Book reviews
50 GREAT E-BUSINESSES AND THE MINDS BEHIND THEMBy Emily Ross and Angus Holland
(Random House Australia)
As far as business marketplaces go, the internet is undoubtedly the most globally cluttered, internationally competitive and all-encompassing yet created. Never was this more evident than in the big tech crash of 2000. Accolades, therefore, should be sung for the e-businesses (and individuals behind them) that managed to either survive the carnage, or jumped in at the bottom of the trough and claw their way out kicking and screaming all the way to the bank.
In their latest book, 50 Great e-Businesses and the minds behind them, Ross and Holland have identified and examined 50 e-businesses they feel have revolutionised the way the world surfs online. The usual suspects are examined: Google, Dell and Amazon as well as social network empires such as MySpace and Facebook.
More enjoyable than the facts and figures are the animated insights into the pre-success back stories of the businesses. Especially memorable is the description of the birth of Facebook, which was built by a Harvard college student in a attempt to make university socialisation a little less awkward.
A great reference tool, 50 Great e-Businesses and the minds behind them should serve as an inspiration to all the aspiring Larry Pages and Sergey Brins out there.
IT AND THE EAST: How China and India are Altering the Future of Technology and InnovationBy James M. Popkin and Partha Iyengar
(Harvard Business School Publishing)
China and India are definitely the “buzz” economies in the world today. All the large corporations are planning their fiscal futures with the two aspiring superpowers well and truly in the front of their minds. IT and the East, by James M. Popkin and Partha Iyengar, aims to explain where the two countries currently stand in the IT market and predict the relative importance and impact China and India will have on the IT sector globally.
The book gives an in-depth and often sobering look into the political history of the two countries and how these governments have steered the two IT sectors in different directions – China into the manufacturing mecca and India the international home of outsourcing. The book does not simply explain the problems, however, with the authors giving insights into what must change in order for the countries to move beyond their current IT stereotypes, to ensure the best possible outcome for their industries.
The authors also provide three likely scenarios for the IT future of the two countries, the probability of each occurring and what will be the main factors initiating these changes. The book culminates by examining the possibility of a combined “Chindia” IT superpower and the drastic, implications that would have for the global business world.
IT and the East is an unexpectedly easy and highly entertaining read that also acts as an invaluable tool for business people who are considering moving into, or already trading in, the East.
