The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) is an important measure of a country’s ability to provide a competitive environment for businesses. By using data from surveys, the GCI assesses the productivity and efficiency of institutions, infrastructure, human capital, labor market dynamics, and more. Learn how to calculate your own GCI in this comprehensive guide.
The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) is a measure of economic competitiveness that evaluates countries based on their ability to provide a competitive business environment for businesses. It uses surveys of business confidence in the areas such as institutions, infrastructure and different aspects of the labour market to provide an overall measure of the economy’s potential productivity. The goal of this index is to help inform strategic decision making and policy makers’ policy implementation.
The GCI is a composite index that combines various indicators in nine categories, such as institutions, infrastructure, macroeconomic environment, health and primary education, higher education and training, goods market efficiency, labor market efficiency, financial sector development and technological readiness. Each of these indicators are weighed based on their importance to economic competitiveness. The data for each indicator is then scored between 0-100 with higher scores indicating better performance. The overall GCI score is calculated by the average of all the weighted scores put together from allnine areas. This index helps provide leaders with feedback on how countries can benchmark progress and make global competitiveness strategies.
The GCI is based on 11 sub-indices, which measure economic competitiveness in different areas. These include: Economic Resilience & Investment (Economic Structure); Financial System; Human Capital Development; Market Size & Consumer Base; Regional Connectivity; Infrastructure Quality & Security; Labour Market Outlook; Domestic Regulatory Framework; International Trade & Investment Regulations, Technology Readiness and Access to Global Markets. Each sub-index provides a comprehensive picture of the country’s ability to create a strong economy and competitiveness across the board.
The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) was designed by the World Economic Forum to provide a numerical measure of the performance of countries in terms of global economic competitiveness. It is derived from surveys with experts and business executives as well as data from international organizations. Organizations like the World Bank, IMF, OECD and UN play an important role in providing essential data for GCI analysis. Additionally, globalization has made it so that access to international markets plays an important part in calculating a country’s competitiveness score. The GCI offers a structured approach to analyze what areas are most impactful when measuring global competitiveness. A country’s GCI score can be used as both a benchmark and tool for policy makers , helping them develop greater insight into their current global standing and formulate any necessary policy changes or actions needed to increase their country’s global ranking.
When calculating a Global Competitiveness Index, it’s important to consider not only the 11 sub-indices previously mentioned but also other factors. It’s beneficial to look at issues such as political stability and rule of law, governance and compliance, labour costs, innovation potential and access to finance. Additionally, it’s useful to think about how external forces such as international tariffs and embargoes may impact your business's market presence in a given country. All these nuances should be taken into consideration before entering the global marketplace.
Assessing a country’s financial infrastructure, offering and competition is also important when calculating a Global Competitiveness Index. Analyze the rate of inflation, foreign exchange rates and regulations that impact a country’s ability to trade. Also, take into account indicators such as the ease of doing business, access to financial services and corruption levels as they may affect your potential profitability in those markets. Finally, make sure you understand any existing regulations that may pose financial or compliance risk when making your decision to expand internationally. All of these factors can play a role in assessing the global competitiveness of an industry or company.
Staying ahead of the curve internationally requires focused attention on staying up to date with changing global standards. Organizations should examine other countries’ international compliance and regulatory bodies, as well as closely follow international news and media outlets to ensure that they are compliant with all domestic and foreign regulations. Additionally, organizations may benefit from forming strong partnerships or coalitions with other international businesses, exchanging information and developing strategies in order to remain competitive in an ever-changing global environment. Organizations can also leverage their resources to create a Global Competitiveness Index (GCI). This index tracks and compares the macro-level competitiveness of economies around the world at both the national and the regional level. The GCI measures each economy on twelve key indicators such as infrastructure, human capital, and technological readiness. By regularly updating the GCI, organizations can quickly identify opportunities for improvement within their area of operations and remain competitive in local and global markets.
With the rise of globalization and the onset of digitalization, companies must be aware of the changing international market dynamics. To remain competitive in an increasingly complex global environment, organizations must be proactive in their efforts to expand their market reach. This can be achieved through top-tier innovation and execution strategies such as establishing robust research & development plans, pursuing advanced technologies, and allowing for more open collaboration across different
jurisdictions. Additionally, organizations should focus on strengthening their ability to comply with ever-evolving foreign regulations while staying agile and up to date with changing international standards.
To get a clearer understanding of the comparative strengths and weaknesses of a company's ability to compete in the global marketplace, analysts often refer to the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI). This index is based on 12 pillars that are deemed as critical determinants for a country’s economic performance such as innovation capabilities, business sophistication and legal institutions. Each pillar is then evaluated through carefully selected indicators and quantitatively assigned values. Those values are then compared with the other countries using the GCI. Analyzing the GCI enables organizations to understand their competitive position relative to those of their competitors, helping them identify opportunities or threats generated by changes taking place in the global market.
