Book Reviews: Future of Management - Where Good Ideas Come From - Grand Design - Drive - What Technology Wants - Macrowikinomics

My holiday reading list was pretty diverse, so wanted to get the reviews out in case any of you have a few days left to squeeze in a book. Since I haven't done one in a while, I thought I would also include some of the other books I read over the last couple months that caught my attention.

Drive: 4.7 out of 5 (Amazon) (Overview Video) Daniel Pink

I really liked this book ... and I didn't think I would going into it as Pink's previous work didn't blow me away. But, he is really growing as an author and he found a topic that he hit out of the park. There are so many good lessons in Drive that it is hard to identify just one or two. But, especially for university folk like myself, the motivations that he identifies as the primary motivations for working are very accurate, at least in my case. But, the larger lesson for education is that our current workforce has a lot of latent capacity inside of it if we can find ways to tap into the internal drive already existing with this individuals. Anyway, just put it on your must read list.

What Technology Wants: 4.5 out of 5 (Amazon) (Overview Video) Kevin Kelly

This book blew my socks off. It caused me to fundamentally reconsider how I understand and define this technology thing. Now, that said, the score suffers because it is really deep and, at times, boring. He goes back to the beginning ... all the way to the beginning of humanity. And, let's be honest, he makes some guesses as to the historical development of technology. I thought that was really not necessary. Plus, his broad new concept, the "Technium," was acceptable but a stretch But, aside from that, the reconceptualization of technology is totally worth your time. Schooling, after reading this book, must be considered a technological enterprise. Nearly everything that we teach children in these places are technological tools. To the point that technology at some point is indistinguishable from humanity. Our technology distinguishes our species. Anyway, you can see how it can get deep quickly. But, give it a shot. It made a lot of sense to me.   

Macrowikinomics: 3 out of 5 (Amazon) (Overview Video) Don Tapscott & Anthony Williams

Didn't think this book was necessary. Don is stretching it a bit for a few more bucks. This book has good new examples over Wikinomics, but it is not necessary to read both. If you have not read either, I guess you can start with Macrowikinomics for more recent and relevant examples, but I really couldn't distinguish many brand new concepts articulated in this second book. Probably best just to consider this a second edition. I'm actually looking forward to Anthony Williams just striking it out on his own soon.

The Grand Design: 4 out of 5 (Amazon) (Overview Video) Stephen Hawking & Leonard Mlodinow

Yeah, I'm a pocket physics fan. Some people read novels for fun ... physics (at least this extreme surface-level, kindergarten variety physics) for me. If you have not heard of and have no idea what string theory or quantum theory means, this is not the book to start with. Instead, start with Hawking's previous work here or this one by Brian Greene. But, if you have kept up, this book does 2 basic things. First, it makes the case for M-Theory, which isn't so much a theory as it is a collection of possible hypothesis and the uber concept to string theory. But, secondly, and what has gotten Stephen into more trouble, is that he thinks a theory like M-Theory (with multiple universes and a rationale behind the big bang) provides no need for any initial external spark (read: a God). What struck me, though, is how nearly he came to actually making the case for intelligent design (the theory that there had to be such an external spark/creator). In fact, he makes a rather compelling case for it and then goes on to cite most of the big historical names in science as supportive of such a theory. Then, when he has you adequately down that path, he explains how a concept like M-Theory (which is, for better or worse, about the best we have thought of so far even though it requires an additional 7 hidden dimensions we have not yet found ... but, the math works out nicely) could explain how the existing physical properties of the multiverse (yeah, I guess that's a word now) could have given rise to ... well ... us and our situation on Earth. Anyway, yeah. That's it.

The Future of Management: 2.8 out of 5 (Amazon) (Overview Video) Gary Hamel

I didn't like this one, although I could see how many others would. I actually stopped several months back after the first chapter or two, but Scott M. recently convinced me to give it another shot. And, I will say, that is did get better as it went. If you are going to read it, skip Part I, skim Part II, and pick it up in Part III. Basically, it is a book for existing managers, not an untenured assistant university professor like myself. I could see how my Provost, for instance, would like this one. But, personally, there were just some things I couldn't get over. For instance, the use of the word "manager." I hated it. If people think of themselves or, even worse, call themselves a manager ... they have already lost. Yet, the author explictly teaches "Strategic and International Management." Hmm ... yucky. It could be a generational thing, but when the author is very adamant in explaining about the examples he cites (Whole Foods, Gore & Google) that a major advantage is the elimination of managers ... why are you still teaching management? Generally, I thought this book was just a retread of concepts already on the table by the real innovative authors for the business school community. And, toward that purpose, it was a good book. But, outside of that, there are other, better books that seem to say the same thing.

