Supportive economy

Author: Zhu Bohu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-05-01
Features: This is a classic management book; a feast of business thought meticulously crafted by a Harvard Business School professor over ten years! Alongside Who Says Elephants Can't Dance? and Traps and Escapes, it was named one of NPR's Top 9 Business Bestsellers in September 2003. Renowned economist Xia Yeliang, translator of The Experience Economy, provides a special foreword. Through multi-perspective arguments, comprehensive observation, and profound thinking, it constantly challenges your perceptions and predicts the arrival of a new economic and social order. The ideas and disruptive power of this book have the potential to reshape existing socio-economic relationships and value systems, possibly ushering in a new historical era. It is suitable for professionals in economic management and serves as the best reference for those interested in this field.
In history, when new human desires have changed the nature of consumption and created new markets, economic transformation has occurred. In the late 19th century, the demand for mass consumption gave rise to mass production methods, giving birth to managerial capitalism. Managerial capitalism created a world of unprecedented material wealth, bringing education, health, opportunities, information, and highly complex experiences. All of this nurtured a new generation that pursued individual uniqueness, psychological autonomy, and consumer autonomy. "The New Humanity" no longer desired merely material security and comfort. However, the changes in modern businesses have not kept pace with human evolution. They still operate according to the old logic of managerial capitalism born a century ago, treating today's New Humanity with the old conventions of traditional mass society. Disappointment and anger have alienated individuals from organizations, and the key to a new economic order lies in this very rift.
Renowned scholar Shoshana Zuboff and world-class business leader James Maxmin offer a vivid and candid diagnosis of the "transaction crisis"—the antagonism between individuals and companies as they call it. They then compellingly predict the arrival of a new era of economic growth—the Support Economy. Their bold insights into the future of economics and society are inspiring. In recent years, many experts have explored the transaction crisis, but they have focused only on the symptoms. The Support Economy is the first rigorous examination of the underlying causes: managerial capitalism has become outdated as society evolves. In the past, it successfully achieved efficient mass production of goods and services, but today, this no longer meets people's need for psychological autonomy. In today's society, everyone yearns to master their own lives and is willing to pay for the support and assistance needed to achieve this goal. The next leap in wealth creation depends on the development of a new form of capitalism: "distributed capitalism," which can fully harness the power of revolutionary new digital media and ultimately fulfill the dreams of the New Humanity.
The Support Economy is a thought-provoking and wise work filled with optimism, brimming with novel ideas and startling insights—from "new individualism society" and "professional stripping" to "personalized consumption" and "organizational narcissism." The current crisis of corporate trust, the personal demands of consumers and employees, the role of women in economic change, and the opportunities for entrepreneurs, technologists, policymakers, leaders, and citizens—whatever interests you, this book will enlighten you. Dedicated to every reader interested in the future of economics and society, of course, it will also spark debate.