Net Attitude: What It Is, How To Get It, And Why Your Company Can't Survive Without It [Hardcover]

John R. Patrick (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 16, 2001

We have the technology. So why do so many businesses crash and burn when it comes to launching successful e-business strategies? Why do flashy web sites send customers to a 1800 number that can be accessed only during "normal" business hours? Why do executives who market toys and games refuse to listen to their own children? According to IBM's Internet guru, John Patrick, it's all about attitude. Our inability to harness the full power of the Internet has much less to do with the technology itself than with the cultural and psychological barriers that straitjacket our thinking about it. In Net Attitude he reveals the strategies, and more important, the mindset, that will allow you and your company to flourish in the age of connectivity. Drawing from a wide range of examples from the worlds of business, technology, politics, education, and popular culture, Patrick explores the profound implications of adopting an Internet attitude and how it will transform you and your business.Net Attitude emanates from the grassroots thinking that was part of the evolution of the Internet itself. It is hard to describe but you will know it when you see it. Young people tend to have it but it is not really an age thing. An increasing number of seniors have it too. The masses of people in the middle layers of large organizations often don't have it. It is not that there is something wrong with them as people; it is just that the bureaucracies of large organizations have shielded them from the new way of thinking and in some cases Darwinian instincts have caused them to bring up their own shields."

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

For any e-business strategy to succeed these days, says John Patrick, those behind it must take an informed and confident stance on the Internet and all it can accomplish. Such an attitude is probably more important now, in fact, than it was at the opening of the online revolution. And Patrick ought to know: as vice president of Internet Technology at IBM and a founding member of the World Wide Web Consortium at MIT, he's been involved in the cyberworld throughout its brief but heady existence. Net Attitude lays out his vision for the future of the medium, and offers suggestions for preparing "your organization and the people who are part of it, as well as all its systems and processes, to take advantage of everything the Internet has to offer." He attributes those vast possibilities to the emergence of seven characteristics (Fast, Always On, Everywhere, Natural, Intelligent, Easy, and Trusted), elaborates on them individually, and ties them to developments ranging from high-quality video transmission to vending-machine purchases initiated by cell phone. Some may find Patrick's unabashed optimism a bit much for even an avowed proselytizer, but maybe that's part of what net attitude is all about. --Howard Rothman

From Library Journal

IBM's vice president of Internet technology, Patrick adds to the proliferation of Internet books but offers a different spin. His is about "attitude." Net attitude is abstract and hard to describe, but, according to Patrick, you will know it when you see it. If people in middle management in large organizations tend not to have it, the fault lies not with the individuals but with the organization's bureaucracy, which has not readily accepted this new mindset. Having a net attitude in business is about preparing your organization, as well as its systems and processes, to take advantage of everything the Internet has to offer. Patrick's optimism is evident throughout, despite the failures of dot-coms during 2000, which he attributes to businesses not being able to segment their markets. Patrick's breezy style makes his recommendations and ideas sound simple perhaps too simple. The title may appeal to the curious and small business owners who have not yet embraced Internet technology, but this is not a necessary purchase. Bellinda Wise, Nassau Community Coll. Lib., Garden City, NY
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books; 1st edition (October 16, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0738205133
• ISBN-13: 978-0738205137
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,175,896 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you own a business you need to read this, November 28, 2001

By 

David P Merrill (New Paltz, New York USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Net Attitude: What It Is, How To Get It, And Why Your Company Can't Survive Without It (Hardcover)

Big thumbs up!!! Great read from one of the most respected leaders in the technology/IT business. John's tone and approach make the book understandable to those without technology backgrounds and very enjoyable to read at the same time. So very many of the things John highlights in this book as experiences for him still ring true for all of us. If you own or participate in leading a business, you really owe it to yourself to add this perspective. It could be an eye-opening experience.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars How Soon, How Pervasive?, August 4, 2002

By 

John W Sharp (Cleveland Hts, OH USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Net Attitude: What It Is, How To Get It, And Why Your Company Can't Survive Without It (Hardcover)

John Patrick's book makes significant points about the rising expectations of consumers and the sometimes slow response of business to meet those Internet expectations. He provides a good review of current and upcoming Internet technology. Although much of this review may not be original, he exploits this review to push ahead companies' internal expectations. He harps on, and rightly so, on websites which lack integration of data and still offer "print and fax this form" customer service. If there is a weakness in his argument, it is a more complete discussion of the backend databases and infrastructures required to make the "fast, always on, everywhere, easy, Next Generation Internet" possible.

Patrick could have spent more time on technologies such as web services which industry has been slow to adopt. However, the technical details are more appropriate for other volumes. The strength of this book is its clear explanations of how Internet technologies are now available to meet the business strategies of pervasive, trusted, natural Internet. The book adequately addresses trust and secure technologies, yet the implementation of these technologies takes time. Once businesses and consumers are ready to accept and trust the technology and the people behind the technology, much of the Net Attitude can move forward.

One final limitation of the book: many of the examples are from the airline and financial services sector. More could have been said about healthcare, non-profit and government services, which need this attitude as much.

Overall, the book provides a current view which companies and consumers need to get. Whether the term "Next Generation Internet" will catch on remains to be seen but certainly the concepts need adoption now.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's about more than technology, June 17, 2002

By 

James D. Dvorak (Edmond, OK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Net Attitude: What It Is, How To Get It, And Why Your Company Can't Survive Without It (Hardcover)

This is perhaps the best book I have read in a long time. Many tech-heads like myself will read it and say, "That is already happening. Why would anybody say this book is good?" Well, I have two things to say to answer that question. First is gimme a break. The book was published in 2001 and, obviously, there have been advancements in technology and some of the things Patrick mentions are already in place or are being put in place. That said, people should still read the book because a lot of what he writes about concerning the NGi (Next Generation Internet) is still not fulfilled yet.

Secondly, and more importantly, is that people should read the book for what it is really about: Net Attitude. One of the most important parts of net attitude Patrick presents is the concept of "outside-in thinking." Those of us in technology--whether we are code crunchers or CTO's--should be thinking about our customers and clients and what sorts of things they would want to be able to do over the Internet from our web sites. Read the book for more details. I am sure you will not be disappointed.