The Flat World Concept: The road to Innovation is a bumpy ride, but it's worth every mile...

The World is Flat is not a myth. It's all around us. When I first read the book, I was swept with this grandiose idea of the developing nations spreading their wealth that the developed and industrialized nations have to offer, in the form of jobs. The World is Flat is about the various business practices, such as the change management, the e-commerce and portal management, the internet, the blogs, online social networks and about multitude of other technological advances that the developing countries has seen in the past 15 years or so, and how it has globally flattened the level playing field of a company's and a country's economy. It surely has drastically altered the know-how of business and life in general these days. Even more exciting are the opportunities that lie ahead.

Image courtesy: http://www.businessinnovationinsider.com/

Personally I feel that the concept of The World is Flat is not limited to the competition amongst nations or companies, but it's a competition between me and my imagination. A strange analogy, but yes I feel that it's more about my creativity and innovation, and how I can contribute to the society. Coming from a leading technological firm, whose motto firmly believed with the Flat World concept, I had the privilege of listening to the notions of my childhood hero, Mr. Narayana Murthy. As a honorary chief guest for one of the award ceremonies, he made the mark with the following - Innovation is a journey and not a destination. What it meant was that the moment you feel you have achieved innovation, means that you are no longer innovating.

In this fast changing world, the a new business model is always in the making, and new operating model is always setup to support it. How quickly the transformation of this entire model takes place will determine the success of the new business model. Sometimes, it is enthralling to see new players coming from nowhere and making their mark as new leaders driving their business in all verticals. From my personal experience, I have had the privilege of observing these changes from a different perspective, and at times I respectfully disagree to some points mentioned in the book.

More about Flat World concepts in the next session - Off Offshoring and Flat World...