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Technology is fueling several major trends in urbanization and city development, explains Yvonne Zhou, a BCG managing director and senior partner. Notably, improvements in infrastructure are creating more connected and larger city clusters. At the same time, cities enabled by big data—through mobile, artificial intelligence, and the internet of things—are far more efficient and human-friendly.

Ms. Yvonne Zhou is a Managing Director and Senior Partner of Boston Consulting Group (BCG). She is a global topic leader of Urbanization & Real Estate and a topic leader of Climate and Sustainability in Greater China. She is a Co-Chair of Global Future of City Center. She also leads BCG's Beijing office.

Since joining BCG in 2004, Yvonne has worked primarily in the areas of corporate strategy, zone and economic planning, go-to-market strategy, organization structure, and operational optimization in the technology, media, telecommunications, real estate, and city development sectors.

Before joining BCG, Yvonne worked with ZS Associates. She has also worked with Y.D. Communication in Switzerland as a television producer and with Rhone-Poulenc (now Sanofi) in China as a sales and marketing assistant.

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

EDUCATION

  • MS, integrated marketing communication, Northwestern University
  • BA, English and tourism, Nankai University

Publications and Videos

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Boosting Your Bottom Line Through Decarbonization

Our fourth annual survey on carbon emissions found that the overall pace of decarbonization has slowed—but that leaders are realizing significant financial value.
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解决超大城市的出行挑战

随着城镇化的不断加速，超大城市的交通网络已接近极限。为了解决交通问题，城市需要协调出行生态系统并创建更加综合高效的网络。
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Solving the Mobility Challenge in Megacities

To avoid transport chaos, municipal planners first need to understand what consumers want from their transportation systems.
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Managing Through the Global Crisis and Building a Highly Resilient System

In face of uncertainties, companies need to build a more resilient organizational structure to ensure a sustainable and long-term development. BCG illustrates WHY, WHAT and HOW to build organizational resilience, aims to help companies achieve growth under uncertainties and win the future.
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How to Restart in the Wake of COVID-19

With no precedent to guide them, governments must create a strategy for reopening economic and social life. A graduated plan, governed at the national level and implemented at the local level, offers flexibility and opportunities for learning.
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China Looks Beyond Climate in its Strategy for Sustainable Growth

To understand China’ sustainability focus, it’s worth considering its history. This is a country that over the past 40 years has—in an astonishingly rapid transformation—lifted 800 million people out of poverty. In this effort, the work is not yet complete. Poverty persists in remote rural and mountain areas among communities living in environmentally fragile places.
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What the Drive to Save the Giant Panda Tells Us About China’s Future

BCG’s work in Sichuan reflects a profound transition now under way in China. The country is moving from a government strategy oriented primarily around GDP growth to one that focuses on sustainable development and strikes a balance between economic growth, environmental protection and overall societal needs.
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China’s Next Leap in Manufacturing

Despite rising costs and trade disputes, the country’s manufacturing sector is poised for strong growth.
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Is Digital the Answer to Urbanization’s Biggest Problems?

As cities become larger, governments strain to meet the needs of growing populations. Technology can help, but it’s only one part of a broader solution.
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It Takes More Than Technology to Be Like a Tech Company

The goal is not to unseat the tech giants or even to defend market share. It’s to acquire the tools and the mindset you need to pursue opportunities in the digital age.
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The Trillion-Dollar Plan for the New Silk Road

China’s growing One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative means existing players must remain on their toes, innovating, refocusing, and partnering to succeed.