created new horizontal directions, multichannel, etc., with matrix structures.

And after growing in both directions, height and width, the corporate pyramid are finished by the middle and starts becoming an inverted pyramid on the value of its components.

The current economic crisis that started in late 2007 has led to the "belly" of the pyramid becomes fat business that no longer provides the value it had during the "good times".

By contrast at the base of the pyramid of blue collar workers are reduced to the minimum or even eliminated through what has been called relocation of factories, clerks are endangered and offices fellows and recent graduates are hired through temporary employment agencies or eventually (Temporary Employment) with very low salaries. And thus they remain for years, although their knowledge and value to the company and is above what is required.

In summary, we could be witnessing a phenomenon by which the value of the positions of the base of the pyramid is increasing relative to the value of the senior. However the range of salaries does not seem to follow this trend but the opposite, Once the ends of each array are separated.

  • Are we witnessing a reversal of the corporate pyramid?
  • Does being left at the base many undervalued?
  • ¿Hay “overbooking”  de mandos intermedios?

 

Self-reflection

? I can improve my position in the pyramid of my company?

? I can increase the real value I bring in my duties?

I know that nobody is indispensable, but ... I am needed?

RECOMMENDED TOPICS

The inverted pyramid of the Louvre Museum is key in the plot of "best seller" The Da Vinci Code (2003)  – Dan Brown.

The film of the same name released in Ron Howard 2006 was considered a mess for much of the criticism, however attached two links for wholesome entertainment reflective:

A) Original Soundtrack as background for this article:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STGKXURMwAI&feature=player_detailpage

B) Final scene with beautiful drawings of the inverted pyramid of the Louvre Museum:


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