Where Good Ideas Come From: 4.8 out of 5 (Amazon) (Overview Video) Steven Johnson

Let's end on a high note. This has been one of my favorite books recently and it caused me to change some of my work habits. Now, this book might be custom fit to me, so I might be over-rating it from a general population standpoint. I happen to be actively trying to build such places to generate good ideas for Kentucky education. So, for that purpose, it was the perfect fit for me right now. Concepts like liquid networks and platforms are the kinds of concepts that I lie awake at night thinking about (this is why I need physics, or baseball, to clear my head). I am a slow hunch kind of guy, as described in this book. I mull over ideas for years. For instance, I am still not sure what I think about the church/state/schools issue. Just search the blog and you'll see I've been wrestling with it for years. Also, I am very interested in environments, as I recently obtained 1100 square feet at UK for the Lab I've been building. So, starting this spring, we are going to use that space to intentionally get people to mix ideas together. I'm hoping to start a lunch series with speakers from all over campus just to get us thinking. Anyway, this is a solid author with good things to say in a super accessible format. Give it a read.  

That's it for now. I'll try and review some of the education-based books I am reading soon to try to focus us in a little more. Anyway, I enjoyed my holiday reading. Hope you did as well. 

Some Book Reviews

I have meant to get some of these reviews up a while ago, but I have been struggling to keep my blogging time lately (the wife and I are expecting twins in May 2010 and I have been busy trying to get ahead on my research). Anyway, I'll sort of do short reviews here and if you have specific questions, leave a comment and I can go in more detail. 

Cluetrain Manifesto: 4 out of 5 and a nice historical read. (Amazon) (Overview Video)

I really didn't know what to expect from this book. It is sort of seen as one of, if not the, seminal work that heralded in the details of the Information Age. The problem is that it was written in 2001 and so I was worried that it would be too old and all the ideas would be common knowledge now. I would say that my guess was about half right. All the references to the intranet did get a little old and the big players of that day are not the big players today (reading it one would have thought Sun Microsystems was responsible for it all). The 95 theses are the heart of the book and do have a multitude of ideas, but I think 50 would have been plenty. Further, the book gets a little too ambitious at times for my taste. All the ideas about business being redefined entirely were a bit much. But, what I loved was their vision in 2001. They clearly saw where this was going and tried to warn people that they must change their ways or be run over. They were speaking to business, and many businesses have been run over already, but I think there are many relevant points for education as well. Certainly enough that it is worth your time to read this relatively small book packed with an outstanding vision. 

The Bottom Billion: 4.25 out of 5 - a must read for social activists. (Amazon) (Overview Video)

I enjoyed this book, although it will be more economically focused than most people will like. Further, the other thing that annoyed me slightly was the author's heavy reliance on his own work (as if he has all the answers). But, outside of the economic focus and the self-referencing, I enjoyed this book quite a bit. The author identified traps that countries fall into and can't get out of; they get stuck in a repeating pattern away from development that includes civil wars, natural resource traps, logistical problems, and bad neighborhoods. These traps keep countries from developing and the rest of the world is not helping out all that much because they are not addressing these fundamental traps with their aid. It's a provocative argument and one that I have trouble disagreeing with in general (although specific points are debatable). As I was reading it though, certainly I thought there were lessons for U.S. states as well. We don't have coups on a regular basis for sure, but the landlocked issues, the bad neighborhood issues, the natural resource issues (hello, Kentucky ... coal!) and even the problems with federal aid sort of seem to cross over not just from The Bottom Billion, but to our bottom 100 million here in the U.S. as well. Anyway, the take away is the idea that uninformed social activism really isn't all that helpful. There are real barriers to development that once removed allow societies to enter the global marketplace. Pouring in aid that doesn't address these barriers makes folks in the Western world sleep better at night, but doesn't fundamentally alter the futures of those folks stuck in the bottom billion. 

The Assault on Reason: 2 out of 5 - not worth it at all (Amazon) (Overview Video)

This book was an utter disaster, so don't bother with it. I enjoyed Gore's arguments on climate change, so I thought I would give him another spin on larger democratic issues ... my mistake. It was basically a Bush bashing book. Now, I dislike George Bush and his time as President as much as the next guy, but this was beating a dead horse. Not just a little beating the dead horse ... hours and hours of doing it. I totally understand Al Gore's resentment of George Bush (yes, the election probably was stolen from Gore), but that's the breaks and there is no use in ruining your reputation on a personal vendetta (although he would never admit that and takes pains to make it seem impartial). Anyway, I don't want to spend more time on it because I still thank Al Gore for making us aware of climate change. So, keep your positive picture of him and don't read this book.

