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Phantom ex machina : digital disruption’s role in business model transformation
Khare A., Stewart B., Schatz R., Springer International Publishing, New York, NY, 2017. 327 pp. Type: Book (978-3-319444-67-3)
Date Reviewed: Sep 5 2017

The idea of disruptive products or technologies has been around for some time, exemplified by the work of Clayton Christensen [1], who has explored and written about this topic for over 20 years. The basic idea is this: an innovator creates a novel product that improves a product category. The first version of the product performs poorly, gathering only a small number of users. But, as the product matures and improves with its price coming down, its improvements over its predecessors displace an existing product or technology. The classic example is the automobile replacing the horse as the primary means of transportation. In today’s world, clear disruptions are the rise of Uber versus traditional taxi companies or Airbnb versus traditional lodging companies.

In Phantom ex machina, 20 chapters with differing authors explore how the growth of digital technologies and the Internet have impacted a number of different industries, that have or will disrupt existing products and businesses by influencing their business models. Topics range from descriptions and models of how disruptions occur to case studies of actual situations that have impacted businesses. In the two modern examples above, the disruption happened as a consequence of the rise and ubiquity of the Internet. Additionally, Uber, a “taxi company” that owns no vehicles, was facilitated by the availability of smartphones.

Social media, for example, has had a large impact. Dell Computer used it to get customer feedback and affect product design. Ikea uses it to listen to customers, applying what they learn to their supply chain management process.

Quite a bit of consideration is given to management of dispersed, cross-cultural teams. The rise of digital communication tools facilitates the creation of such teams. Of concern is how to deal with issues of trust and clarity of communication, in the sense of clear understanding and harmonious relations among people from different cultures, over long distances. How can such virtual teams be managed?

More elaborate coverage is given to specific industries: automotive, robotics, education, 3D printing, healthcare, management consulting, and think tanks. With the rise of autonomous driving, cars are becoming supercomputers on wheels with networked connections to report and share data. How quickly will traditional manufacturers use these developments to remain competitive? With the rapid advance in artificial intelligence, robots will become much more prevalent at various types of jobs; how will this affect business efficiency and traditionally operated production? For healthcare, the creation of small portable sensors combined with smartphones will put monitoring and diagnostic tools in the patients’ hands. How will this affect the doctor-patient relationship? In education, advances in communication are reshaping how education is delivered. These same advances make it easier for the nefarious to cheat. How will traditional schools deal with both? For management consulting and think tank businesses, Internet connections will permit boutique firms or individual consultants to replace the more traditional consulting firms. Think tanks can be formed as virtual teams that are less costly to operate than the older brick-and-mortar institutions. Will the traditional practitioners of these disciplines adapt or fail?

One comes away from this book with a decent appreciation for how the increasing presence of the Internet and digital technologies will bring disruption to various industries. Copious references are provided for each chapter for those wishing to explore further. Especially useful are the case studies of particular companies showing how disruption occurred or how the companies integrated digital technologies to their advantage.

Reviewer:  G. R. Mayforth Review #: CR145522 (1711-0719)
1) Christensen, C. The innovator’s dilemma. Harvard Business School, Boston, MA, 1997.
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