Here is part four, and the conclusion, of my summary of the book. Why Buy the Cow?, by WebEx leader, Subrah Iyar with my friend Cindy Gordon. This section begins with a well-written piece by Steve Barth and Dave Snowden on The Tao of Disruption and Innovation. They nicely describe part of the transformation of the web from an infinite library as the dominant metaphor to infinite salon and bazaar. Despite Tim Berners-Lee doubts, the web has changed from its first version. Perhaps this is simply meeting his original vision, but it is a change. This infinite salon allows for the inclusion of customers in the innovation process. There are also more frequent and less distracting improvements to software, in part, because this increased involvement of users and because of the model of software as service, rather than product.
While they downplay some uses of the term "disruptive innovation" as hype, the authors point out the change in the way knowledge is creative in this infinite salon. Wikipedia vs. Encyclopedia Britannica is one of he most well known examples, but the principle operates in many markets and through many channels. They offer several suggestions for managers to operate successfully in this increased complexity. Respect the pace of change and remember that humans are not always rationale. Pay attention to information overload and understand that trust is both the weakest and strongest link in a process. They close with the observation that everything and everyone is operating faster so successful firms need to keep pace, maintain an understanding of what is happening, and keep customers involved.
Subrah Iyar starts the concluding section with the quote from Peter Drucker, "The best way to predict the future is to create it." The new web offers everyone a greater chance to participate in the future's creation. He explores and sums up some of the main themes of the book, web collaboration offers competitive advantage, on-demand solutions can provide the platform for innovative growth, and customer involvement increases differentiation and a loyalty. The book also offers a useful glossary of on-demand terms and a listing of more successful examples of on-demand firms.
The book offers far more than I described and is available through Lulu.com as a download or in a paper version.
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