In just the last few years, traditional collaboration — in a meeting room, a conference call, even a convention center — has been superseded by collaborations on an astronomical scale.

Today, encyclopedias, jetliners, operating systems, mutual funds, and many other items are being created by teams numbering in the thousands or even millions. While some leaders fear the heaving growth of these massive online communities, Wikinomics proves this fear is folly. Smart firms can harness collective capability and genius to spur innovation, growth, and success.

A brilliant guide to one of the most profound changes of our time, Wikinomics challenges our most deeply-rooted assumptions about business and will prove indispensable to anyone who wants to understand competitiveness in the twenty-first century.

Based on a $9 million research project led by bestselling author Don Tapscott, Wikinomics shows how masses of people can participate in the economy like never before. They are creating TV news stories, sequencing the human genome, remixing their favorite music, designing software, finding a cure for disease, editing school texts, inventing new cosmetics, or even building motorcycles. You'll read about:

• Rob McEwen, the Goldcorp, Inc. CEO who used open source tactics and an online competition to save his company and breathe new life into an old-fashioned industry.
• Flickr, Second Life, YouTube, and other thriving online communities that transcend social networking to pioneer a new form of collaborative production.
• Mature companies like Procter & Gamble that cultivate nimble, trust-based relationships with external collaborators to form vibrant business ecosystems.
• An important look into the future, Wikinomics will be your road map for doing business in the twenty-first century

Tapscott (management, U. of Toronto) and Williams (resesarch, London School of Economics) explore the phenomenon of global collaboration demonstrated on YouTube, Wikipedia, The Human Genome Project, and other websites, offering insights to businesses on using open source strategies to expand research and development and marketing success. Sharing stories from Best Buy, Boeing, BMW, and other companies, the authors demonstrate that while the phenomenon is widely seen as undermining the right and need of a company to make a profit, online collaboration within and between firms, as well as with the greater public, holds great potential to boost business, not hinder it.
Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Tapscott (management, U. of Toronto) and Williams (resesarch, London School of Economics) explore the phenomenon of global collaboration demonstrated on YouTube, Wikipedia, The Human Genome Project, and other websites, offering insights to businesses on using open source strategies to expand research and development and marketing success. Sharing stories from Best Buy, Boeing, BMW, and other companies, the authors demonstrate that while the phenomenon is widely seen as undermining the right and need of a company to make a profit, online collaboration within and between firms, as well as with the greater public, holds great potential to boost business, not hinder it. Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

"Companies would do well to study how enterprises such as YouTube and MySpace have become online powerhouses by harnessing the attention and energy of millions of Internet users. The book is especially valuable for its clear and ultimately persuasive analysis, bolstered by vivid examples, of what is potentially a profound economic change." Wall Street Journal

"[Tapscott and Williams] have authored a paean to the value of individual empowerment in all sectors." Cleveland Plain Dealer

"[A] clear and exciting preview of how peer innovation will change everything." Booklist

"In-depth profiles of companies and individuals make the book helpful for all types of businesses." Library Journal

Don Tapscott is chief executive of New Paradigm, a think tank and strategy consulting company he founded in 1992. He is the author of ten books, including the bestsellers Paradigm Shift, The Digital Economy, Growing Up Digital, The Naked Corporation and Digital Capital. He teaches at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto.

Anthony D. Williams is a research director at New Paradigm. He holds a master's of research from the London School of Economics where he has been teaching over the last year. He leads New Paradigm's work in the areas of innovation and intellectual property.