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Journal of Management Consulting, Volume 9, No. 2, November 1996, Pg. 71.
Jumping the Curve: Innovation and Strategic Choice in an Age of Transition. by Nicholas Imparato and Oren Harari (Jossey-Bass Publishers, San Francisco; 1994, 1996) $18.50
reviewed by John D. Trudel CMC
This is a great book that should help Western businesses adapt to the new era. The authors define disruptive changes in today's world and how to cope with them. It is an easy read, though the concepts and viewpoints will be new to many. It should be read by all who have to deal with the world in the post-industrial era.
That means all change-agents and leaders. Unfortunately, the vast majority of managers in business, and especially in government, will find this work revolutionary and upsetting. The concepts-while not difficult and, in many cases, not even new-are antithetical to the precepts of machine age business and Western social entitlement. Nonetheless, the book contains truths that need to be heard.
This is not a book that will lead you to the next management fad, but it will change your viewpoint. The core precept is that almost all the conventional wisdom about management is outdated. Furthermore, the procedural quick-fix fads and buzzwords - including those with "quality" and "re" prefixes - have about the same curative value as putting Band-Aids on a sucking chest wound. This is disquieting, to say the least.
The book begins with parallels to other periods of major discontinuity in history. The authors argue that the only period in history that has so stressed the human race was the calamitous 14th century. So, we have been there before and survived, if barely. Of course, the example of dinosaurs and the ice age is that survival is not inevitable. We can adapt and prosper if we choose. Whether we will is open to question.
Jumping the Curve observes that trends can be depicted by S-curves of growth, stability, and decline. The solution proposed is to jump off the old declining curve and onto a new one. Our competitors on the Pacific rim are acutely aware of this necessity, as are some technology leaders. But most cling to the status quo.
The heart of the book is about four organizing principles that are needed to "jump the curve" and move into the new era: (l) look one customer ahead, (2) build the company around the software and build the software around1d the customer, (3) make sure those who live the values and ideals of the organization are the most rewarded and satisfied, and (4) make customers the final arbiters by offering an unconditional guarantee of complete satisfaction. These principles are explained and richly illustrated to show what jumping the curve is like.
The problem, of course, is what to do about it Monday morning. We want neatly packaged, prescriptive, linear solutions. But they do not work anymore; maybe they never did.
Another dilemma is our view of entitlement. The book prescribes selecting customers and employees. Discriminate: reject the dishonest, those whose values do not fit the new culture, the selfish, and the litigious customers and employees. Unfortunately, however necessary and fair, our society rejects discrimination and choice. We would rather suffer violent crime and educational decline than risk discriminating against anyone, even barbarians. What nonsense!
Indeed, if decline is chosen over progress, we are in for nasty times. The book illuminates our choices, their consequences, and points us in the way we should go.
A final comment: The book parallels and reinforces my own experiences, beliefs, and writings to a remarkable degree. I recently collaborated in a Silicon Valley seminar with a famous and successful consultant. My message was to expect discontinuity and an ever-increasing rate of chaotic change. I spoke of corporate decline and an urgent need for unlearning the old ways and learning new approaches. I gave examples of what was working and what was not. My colleague gave a compendium of process techniques for speeding new product cycles. Afterward, he said, "John, you will have more impact on the world, but I will make more money." Thus it will be with the teachings of this book. Read it anyway.
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