The Invisible Continent : Four Strategic Imperatives of the New Economy
Author: Kenichi Ohmae
List Price: $16.00
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ISBN: 0060957425
Publisher: HarperBusiness (26 June, 2001)
Sales Rank: 175,086
Average Customer Rating: 4.6 out of 5
Customer Reviews
Rating: 5 out of 5
THIS IS A WORK OF AWE-INSPIRING BUSINESS GENIUS.
As the author of "Start & Run a Profitable Exporting Business," I had the great honor of receiving Dr. Ohmae's endorsement of my book. I have been an admirer of his since starting a global marketing, consulting and web content providing business in 1985. His first book, "The Borderless World," not only inspired me to focus my entire professional career on global trade, but also changed forever the way in which managers throughout the world viewed their business.Now, looking forward with great anticipation to this new book, "The Invisible Continent: Four Strategic Imperatives of the New Economy," I wondered how Dr. Ohmae could live up to his pioneering work of the early 80's on "globalism" -- a word he coined that is now in everyday use -- and give us an equally ground-breaking text for the 21st century. I'm delighted to report that I read his book and it is Dr. Ohmae's best work ever. He remains a foremost architect of the future of business on (as he describes it) our cyber-enabled continent.
This is a work of awe-inspiring business genius, offering a boundless wealth of ideas about how to thrive in our new economy. The enormity of Dr. Ohmae's intellect and the clarity of focus with which he seamlessly assembles complex ideas about our "continent without land" make this a text that is at once profound, sophisticated and marvelously easy to understand. Here's a characteristic comment, at once colorful and thought-provoking: "The Internet has made it much easier to become simultaneously global and newly born." Dr. Ohmae compels us to think about the conditions of world business not as they are, but as they will be -- much faster than you think -- and what to do about it. I put down the book asking myself, "What just happened here?" -- it was that provocative.
If you want a forecast of the future of traditional and e-business NOW, then you should secure your copy of "The Invisible Continent: Four Strategic Imperatives of the New Economy" TODAY.
Rating: 5 out of 5
A must read to fully enter the "new economy" continent
Make sure to read this book to explore and better integrate this "invisible continent", which is wrapped around all of us.
Kenichi Ohmae is starting his book with following words: "... sudden changes can often be traced to the discovery of new lands-the opening up of contact with a new geographic region with a different way of life. As explorers and settlers have come to new continents, they have shifted their ways of life-not just for themselves, but also for the old worlds they left behind."
"During the past fifteen years... a kind of new continent, existing only in our collective minds, has been discovered-a continent without land" where "people with courage and curiosity have discovered new ways of life."
The author calls this continent " the invisible continent... as palpable and vital, as tangible and solid, as if you could find it on a map." But this metaphor of an "invisible continent" can also be used for the people who do not want to see the changes, even more nowadays after the recent explosion of the "new economy" bubble.
Looking through the glasses of the Kenichi Ohmae becomes surely useful to understand and act in the world we are living in.
Four dimensions are characterising this "invisible continent". They are the visible dimension, the inevitable physical part to deliver goods and services, the borderless dimension, global worldwide markets and operations, the cyber dimension-instant communication and exchanges, the dimension of high multiples allowing huge financial leverage.
The most successful companies in the "new economy" are playing on these four dimensions interactively to thrive at never seen before speed, when in conventional management schools these four dimensions are taught separately, when taught.
The appearance of this new continent, some 18 years ago, was linked to the setting up of platforms, open standards tacitly shared between "new economy" pioneers and consumers, and to the growing role of arbitrage in an increased information fluidity environment to maintain prices down and quality up. If Microsoft Windows is an important platform to communicate in the cyber dimension, English language and dollar currency are two other ones in the borderless dimension, explaining partly the predominance of USA on this new continent. When arbitrage is creating opportunities it creates also uncertainty for long-term commitment and a more unstable environment.
In the new continent the power is shifting from the producers to the consumers with important impact on economical and political decisions.
This is the point where the old and the new have to find answers to questions asked by the introduction in our lives of this new continent.
Kenichi Ohmae's book is becoming our lighthouse in this new territory by presenting the strategies followed by the "new economy" companies but also by exploring the role of politicians to facilitate integration in this "new economy" environment.
Many developed illustrated ideas are real value as: targeting markets with enough consumer power and discretionary income, deregulating crucial economical activities, developing regional entities, setting up the right "new economy" infrastructures etc.
Here are the basics on micro and macro economy to enter in the 21st century.
Reading this book changed my life in making clear the invisible of this new continent. I'm convinced that the Kenichi Ohmae's contribution will be better recognised in coming years and I keep his book at hand to make sure to extract all the richness it contains.
Rating: 4 out of 5
A fine interpretation of recent economic history
One of what I consider the enlightening books that allow you to gain a new perspective on a seemingly complex subject. In one go the author attempts to explain how recent economic, technological, commercial and societal developments have conspired to create a new world order. Decision-makers would do well to use the lessons of this book to analyze their decisions. I sometimes feel that the people making the decisions, universally, are under-educated and naive and would not even consider the wider ramifications of their decisions.My only complaint is that Mr. Ohmae tends to ramble on topics that may well be more concise. He also pauses every once in a while to complain against the egregious faults of the Japanese government. I don't blame him but it would be better if he treated it in a seperate book on the subject.
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