Earth: The Sequel: 3.5 out of 5 - Details on the Energy Revolution (Amazon) (Overview Video) 

When I say details ... I mean a heck of a lot of them. I literally think this book introduces you to over 150 new companies that are all trying to make money on the new energy revolution. The crazy thing is that none of them are profitable. The crazier thing is that all of them have good ideas. The market is not going to support all of these good ideas, but it will support some of them - even without the market reflecting the true cost of coal and oil. If Congress gets their act together this upcoming year and lets the market be more reflective of the truth, then the market may well support a lot of these new companies. The book doesn't have any breakthrough ideas on which energy source may be the leader of the revolution, but it does give you a whole lot more data on how those companies are likely to emerge (and if you are smart, you can start to think about how you can get involved/make money from this). So, why the low rating? It was not exactly an easy read. There was too much detail and it really took a lot of energy to listen to details on the 129th company. But, if you are legitimately interested in understanding how the Green Revolution is likely to play out, then pick up a copy. 

Nudge: 2 out of 5 - I'm nudging you against it (Amazon) 

I really disliked this book, but I think a lot of you will like it. I am skeptical generally of behavioral control, or behavioral economics as it is being called ... call it my own libertarian streak (this is not unlike the part of me that disliked Outliers). Libertarian is important here, because the authors call their ideological background libertarian paternalism. Here's my rub, though. In order for this framework to work and nudges to be necessary, people must be stupid (of, okay, let's say underinformed). What kind of ideology starts with the proposition that people are stupid, they will always be stupid, so some of us (who knows who gets to pick) need to nudge them into doing things that we think are best for them (if they knew what we knew, they would make the same decision too). How incredibly undemocratic. The collective will rarely make the right decision and some group of elite need to make the right decisions (and build choice architecture). Who gets to make the decisions ... well, law professors, I guess. Anyway, you get what I took from it. They make a benign case, of course, but the natural endpoint is a scary place for me. 

Innovator's Solution: 4.5 out of 5 - A wonderful business book (Amazon) (Overview Video)

I normally don't like business books, so I'll call this one an innovation book within the context of business. I liked this one because there was so much to take away. The basic idea is that there are a set of good business practices that allow small companies to compete with the big boys if you are in a disruptive marketplace (i.e. not just improving on an existing product, but creating a new new product niche). But, all those good business practices are just good business practices to me anytime. It's a model that puts innovation at the forefront and I really think that organizations, especially educational organizations, must always be innovators. Pretty much every few pages there was another good idea that I can apply to my own business. Anyway, get on the disruptive innovation curve and pick up a copy, I don't think you will regret it.  

The Elephant and the Dragon ... A Review

This weekend I managed to squeeze in (between the celebrations of my sister being named homecoming queen! Yeah!) another of Dr. McLeod's recommendations. 

Today: The Elephant and the Dragon: The Rise of India and China and What it Means for All of Us, Robyn Meredith, 2008, $10.85 on Amazon (but buy through CASTLE as our non-profit gets a little of the proceeds). Here's the book's website. 

The Bad:

1. Capitalist Ideology. At times, it's a little over-the-top and feels like it was written by a wall-street tycoon. This is not too annoying, but it is certainly noticeable at times (yes, i know I am picky as in the last one I complained about the socialism).   
2. A little heavy on history. I think most of it is relevant, but if you are not concerning about mid-twentieth century Indian and Chinese history you might want to skip the first few chapters. The part about eating kids was sort of especially gruesome. 
3. Slightly repetitious. This is something that many books in this genre suffer from, but I did notice it a few times in this one as well. 
4. Could have a few more citations, but that is probably just the scholar in me complaining. 

The Good: 

1. Well researched. You can clearly tell that the author, despite her young age, has gone to great lengths to gather facts and details. I appreciated that. I am sure it is still surface-level for geopolitical scholars, but for your average reader it contains a lot of great information. 
2. Not built to scare. A lot of books in this genre are built to scare people. For instance, even in The World is Flat I came away with a sense that Friedman thought scaring people might be effective. This book doesn't have any of that fear-mongering element. 
3. Not a lot of opinion. The author did a good job sticking to the facts and using facts to make points, as opposed to having opinions and then finding facts to support them. I thought this was a better approach than I have seen in a lot of books in the genre. 
4. Respectful. Because of the lack of opinion, there was little demonizing of either Indians, Chinese or Americans (or for that matter anyone else). 

