The globally integrated economy requires fresh thinking and innovative approaches to managing change. 

In today's globally integrated economy, CEOs are bombarded by change -- can they handle it? According to IBM's 2008 Global CEO Study of 1,130 CEOs, which was conducted face-to-face in 40 countries, CEOs are battling to keep up with the pace of change.

CEOs reported a surprising level of optimism about change as an opportunity to build new competitive advantage. In fact, 83 percent of surveyed CEOs expect substantial change in the future, an increase of 28 percent in just two years.

Yet, while CEOs see change ahead, their ability to effectively manage change is increasing at a far slower pace. CEOs rate their ability to manage change 22 percentage points lower than their expected need for it, a ‘change gap' that has nearly tripled since 2006. The study reveals that CEOs were specific about where the most important change will occur - within their own customer base as two classes of customers emerged: the ‘information omnivore' and the ‘socially-minded' customer.