Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/63444
BIG, RIGID, BUREAUCRATIC CORPORATIONS ARE SLOW, PONDEROUS ELEPHANTS; INDEPENDENT INNOVATORS AND ENTREPRENEURS ARE THE IRRITATING FLEAS THAT GOAD THEM INTO MOVEMENT AND CHANGE. its insights are fascinating. (The Haworth Press, $129.95 hardcover, $59.95 softcover) A View of the Future Big, rigid, bureaucratic corporations are slow, ponderous elephants; inde- pendent innovators and entrepre- neurs are the irritating fleas that goad them into movement and change. Today's business world is seeing more and more elephants alter or disappear, while the popula- tion of fleas grows at an astonishing rate. Many experts predict that, because people value their independ- ence, their ability to work from home, and the chance to exploit their own ideas, the labor market will comprise a larger number of self-employed workers every year. Charles Handy, author of The Elephant and the Flea: Reflections of a Reluctant Capitalist, has moved his office from the elephant's hide to the flea's smaller but more satisfying abode. In fact, he was ahead of the trend, making the switch more than 20 years ago, after a successful career with The Royal Dutch Shell Group and a stint at the newly founded London Business School. Like many economists, he predicts that the trend will speed up in coming years—and have a profound impact on the way business, government, and society function. This isn't a traditional business textbook, but rather a collection of essays by a man who knows both the business and academic worlds and is seeking to synthesize his knowledge. Part autobiography, part history lesson, part meditation on capitalism around the globe, the book is an idiosyncratic and charm- ing examination of the way the business world works. Handy does spend much of his time setting up his central premise and discussing how it affected him personally. However, he also shares insights about the economies of Britain, India, America, and Singapore, and interlards the text with insightful comments about intellectual proper- ty rights, the social responsibilities of corporations, and the effects of technology on daily life. It's an easy read, but one that leaves behind much to ponder. (Harvard Business School Press, $24.95) The New Entrepreneur As the resources of the world shift from financial to intellectual capital, successful entrepreneurs swing their attention from material to intellectu- al products. The move toward "intellectual capital" is one that focuses on the growing importance of knowledge and service in the business sector, the notion that ideas can have as much value as things. A handful of scholars and entre- preneurs have gathered twice in the past few years to consider and com- ment on the growing importance of intellectual capital. Meeting and publishing under the name of "The Knowledge Café," this group has produced its second book on the topic, called Intellectual Product and Intellectual Capital, edited by Stefan Kwiatkowski and Charles Stowe. Several of the collected essays reflect the state of intellectual capital in Eastern Europe, where, says Kwiatkowski's opening essay, the phenomenon is particularly visible. These are, after all, "countries under social, economic, and political trans- formation where government sup- port for intellectual life dramatically decreases and market gradually replaces central regulation." Other essays touch on more uni- versal themes—converting intellectu- al capital into financial capital, the concept of money as an intellectual venture, commercial ramifications of the brain—and all are heavily foot- noted and illustrated with charts. The concepts are complex, and the approaches are diverse. It's not a definitive explanation of this new, valuable property, but merely one stop along the way to assess its implications for the future of the business world. (Available from Knowledge Café, wydawnictwo@ wspiz.edu.pl) ■ z BizEd MAY/JUNE 2002 59