After a full year in heads-down crisis mode, business executives are looking again to the future. As they reengage in strategic thinking, many are struck by a sense that the world has changed: The turmoil was not merely another turn of the business cycle but a restructuring of the economic order. Is that impression accurate? To answer this question, it is necessary to examine the underlying forces that shape the business environment and to look for discontinuities. McKinsey & Company tracks the most important of these forces, from the growth of emerging markets to the evolving role of business in society. Here we discuss how the crisis may affect their trajectories, and we address the implications for strategy. Some trends, we argue, remain firmly on track, but uncertainties are cropping up around others. We also see signs of new forces emerging, which we will be exploring in more detail in the months ahead. The overall picture is of an altered business landscape. It does seem there will be no going back to the precrisis world. Resources feeling the strain: STEADY Globalization under fire: DECELERATING Trust in business running out: ACCELERATING A bigger role for government: ACCELERATING Management as a science: STEADY Shifting consumption patterns: ACCELERATING Asia rising: STEADY Industries taking new shape: ACCELERATING Innovation marching on: STEADY Price stability in question: ACCELERATING Harward Business Review: by Eric Beinhocker, Ian Davis, and Lenny Mendonca Full article: http://hbr.org/2009/07/the-10-trends-you-have-to-watch/es