Twenty years ago, civil society leaders like South Africa’s Nelson Mandela, Tunisia’s Mohamed Bouazizi, and Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi were the revolutionaries who drove change. Today, most of the big societal transformations of the 21st century – from the development of COVID-19 vaccines to the rise of generative AI – are government-led.

This shift presents a fundamental challenge to our competitiveness. At the IMD World Competitiveness Center, which I direct, we define competitiveness as resting on three pillars: prosperity, collaboration, and productivity.

Put simply, collaboration is like riding a bicycle. The government is the bicycle itself: the better your equipment, the faster you can go. However, the bicycle and the rider must match each other perfectly. The rider needs to be fit and capable.

Here’s our problem: while our bicycles have become increasingly sophisticated with technologically advanced features, the riders have grown out of shape. Consider the evolution from a simple mechanical bike to today’s electric models with heavy, complex battery systems. Previously, if you had a mechanical problem, it wasn’t catastrophic; you could still pedal home, albeit with some effort. But with an electric bike equipped with heavy batteries, if you’re not in good physical condition and that battery dies, the weight of the advanced technology becomes a burden rather than an asset. You’re left stranded, unable to move forward despite having superior equipment.