“The World Is Flat” By Thomas L Friedman Advances in technology and the way information flows throughout the world, along with the opening of global economic borders has created an atmosphere where many more countries and more companies can compete for their own slice of the economic pie. If we don’t get in the game we will soon be on the sideline watching. 2

The 10 Flatteners Thomas Friedman outlined 10 factors which he believes have flatten the world’s economic playing field. 3

Flattener # 1…and the walls come crumbling down! Friedman’s first flattener was the fall of the Berlin wall on November 9, 1989. This paved the way for an entire region once stagnated by the cold war, to compete on a world economic scale. Capitalism was able to spread its wings throughout Eastern Europe and into Asia and beyond. 4

Flattener # 1 : Continued… Top down bureaucracies were dismantled and socialist tilting economies like India’s were revamped to make room for the entrepreneurial spirit that was once bound by the walls of bureaucracy and red tape. The fall of the Berlin Wall allowed for horizontal communication throughout the world. 5

Flattener # 1 : Continued… Open communication allows an open exchange of ideas. The best of those ideas will rise like cream to the top. We must teach ourselves to innovate and become the cream that rises to the top. 6

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Flattener #2: Netscape and the Web Netscape allowed the Web community to connect more easily by making other peoples Web pages easy to view. (Point and click)‏ Web protocols enabled different types of computers to communicate regardless of compatibility issues. Open communication meant an open discussion of ideas. 8

Flattener #2: Netscape and the Web Enthusiasm for the internet allowed for an endless supply of investment money and stimulated a boom which paved the internet highway throughout the world. 9

Flattener #3: Work Flow Software Workflow software allows work to be broken up into pieces. The pieces can be farmed out anywhere in the world to the highest quality/best value producers, and then seamlessly put back together via the internet and workflow software. 10

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Wild Brain : Example of Work Flow Software Friedman sights an example of an animation production team called “Wild Brain”, using the new plumbing of the internet along with work flow software to allow its employees to contribute from all over the globe. Animation for the show “Higglytown Heroes” is done in India, design in New York, and the writers are from all over the U.S. 12

Flattener #4: Uploading Open Source Software is a program created by a community of code writers. Source code is made available online for anyone to use and the user may contribute patches to improve its capabilities. This collaborative effort pools the intellect of many people in an effort to create a better programs for all. 13

Flattener #4: Uploading These communities of programmers working for the better good was the framework for many other creative groups coming together to collaborate and discuss whatever interests they had. The blog was born and a whole new creative outlet was brought forth with it. 14

Flattener # 5: Outsourcing Y2K A set of unique circumstances created a partnership that would be a win/win for both parties involved. The partnership was between an India nation that had a large pool of computer savvy intellectual talent and the United States who had massive amounts of tedious work to complete in order to prepare for the Y2K computer crisis. 15

Flattener # 5: Outsourcing Y2K The recently built internet superhighway linked the two nations and allowed the United States to outsource the massive amount of code review work that had to be completed before Y2K to intellectually talented and underemployed India software engineers. This created a partnership that would then be used again and again. 16

Flattener # 5: Outsourcing Y2K This proved that if it could be digitized, it could be out sourced to the cheapest/most efficient supplier available. This opened choices for all businesses on a global scale. 17

Flattener #6: Off shoring The difference between outsourcing and off shoring is that outsourcing is done via the internet and workflow software, while off shoring moves an entire corporate operation to the most advantageous location for the company involved. This promotes competition and insures survival of the fittest. It also allows the utilization of massive amounts of cheap labor in countries such as China. 18

Flattener #6: Off shoring Friedman uses the example of the African proverb: the Gazelle vs. the Lion. Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle. When the sun comes up, you better start running. 19

Flattener #7: Supply-Chain For the next flattener, Friedman provides the example of the behemoth Wal-Mart. A Wal-Mart cashier can scan an item in any of its stores and provide an up-to-the-minute inventory update to its warehouse facility and suppliers. This allows for immediate demand updates for production and distribution. 20

Flattener #7: Supply-Chain Finding the lowest price/best quality producers is not enough if you can’t get the merchandise to where it is needed. Wal-Mart’s state of the art supply-chain management keeps it one step ahead of the competition. 21

Flattener # 8: Insourcing Friedman’s next flattener is given life by the exposition of UPS and its ability provide business logistics for clients big and small. UPS makes big clients to act small by giving them a quick response time and personal touch for their clients. It allows small companies to appear big by providing Wal-Mart like logistics and supply- chaining w/o the cost. 22

Flattener # 8: Insourcing It also gives small business a global reach through its worldwide shipping and tracking systems. UPS literally gets inside a company and does parts of its operation for them. 23

Flattener # 9: Informing The next flattener is perhaps the most important: Informing. Search engine software like Google and Yahoo allow an infinite amount of information at your fingertips. This endless supply of information and ease of access, allows the individual to bridge cultural difference and gain admittance to countless resources of information. 24

Flattener # 9: Informing Friedman believes that a knowledgeable, well trained workforce is the key to success in a flat world. Now that knowledge is available anywhere and at anytime. 25

Flattener # 10: The Steroids The factors that Friedman refers to as the steroids are things that make all the other flatteners work better. Things such as faster more efficient PCs, wireless access and a more efficient communication methods like videoconferencing. Improvements that allow for anytime/anywhere access and pocket size capabilities. 26

The Triple Convergence The “Triple Convergence” is the set of factors that came together to flatten the world and usher in a new era of international business and competition. 27

The Triple Convergence All the 10 flatteners coming together have made the world more accessible to everyone. 28

The Triple Convergence Convergence II: Companies and their managers begin to understand and adapt to the 10 flattener. They utilize them in advantageous ways that improve the ways business is done. We must be the same type of innovative managers. Like the Lion and the Gazelle, we must start running to survive. 29

The Triple Convergence Convergence III: The addition of China, India, parts of Latin America and Eastern Europe to the global playing field have added to the competition. The competitive players have roughly doubled and they are ready to go right out of the box. 30

Wake up call!! We as a country must realize the existence of the flat world. We must educate our employees and utilize the flattening tools in order to make ourselves leaner, faster and stronger as a country. The competition is here, and they are hungry. We must run fast or be eaten!! 31