Living Networks: Leading Your Company, Customers, and Partners in the Hyper-Connected Economy Book

Living Networks examines how the swift rise of business connectivity and integration is transforming how companies work and achieve success. Using an impressive array of real-life examples as diverse as the American Express Blue card, Procter and Gamble's supply chain initiatives, and MTV Europe's interactive programming, Ross Dawson shows how the flow of information and ideas through networks has become the heart of the economy. Dawson contends that as the boundaries between organizations blur, companies and individuals will only succeed if they provide clear leadership to their customers and partners on new ways of working. IBM's alphaWorks unit gives all-comers access to cutting-edge software fresh from its famed research laboratories, and gets them to help develop it into marketable products. Herman Miller provides systems that allow even its smallest suppliers to gain real-time access to orders, schedules, and engineering data, allowing it to slash its delivery times. The book goes on to provide a framework for developing strategy in what Dawson describes as the "flow economy," using examples like budget travel guide publisher Lonely Planet's move into telecommunications and handheld software, and rock group Radiohead's massively successful promotion, which included providing its hit album for free on the Internet.Read More