#DefragCon 2013 Notes: Industrial Entropy and the Future of Work – Chris DeVore, Founders Co-op
Industrial Entropy and the Future of Work – Chris DeVore, Founders Co-op
- Ronald Coase – “The Nature of the Firm” paper – why companies exist
- Firms gathered people around knowledge and tools that were often too expensive for an individual to purchase
- Digitization moved work outside the firm
- Now tools can be purchased to solve problems individually
- Rule #1: Capital seeks dominance
- VC Firms are designed for these kinds of firms – they try to dominate the majority of a market
- Rule #2: Achieving dominance is “planful”
- Executing through the rapidly changing technology and markets is difficult and requires persistence
- Rule #3: Dominance has become fragile
- Microsoft used to dominate, but is no longer feared like it was
- Agility at scale = Dominance
- A capability, not a state of being – mindset, values, leadership
- A good example is Jeff Bezos moving the entire organization to an SOA/API-centered approach with small teams that can execute
- Use the rate of technology + cultural change as a strategic weapon against the incumbency
- The education system needs to skill people to handle the new, flat economy where there isn’t a natural promotion within a firm