Points Worth Mentioning: 

1. Education is America's immediate answer. Obviously I am going to love this point, but it was as clear as a church bell on a still Sunday morning. Like Fareed Zakaria, Meredith makes the point that education is one of America's last great advantages (heck, China closed all of its universities in the past century - some of since been reopened). And that education can spur innovation and economic activity into the next century. 
2. Outsourcing is real, but limited. Things that are easily outsourced ... have already been outsourced. So while we did lose the entire toy industry, most of the garment industry, most of the tech. manufacturing industry and many, many others (including my wife's old accounting job to India), many of the remaining jobs today will continue to remain in the United States because they are not as easily outsourced.
3. America is a net beneficiary from both outsourcing and China and India's increased relevance. Leaving geopolitics aside, just economically we benefit in two ways: (1) we save lots of money at Walmart as prices are deflated because of the cheap manufacturing costs; and (2) our 401k's and portfolios make money because American companies have profited substantially from the influx of cheap labor and new markets. So, while we complain about losing jobs, the vast majority of us are seeing real benefits from globalization. 
4. India and China are not Peers (yet). While there are billions of people and cities sprawling into the skyline and the countryside, neither China nor India are yet America's or Europe's peers. They are behind in almost every measure, have enormous societal welfare issues, spend less on almost everything, have an absurdly low standard of living, are still heavily illiterate, etc. Their sheer purchasing and production power because of the numbers makes them especially worth keeping an eye on, but they are no where near the American way of life (for better or worse). 
5. Economies Intertwined. But, while they are still playing catch-up and will be for many more decades, their economic impact on the global economy makes them impossible to ignore. It is not just that China holds a ton of dollars, but American companies will suffer enormously if China or India's economies stumble - and that will affect all of us by driving down the market, home prices, raising inflation, etc. They are part of our economy now (for better or worse). 
6. Education is our competitive advantage. There are lots more points, but you get the gist. However, I wanted to again return to education. Public schooling was our great competitive advantage during the post-War industrial build and it can be our great competitive advantage during the post information revolution reorganization. But, our current system was built for the industrial era, not the information era - and for education to again be our great competitive advantage, we have to adapt our schools.  

Recommendation: I loved this book. It was fabulous and I enjoyed every minute of it. It was well written, readable, fact-filled, and intelligent. It is probably a necessary read for most professors and a highly recommended read for most school administrators. Get it and enjoy it. 

What Would Google Do ... A Review

I'm making an effort to review the books I read on here, whether or not they relate explicitly to education law (this one does only tangentially). I have been reading heavily into technology lately and we return to that theme today. So you know, I get a lot of my tech. book tips from Scott McLeod, and this one is no different. I'm hoping his review is upcoming and I'll be interested to compare notes. 

Today: What Would Google Do, Jeff Jarvis, 2009, @$20 on Amazon.

The Bad:

1. I found the author very annoying. Sometimes the author gets in the way, and this is one of those cases. Jeff Jarvis didn't change the world, Google did, but Jeff seems to forget that from time to time. Also, you can easily tell that Jarvis is not a digital native. Some things he still doesn't seem to intuitively "get." Also, all his personal problems with Dell ... sorry, I'll stop, but you'll notice it as well.
2. Impractical at points. What Would Google Do ... to Toilet Paper? Just forget it. 
3. Enough with the "Google ____" ... it certainly got old. Googlejuice? [Shaking head]
4. Jumpy at places. Toward the end he starts running through industries too quickly and not effectively enough.
5. Some of his points end in socialism ... he tries to say otherwise, but its hard not to see how that happens. Too many of his points are based on "advertising" as the only revenue model. That is just not going to work in a capitalistic marketplace. Someone has to be making money on "atoms" or knowledge or something. Not everything can be free all the time and still call it capitalism. Last I checked, Twitter is still losing money, even though it is the hottest free thing going.

The Good:

1. A plethora of intelligent points and a pretty easy read. Its quick and painless if you can ignore Jarvis' self-congratulating style. 
2. "Be a Platform" - One of the best take-away points and I think either online or offline. Letting others build off of your work is a sure-fire influencing strategy. 
3. Tap into existing networks - Don't go through the trouble to build new networks when tapping into existing ones is so much easier. Make that network's life easier and you have an Internet winner.
4. "Inverse Relationship Between Control and Trust" - I think this is a good point for today's world, but a better point is that there is a direct relationship between trust and the control that "I" have. When I am helping to control an organization, obviously I feel more trust in it.
5. Protect Innovation. Obviously in my job I love my 1 day a week that is my time, which I can use for innovation (or other things). But, too often we overwork the very folks that have the potential for innovation. Assistant Profs obviously come to mind, but new attorneys in law firms, residents at hospitals, etc. 
6. Google U. - I like the points here. Stuff that is sort of "duh" to digital natives in academia, but maybe it will convert some immigrants.

The Recommendation:

I'd spend the money to go get this one. I did it as an audiobook over the Labor Day weekend and it was a good way to pass the boringness that is southern Indiana. Jarvis makes a multitude of good points and I found myself thinking of the application of those points to my life and industry all the way. I was inspired enough to perhaps even write a short article about it. So, I think the Amazon score of 4 out of 5 stars is about right, but it is an excellent pickup for a brainstorming session for your own organization.