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It's taken me a while to write a review of this book (longer than it took me to finish it). But I've finally been able to marshal my thoughts into something semi-cohesive, so here it goes:The main argument of the Prosperity Paradox is that market-creating innovation drives growth -- good institutions, infrastructure, etc are secondary. Using historical examples from the US, Korea and some contemporary cases in Mexico, Nigeria (and a lot of other countries), the authors challenge us to rethink th...
https://ssir.org/articles/entry/to_sp...#I am not sure I agree with all of Christensen's premises that creating markets will lift 3rd world counties out of poverty. He provides plenty of examples, and research, mainly from his colleagues at Harvard.What I did enjoy and saved was his chapter on corruption. He posits that each year, the world pays between 1.5 and 2 trillion USD in bribes. That puts a huge dent in the world economy. He writes that much of this is from ordinary people finding themse...
Really nice book on push vs. pull when trying to solve problems, with emphasis on developing regions. With the constant desire to solve the world's problems, we keep pushing our solutions without regard to the long-term sustainability model. The solution is to seek solutions that can be maintained. This progress can and should be made by "local" innovation and entrepreneurs. The chapter on corruption was also quite enlightening, applying the same concepts of local problem solving to address corr...
This is an important book! I just hope that those who have the clout to implement its principles actually read it and put it in to practice! Throwing money at poverty has never worked in the long run, but creating business and opportunity does.
Great book on the failures of most current development efforts in third world countries. The emphasis is on innovation that targets unreached consumer populations. There is a lot of good theory behind their claims (from authors with great credentials), and also a lot of practical examples of innovations that served new populations, created jobs, developed infrastructure and had lasting impact. The focus is on creative solutions that pull development in, rather than pushing from the outside.
Insightful book by the late Harvard Business School giant that focuses on the subtitle: how innovation can lift nations out of poverty. Where governments or corruption or other obstacles have failed or blocked prosperity historically, Christensen explains how innovation, non-consumption markets, "pulling" strategies, and a focus on solutions for local needs can and does transform nations and lift them out of poverty. This in turn paves the way for infrastructure, the reduction of corruption, and...
For centuries, economists have debated what brings about economic development, what are the best mechanisms for tackling poverty. There are two leading schools: The Keynesian camp that supports state intervention and; the free marketers that argues for a private sector-led entrepreneurial state. Of course, the world has tested both options and the result isn't completely sound. The 2008 economic crisis gives us enough reason to be wary of free-market's promises. And the inherent crisis of Marxis...
Outstanding! I am so grateful to have been able to read this book, and so sad that professor Clayton M. Christensen is no longer with us. Such a loss! Every page of the book shows his passion for innovation and love of people. Food for thought, ideas that could emerge simply by looking into the right direction (i.e. non-consumers, processes that need and can be improved) - everything is in there. With real life examples, one can learn from both successful initiatives and huge failures. Do yourse...
Excellent thoughts by the authors on how one can think about market innovations. They have created a template to address big issues like poverty, communication , sanitation etc at a global level. The examples provided are very appropriate and hard hitting. Well annotated with notes that exemplify the depth of research. Discussed this book along with my friend over the weekends and therefore could get multiple perspectives. Could appreciate the book better.
Clayton Christensen is one of my favourite thinkers. He has great structure in writing and takes a lot of time and care to deliver seminal insights in simple words. This book talks about innovation and how under-developed markets can be viewed as a great opportunity for new businesses (provided they are offering a real need). The authors of this book discuss, in great detail, the opportunities and progress in 5 different nations- Africa, India, South Korea, Japan and America amongst many other t...
Not his best book, but still better than anything else
Why have some nations become prosperous while others have remained poor—and in many cases poorer than half a century ago? Harvard Business School professor Christensen (The Power of Everyday Missionaries: The What and How of Sharing the Gospel, 2013, etc.) and colleagues venture some suggestive answers.Prosperity, by the authors’ account, does not mean simply relative wealth, but also access to goods such as education and health care as well as the promise of good governance and upward mobility....
Such a great book on how innovation can lift an economy. Great examples. Sound insights. Super inspiring. Will need to own and mark up.
This is a great book focusing on market-creating innovations and seeing opportunities and potential instead of problems and poverty. This creates change."I witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of poverty: I lost friends to preventable illnesses and saw families routinely having to make impossible choices among putting food on the table, educating their children, or supporting the older generation. Suffering was a part of daily life... I am happy to say that when I visit South Korea today,...
The subject matter of this book is difficult to beat in importance, and in signature Clay Christensen fashion, the approach and analysis to an enormously complex problem is made accessible and almost deceptively simple. The authors' core argument is that a certain kind of innovation, called a "market-creating innovation," can help lift nations out of poverty by generating profits, creating jobs, and by orienting culture in more prosperous ways. The plan of the book is: first, to describe the var...
Oh boy--what to say about this book. I'll start with the history--no, America did not become prosperous thanks to innovators like Ford and Singer. There are many reasons for our prosperity (i.e. we became the empire, we put the world on the dollar standard, we had lots of resources, we successfully created a mixed economy, etc etc). And the poor aren't poor because they lacked innovation--go read Jason Hickel's book or literally any other good development book to look at the root causes of pover...
Was drawn to read this book after having Clayton Christensen's other book, How Will you Measure Your Life. However, this was more of an academic read rather than a personal read. Good analysis and case studies of what has and has not worked in raising nations out of poverty. However, left with the feeling of 'what can I do'. Perhaps this book will come to me if ever placed in a position related to urban development or choosing what sort of endeavours to support
Christensen tackles the national development this time. Well known to the business world as the Innovation Professor, he asked why foreign aid never worked in alleviating poverty in developing nations. He used the example of well building in poor regions in Africa: it works for a while and when it dries up or breaks down, no one has the expertise or the parts to fix it. So the broken well becomes a monument showing how aid does not work. Or computers sent to communities where there is no electri...
Christensen is known for his economic theories on innovation, and in this book he looks specifically at innovation that drives growth in developing regions -- somewhat related to my field of work (building new technology products for emerging markets) so very interesting to me.His main case is that "market creating innovation", that is innovation that creates entirely new markets by targeting non-consumers (say, inventing a new type of low cost motorbike and selling it to people who would otherw...
What a difference between Milton Friedman's neoliberal free market policies (where a business would own just the brand, and everything else is sub-rented, privatised and ends up corrupt due to revenue margins) and this take on what makes a business, society and country prosperous. Investing in the production chain and people.The greatest example given in the book is South Korea.