Mexico City, May 24, 2024.— With the aim of joining the effort to address global challenges and explore opportunities in our country, the Graduate Studies Department at the Universidad Panamericana held the event Global Outlook, in which, with the participation of experts, various initiatives for a better future were proposed.
Representing the Panamericana University at the event were Dr. Santiago García Álvarez, president of the Universidad Panamericana Mexico City campus, and Almudena Vaca Romero, director of Strategy, Development, and Quality.
In his opening remarks, Dr. García addressed the audience, speaking about the importance of this type of event for the university:“We are very interested in fostering more interdisciplinary dialogue—that is, not just the technical collaboration within each graduate program in its own faculty, but also forums for dialogue among everyone.”
Productivity in Mexico
Following remarks by our president, the event began with a keynote address delivered by Kevin Russell, an associate partner at McKinsey and a senior fellow at the McKinsey Global Institute, and Miguel E. Suadi, a partner at McKinsey & Company Mexico.
To begin with, Russell spoke about how our world is constantly changing and how this change—despite adverse circumstances such as wars, crises, or global warming— can lead to progress for our society.
In the context of progress, Suadi raised the issue of productivity in Mexico, which has room to grow: “But if we think about growth in general, we can consider technological opportunities, entrepreneurship, and the ability to create new businesses. When it comes to demographics and the perspective of ordinary people, these are still challenges that Mexico must address,”he said.
Following this reflection on the country, Russell outlined some of the areas McKinsey has focused on. He explained that the firm has sought to address the questions every CEO should be asking, covering topics such as business and the economy; gradually, the firm expanded its focus to broader social issues, such as women in the workplace, inequality, and climate change.
Investment in Mexico
Among these topics, he spoke to the audience about investment and where it comes from in our country: “The main sector is transportation, and most of the new foreign workers coming to the Americas are arriving from Europe. So, the first question is, how will this play out in Mexico? And what will happen in the world? We are shifting from a global economy to a more regional one.”
He also pointed out that Mexico has a large pool of professionals, including many tech workers, which makes us a country where companies come to seek out that expertise: “If we look at the bigger picture, Mexico has the region’s largest talent pool and also occupies a significant space in the global tech market.”
In closing, Russell addressed the young people in attendance, letting them know how important they are in this new, ever-changing environment and how crucial it is for them to get involved: “We especially need young people to participate, to advocate for themselves, and to let companies and governments know what they want, ” he concluded.
Global Challenges
Similarly, as part of Global Outlook, a panel discussion was held to address global challenges such as innovation, technology, and sustainable development. Participants in the panel included Fernanda Guarro, CEO of 3M Mexico; Enrique Quintana, president and CEO of El Financiero; and José Medina Mora, president of COPARMEX; with the discussion moderated by the director of Strategy, Development, and Quality at La Panamericana.
To kick off the discussion, Guarro spoke about his view of the private sector in Mexico, noting that we are still a poor country and emphasizing that this is something we need to capitalize on:“We have talent, but we need to ensure that that talent is put to good use.”
He also noted: “We’ve also had an impressive level of trade openness for over 30 years . In that time, we’ve gone from being a contract manufacturer to a country of designers, and we’re starting to add value. Today, there are companies designing products in Mexico, with Mexican engineers.”
He then spoke about the challenges they see at 3M, ranging from early education for Mexicans—where they are guided in programming and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) disciplines—to issues of infrastructure, logistics, and connectivity, as he believes Mexico is falling behind in these areas.
Challenges for Mexico
For his part, Medina highlighted six challenges or priorities for Mexico: improving education to close the gap with the OECD, guaranteeing universal access to healthcare, ensuring legal certainty for investment, improving security to prevent crime and extortion, reducing the informal economy that hampers productivity, and promoting the transition to clean energy for proper environmental management.
On the subject of environmental protection, he noted,“With regard to the transition to clean energy, we need to ensure that we have enough energy and that it is clean, as well as proper workforce management.”
For his part, Quintana stressed the need to strengthen the rule of law, combat the informal economy, and address social polarization. He also highlighted the opportunities presented by Mexico’s geo-economic position, particularly in the context of tensions between the United States and China.
He also outlined three challenges; like Medina, he agreed that one of the challenges facing the country is education; the second challenge he identified was the rule of law, since , as Quintana noted, for a country to function, the law must be respected; as a third challenge, he identified the social polarization currently plaguing the country, which must be addressed.
Learn more about Panamericana's graduate programs at: https://posgrados-panamericana.up.edu.mx/
