Customer Reviews

The Support Economy: Why Corporations Are Failing Individuals and the Next Episode of Capitalism

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1 star:		(6)

 

 

After a seductive tease in the introduction, the book spends the next 300 pages or so rehashing in a rather disjointed fashion a history of capitalism, with a little bit of social psychology and technology trends sprinkled in for good measure. This in and of itself is interesting reading, if the book was titled "A Primer on Capitalism." It is only in the last 50-75 pages that the authors get to the point. In all fairness: Yes I agree, people are burned out (I know I am), yes things DEFINITELY need to change, and the rich are getting richer, I'm all over that idea. However, the relationship economy has already been tried and failed. Ultimately, and especially lately, products with any "value-added" premium built into their prices, quickly become commodities, which means that people are not willing to PAY for that premium service. It is unlikely, in this case, that such a commoditized service, would not support the profit margins required for sustainability. Witness the demise of the stockbroker. Take another example: 9/11 aside, the major airlines simply have not been competitive with the discount carriers. Their bloated cost structure has come home to roost, as they tried to support "markets of one." I believe it is an accident of their size that they remain in business for the time being. The most disingenuous part of the book though is really the last 50-75 pages. It is pure speculation and points to no specific examples of research currently under development that even hints at these advances taking hold. IBM tried and failed to sell Internetworked refrigerators. Consumers basically said, I can figure when my milk has expired thank you. I don't need to pay someone to tell me to schedule a servicing of my HVAC, it's called a calender and a pen. I cannot tell you how badly I wanted to really believe that this was a new paradigm in the making. The time is ripe for a new way of thinking but this is not it. It seems that after all of that writing, the authors could only come up with a glorified "concierge" service as the answer to all of our troubles. My sense is that the answer lies in the development of a different kind of leadership among the executive class, and the creation and enforcement of rigorous international standards for business and human rights. The reality of capitalism is that it rewards self-interested behavior. Yet we want a society where everyone can share more of the pie. These ideas are currently incongruous. Until that incongruity is reconciled we a going to continue to repeat the mistakes of the past.

This is a book of two parts. The first is a detailed examination of why managerial capitalism has reached the end of its useful life. Zuboff and Maxmin say that because the system is out of date it cannot serve the needs of todays consumers. They also say that its inward focus results in scandals like Enron because managers think the comany is there to serve their needs, Managers are at the center of the system and value is inside the company. All of this was ok for making things but failed to deliver good service because it was not designed to do this. It used technology to reduce cost and depressed the impact of the internet. The net result is that we as consumers have changed, management has not and we suffer. WE seek help and only get a bloody nose.. The second part of the book follows the logic of the demise the managemet system Here value goes outside the company and rests with individuals ( it is distributed) To achieve alignment everything else ( control systems, ownership etc ) becomes distribed and wealth is realised by allowing people to live life on their own terms- by providing them with ' deep support" Here the techological and organisational vision is revolutionary. You need to forget all you have learned and think about capitalism from the ground up. The authors envision using digital platforms to provide common data and service. They suggest this will take 30% plus out of todays cost. These platforms will be base for new services and levels of support ranging from the fully automated to the personal. Here are advocates who navigate the world on your behalf. This is a whole new function ... they provide the ultimate range of support . They represent federations whose sole purpose is to provide different levels of support leveraging off the digital platforms. Federations obtain products and servcie from enterprises which come together and break apart .The whole concept is unique and extremely challenging. The idea is to create debate not to be perscriptive. The story of the family used to illustrate the metaprinciples of distributed capitalism is great. It makes you understand how different things can be and need to be. Zuboof and Maxmin have convinced me not only that change is necessary and inevitable but there is a new future to write. Some people may dismiss their ideas as too radical but look at their track records- they know what they are talking about. The world needs more creative and visionary thinkers like this-people who are not affraid to embrace the future and challenge the status quo-- we should all applaud them

Last year I retired from a consulting practice that I built up over 30 years. During that time I advised clients on a wide range of activities and sold literally millions of consulting hours . When I was in the bank last month I found a copy of Across the Board and saw the article about The Support Economy. Any book which is recommended only for the brave is for me. Once I started reading this book I could not put it down. Every page was a new revelation. Prof Zuboff sets out a line of argument that is both factually and emotionally compelling. She took the blinkers off my eyes;- they had been there for 30 years. I suddenly saw business in a new light, I saw potential that I had missed, I saw what customer centric really means and I saw why most of the projects I was involved in rarely delivered the promised results. The book is full of one liners and terms that will become classic. But, the book is also powerful, full of courage and vision. The combination of Zuboff and Maxmin ( a turnaround specialist) is explosive. Their idea that control, value , cash etc leaves the company ( center) and is distributed is profound. It points the way to a new economic model. It is the salvation of the telecom operators and possibly the banks. ( mine needs it badly) The authors courage is exhibited in their development of the metaprinciples of the new economy. They provide a powerful framework for think about the future. After reading this I have only one regret-- I am to old to see all of this become a reality .

