Even if all goes well, Russia's aim of joining by the end of 2002 still looks very ambitious.

ECONOMIST: Russia and the WTO

One answer is Ford 2000, an ambitious corporate reorganisation, drawn up in 1994 with the aim of globalising the company's engineering and design.

ECONOMIST: Ford in Europe

Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer, set up an ambitious programme in 2005 with the long-term aim of becoming a zero-waste, renewably powered enterprise.

ECONOMIST: Companies as activists