THE PREMISE
The central premise of We Are Smarter Than Me is that large groups of people ("We") can, and should, take responsibility for traditional business functions that are currently performed by companies, industries and experts ("Me").
What do we mean? Let's look at some recent examples:
- Procter & Gamble is recruiting 600,000 housewives to help market its products through word of mouth. In return for much greater reach and impact, the company is giving up control of the marketing message, relying on its community of customers/marketers to craft their own message in the most appropriate fashion.
- Microlending websites provide the ability for individuals to lend to small businesses directly. The underwriting decisions (assessing the risk of each loan) are made by individuals, and the price of loan is established through lender bidding. We expect these lending decisions to be superior to the same decisions currently made by experts at banks.
- Patients faced with rare diseases are increasingly turning to internet discussion groups to learn more about risks and treatment options, and as a result are participating with doctors more actively (in some cases much more actively) in decisions regarding their care.
A few books have recently been written on this topic, but they all fail to confront one central paradox. While they extol the power of communities, they were each written by only one person. We're putting this paradox to the test by inviting hundreds of thousands of authors to contribute to this "network book" using today's technologies.
THE PROCESS
Students, faculty and alumni of two illustrious institutions, as well as leaders, authors, and experts from the fields of management and technology are invited to harness the power of community.
Writing will commence with invitees from the following communities:
- Wharton Business School: 675,000 invitees
- MIT Sloan School of Management: 400,000 invitees
- Pearson: 500,000 invitees
- Shared Insights: 250,000 invitees
And we're looking to develop and share insights about why these approaches work or don't work; and what companies have to do to make them work better.
Find answers to frequently asked question and see what the media is saying about We are Smarter Than Me. Or read more about our community directly from its founders.
Want more? Register today and begin your membership in a groundbreaking community.