騎行打敗高爾夫成商界社交新寵
Liam Fox, the British international trade secretary, has described many of the country’s exporters as “fat and lazy”, more interested in “playing golf on a Friday afternoon” than striking deals.
英國國際貿易大臣利亞姆•福克斯(Liam Fox)曾說國內許多出口商“又肥又懶”，比起敲定交易，他們更樂意“在週五下午打高爾夫”。
It is not just this attack on the companies he is meant to be championing which has upset business leaders — it is also appears that he is ill-informed: real movers and shakers are swapping their golf clubs for two wheels.
這番抨擊不僅傷了企業領導者的心——福克斯本該是這些企業的維護者——更顯得他消息落伍：真正的商界大佬現在不打高爾夫，改騎自行車了。
The number of golf players in the US has dropped by 20 per cent in the past decade while in England numbers have fallen 29 per cent since 2008. But if the green no longer cuts it, where should business people swap business cards?
過去十年美國的高爾夫球員人數下降了20%，英國的球員人數自2008年以來減少了29%。但如果說高爾夫球場不再是理想場所，商務人士應該去哪兒交換名片呢？
Real go-getters are cycling, entering triathlons and competing in Ironman competitions. If you are sceptical about whether Lycra is the new Pringle, look no further than the $130bn Verizon-Vodafone deal in which chief executives Lowell McAdam and Vittorio Colao thrashed out terms while riding exercise bikes in a hotel gym in 2013.
真正富有進取心的能人都騎起了自行車，參加鐵人三項比賽。如果你疑心騎行運動是否取代了高爾夫，只需想想Verizon與沃達豐(Vodafone)那筆1300億美元的交易。2013年，兩家公司的首席執行官洛厄爾•麥克亞當(Lowell McAdam)和維托裏奧•科勞(Vittorio Colao)在酒店健身房裏邊騎健身車，邊討論出了這筆交易的協議條款。
A number of companies specialise in organising cycling and triathlon events, including challenges that take you the 950 miles from Land’s End to John O’Groats (the length of Great Britain, south to north), jaunts to the picturesque Mediterranean island of Mallorca or novice rides in a park that last just a couple of hours. According to Sport England, monthly cycling participation has risen 62 per cent from 232,000 to 377,000 in eight years.
有些公司專門組織騎行和鐵人三項賽事，包括從Land’s End到John O’Groats（英國從南到北的距離）950英里的騎行，或者到地中海風景如畫的馬略卡島遊玩，或在一座公園裏短短几個小時的新手騎行。據Sport England的數據，每月參與騎行的人數8年間從23.2萬人升至37.7萬人，增幅62%。
Dr Josephine Perry, a sport psychology consultant who advises sport professionals and business people, says: “People network in a much freer way on a six-hour bike ride than if it’s something that is forced upon you like a drinks reception. It’s much less awkward.”
爲運動員和商務人士提供諮詢服務的運動心理學顧問約瑟芬•佩裏博士(Josephine Perry)表示：“人們在一次六小時的騎行中可以更加輕鬆自在地進行社交，不像在酒會上強行拉關係。這樣子尷尬感會少很多。”
Can you really strike a deal, or even chat, while huffing and puffing up a steep hill? “It is great for relationship building,” says Jonathan Harrison, managing director of investment banking at Robert W Baird, who organises an annual London to Somerset ride for colleagues and clients. “It is an incredibly social thing. You natter as you go along,” he says, pointing out that the serious talking happens during the frequent breaks for coffee and lunch.
但是當你氣喘吁吁地騎過一段陡峭山坡時，真能敲定一筆交易，甚至是聊天嗎？貝雅(Robert W Baird)投資銀行業務總經理喬納森•哈里森(Jonathan Harrison)每年都要爲同事和客戶組織一場倫敦到薩默塞特的騎行活動，他說：“這是一項特別棒的社交活動，你可以一路閒聊過去。”他補充說，嚴肅談話是在喝咖啡或午餐等頻繁的休息時段進行的。
For many people, a day-long cycle ride is their idea of hell but Dr Perry says that training for an event in the work gym is the new going-to-the-pub. “It’s a great place to make connections with people in other departments. It takes away the formal hierarchies,” she says.
對於許多人來說，騎一天自行車等同於地獄，但佩裏博士認爲，爲參加一項比賽而在你工作的地方的健身房裏進行訓練是新的泡吧方式。她說：“這是與其他部門的人建立關係的絕佳場所。它打破了正規的等級關係。”
In any case, there are plenty of entry-level events for people who do not know a pannier from a peloton. HSBC, for instance, sponsored an event last weekend, with triathlons where participants had to cycle for only 5km.
總之目前已有大量入門級賽事，以便那些菜鳥參加。比如匯豐(HSBC)前不久組織的比賽，參加三項全能的選手只需騎行5公里。
Many experts, though, are sceptical that sport provides a good environment to network. Julia Hobsbawm, visiting professor of networking at Cass Business School, says sport is too often “a protective layer” that distracts people from building meaningful relationships.
不過也有許多專家懷疑運動能否提供良好社交環境。卡斯商學院(Cass Business School)社交網絡的客座教授朱莉婭•郝博斯鮑姆(Julia Hobsbawm)表示，運動更像是“一個保護層”，干擾人們建立有意義的關係。
She worries that cycling is no different from golf in that it can perpetuate cliques. “Hanging out with people just like you is no good,” says Ms Hobsbawm. Successful networking is about making connections with an eclectic selection of people.
她擔心騎自行車與打高爾夫並無區別，因爲小團體現象仍會存在。她說：“與跟你類似的人混在一起並無益處。”成功的社交是結識形形色色的不同人士。
She adds: “Groupthink in business is always a risk factor” — either in the boardroom or on two wheels.
她同時表示：“趨同思維在商界永遠是個危險因素”。無論是在會議室裏還是自行車上。