The Support Economy sets out in the clearest possible detail why the existing form of capitalism has reached its adaptive limits and what the new form will be. As an economist I could be critical of some of the details that Zuboff and Maxmin layout. That would only devalue the masterpiece that they have written. The sheer intelligence behind this is enough to humble most people- but this is supported by scholarship and a deep and practical experience of how business and companies work. This makes the arguments relatively simple to follow. But you then get their desciption of the ' new ' enterprise logic and the nature of distributed capitalism and you truly have to think in different ways. Your imagination is put to the test. This is no different however that the leaps in thought that went with Henry Ford. The move from transaction to relationship economics has been discussed by many people but Zuboff and Maxmin give credence to the argument and ground it in a new reality. I can only imagine the arguments and discussion that went on to develop these ideas. When an academic and a busisness person of this achievement get togther the output is normally second rate . In this case it is truly extraordinary. The book will become a land mark for a new generation of management and social thought. It is rich in ideas and a points the way to new and hopefully less stressful future. The future they paint is not as unrealistic as some may argue, I think they have only touched the suface. We should all be thankful however that there are people like this who dare to think new thoughts and have the courage of their convictions to put them into print.

The Support Ecomony goes way beyond In the Age of the Smart Machine. It is a brave book with big and bold ideas; a book that took vision and courage to write. For a Harvard Professor to announce the end of managerial capitalism is something in itself. The book clearly lays out the conditions for change and shows that all the are present today-- the first time in nearly a century, This not the type of ' change' usually seen in business book. This is real deep and profound change in the market, technology and a the emergerence of new enterprise logic. By showing where we are in history Zuboff and Maxmin explain why we are seeing corpoarte scandals but they do not stop there. They venture into new uncharted waters and draw a picture of a new business model which is both daring and profound. This new model makes service and products secondary to the real purpose of business- providing deep support to people. There cannot be anyone who does not want this type of life and Zuboff and Maxmin describe what it might be like by creating a day in the life of a family and then linking this experience to the prociples of ' distributed capitalism'This is a truly brilliant and it grounds the concepts in reality. Anyone who reads this book will never be the same. Zuboff and Maxmin have opened the door to a new world and they are inviting to come. Thank you for doing this, I am sure it was not easy but it is certainly what the world has been waiting for.Congradulations

Most business books are about ' if you do this then you will be sucessful" They have 10 steps and the like. The Support Economy' is totally different. It provides a unique set of insights into the reasons why business fail to meet the needs of today"s consumers. It shows why managers act the way they do and why they think they ' own' the business. It explains why the internet failed to rrealise its potential and why your career is really no more than a stuffed moose on a wall. It is passionate and yet based on historical anaylsis. This makes it a challenge to most business readers because they need to think! Then the Support Economy makes the most extraordinary leap to a new way of thinking about value and business. Value migrates from the organization to the individual and this marks the start of a new episode of capitalism. Wealth is generated by providing end consumers with support, choices and the ability to get their lives back;- this is deep support. The authors suggest unique and creative ways to pay for this and outline an new commerical structure which makes sense and deserves serious analysis. This books breaks the mold time and time again.

The Support Economy stands out from most books about business because it is rooted in history and explains the cause ( not the symptoms ) of many of todays problems. The idea that value no longer resides inside the company but outside it ( is distributed) is fundemental to Zuboff and Maxman"s argument. It may seem radical but it also makes sense;- people have played with this idea without being clear about it. This idea sets the stage for a whole new view of the future, where the money is, how cash moves and what technology can do. Support of the individual ( you and me ) becomes the goal and products and service are part of support. Control, ownership and IP follow value and become distributed.... the peer to peer techie delight. This book will stand the test of time and is brave and bold invitation to look at the big picture rather than next week.

This is THE book to read if you want to understand the present corporate crisis -- Enron, WorldCom, etc. Zuboff and Maxmin provide a real in-depth analysis of how the current system of managerial capitalism actually creates these problems. Their vision of a new business world where companies actually support their customers is very exciting. This is the most intelligent and visionary business book I've read in years. Highly recommended.

When I got the Jan/Feb edition of Across the Board I found an article by A J Vogl about The Support Economy- the new book by Shoshana Zuboff of HBS and Smart Machine fame. I read Vogl's article. He said the book was different from all other business books, contained a unique and one day seminal vision and yet challenged eveything business does today, He also said it would scare alot of people. Boy, he was spot on about everything. When I started to read the book I immediately entered that part of Alice in Wonderland's world where everything was backward, Suddenly the consumer was in the center of the universe, I owned my career, people wanted to help me rather than scew me and I had relationships that were genuine not instrumental. It all seem unreal and impossible. But reading the book I also realised that todays world would look impossible to even the most visionary and intelligent person in 1930. I realized that people once has genuine relationships, that the local doctor , lawyer and store keeper provided what Zubof and Maxim are calling deep support and that people trusted one another. It is not unrealistic it is just lost. Mass production and mangement havce destroyed these values and trust and it you and I that suffer, Vogl asked them if the book was a rant? It is not it a passionate call to action . It is a light in the darkeness, It is a vision of technology being used for support, freedom and decision making not automation and re engineering. We stand before the Inversion it is ours to embrace. It would be easy to dismiss all of this but it would be extremely foolish and short sighted. I work in a large coporation and a good dose of distributed capitalism would make us feel better, act better and make more money

This book is a "must read" for all investors and business leaders. Professor Zuboff and Dr. Maxmin challenge our willingness to accept yesterday's answers to today's problems - additionally, they offer a framework for our use in designing new and more effective solutions. I enjoyed it immensely.