the.world.is.flat-第85节

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closed　roads。）　
〃We　are　a　very　flat　organization；〃　Ghandour　explained。　〃This　is　not　traditional；　
because　Arabinstitutions　in　the　private　sector　tend　to　look　like　the　governments…very　
hierarchal　and　patriarchal。　That　is　not　how　Aramex　works。　There　are　no　more　than　two　
to　three　layers　between　me　and　anyone　in　the　company。　Every　single　knowledge　worker　
in　this　organization　has　a　computer　with　e…mail　and　Internet　access。　Right　here　from　
your　computer　I　can　access　my　intranet　and　see　exactly　what　is　happening　in　the　
organization　without　my　senior　people　having　to　report　to　me。〃　

In　sum；　Fadi　Ghandour　took　advantage　of　several　new　forms　of　
collaboration…supply…chaining；　outsourcing；　insourcing；　and　all　the　steroids…　to　
make　his　little　200…million…a…year　company　very　big。　Or；　as　he　put　it　with　a　smile；　
〃I　was　big　locally　and　small　internationally…and　I　reversed　that。〃　
Rule　#3：　And　the　big　shall　act　small。。。　One　way　that　big　companies　learn　to　flourish　
in　the　flat　world　is　by　learning　how　to　act　really　small　by　enabling　their　customers　
to　act　really　big。　
Howard　Schultz；　the　founder　and　chairman　of　Starbucks；　says　that　Starbucks　estimates　
that　it　is　possible　to　make　nineteen　thousand　variations　of　coffee　on　the　basis　of　
the　menus　posted　at　any　Starbucks　outlet。　What　Starbucks　did；　in　other　words；　was　
make　its　customers　its　drink　designers　and　allow　them　to　customize　their　drinks　to　
their　exact　specifications。　Starbucks　never　thought　of　offering　soy　milk；　Schultz　
told　me；　until　store　managers　started　to　get　bombarded　with　demands　for　it　from　
customers；　to　the　point　where　they　were　going　to　the　grocery　store　across　the　street　


in　the　middle　of　the　day　to　buy　cartons　of　soy　milk。　Starbucks　learned　from　its　
customers；　and　today　some　8　percent　of　all　the　drinks　that　Starbucks　sells　include　
soy　milk。　〃We　didn't　dream　up　the　different　concoctions　with　soy　milk；〃　said　Schultz；　
〃the　customers　did。〃　Starbucks　just　collaborated　with　them。　The　smartest　big　
companies　clearly　understand　that　the　triple　convergence　allows　them　to　collaborate　
with　their　customers　in　a　totally　new　fashion…and；　by　doing　so；　to　act　really　small。　
The　way　that　big　companies　act　small　is　not　by　targeting　each　individual　consumer　
and　trying　to　serve　that　customer　individually。　That　would　be　impossible　and　
impossibly　expensive。　They　do　it　by　making　their　business；　as　much　as　possible；　into　
a　buffet。　These　companies　create　a　platform　that　allows　individual　customers　to　serve　
themselves　in　their　own　way；　at　their　own　pace；　in　their　own　time；　according　to　their　
own　tastes。　They　are　actually　making　their　customers　their　employees　and　having　them　
pay　the　company　for　that　pleasure　at　the　same　time！　
One　of　those　big　companies　that　have　learned　to　act　small　in　this　way　is　E*Trade；　
the　online　bank　and　brokerage　house。　It　did　so；　explained　

Mitchell　H。　Caplan；　the　CEO　of　E*Trade　as　well　as　a　friend　and　neighbor；　by　recognizing　
that　behind　all　the　hoopla　around　the　dot…com　boom　and　bust；　something　very　important　
was　happening。　〃Some　people　thought　the　Internet　was　going　to　revolutionize　
everything　in　the　world　with　no　limits…it　was　going　to　cure　the　common　cold/'　said　
Caplan。　Sure；　it　was　hype；　and　it　led　to　crazy　valuations　and　expectations；　which　
eventually　came　crashing　down。　But　meanwhile；　with　much　less　fanfare；　the　Internet　
was　creating　〃a　whole　new　distribution　platform　for　companies　to　reach　consumers　in　
a　whole　new　way　and　for　consumers　to　reach　your　company　in　a　whole　new　way；〃　Caplan　
said。　〃While　we　were　sleeping；　my　mom　figured　out　how　to　use　e…mail　and　connect　with　
the　kids。　My　kids　were　instant…messaging　all　their　friends。　My　mom　figured　out　how　
to　go　online　and　check　her　E*Trade　balances。〃　
Companies　that　were　paying　attention　understood　they　were　witnessing　the　birth　of　
the　〃self…directed　consumer；〃　because　the　Internet　and　all　the　other　tools　of　the　
flat　world　had　created　a　means　for　every　consumer　to　customize　exactly　the　price；　
experience；　and　service　he　or　she　wanted。　Big　companies　that　could　adapt　their　
technology　and　business　processes　to　empower　this　self…directed　consumer　could　act　
very　small　by　enabling　their　customers　to　act　very　big。　They　could　make　the　consumer　
feel　that　every　product　or　service　was　being　tailored　for　his　or　her　specific　needs　
and　desires；　when　in　fact　all　that　the　company　was　doing　was　creating　a　digital　buffet　
for　them　to　serve　themselves。　
In　the　financial　services　industry；　this　constituted　a　profound　change　in　approach。　
Historically；　financial　services　was　dominatedby　large　banks；　large　brokerage　houses；　
and　large　insurance　companies　that　told　you　what　you　were　getting；　how　you　were　getting　
it；　when　and　where　you　were　getting　it；　and　the　price　you　had　to　pay　for　it。　Customers　
reacted　to　these　big　companies　with　emotions　ranging　from　apathy　to　distaste。　But　
if　I　didn't　like　the　way　my　bank　was　treating　me；　I　didn't　have　any　real　choice。　Then　
the　world　was　flattened　and　the　Internet　came　along。　Consumers　started　to　feel　that　
they　could　have　more　control；　and　the　more　they　adapted　their　buying　habits　to　the　


Internet；　the　more　companies…from　booksellers　to　financial　services…had　to　adapt　and　
offer　them　the　tools　to　be　in　control。　
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〃Sure；　the　Internet　stocks　blew　up　when　the　bubble　burst；〃　said　Caplan；　whose　own　
company's　stock　price　took　a　big　dip　in　that　market　storm；　〃but　underneath；　consumers　
were　getting　a　taste　of　power；　and　once　they　tasted　it；　things　went　from　companies　
being　in　control　of　consumers'　behavior　to　consumers　being　in　control　of　companies'　
behavior。　The　rules　of　engagement　changed；　and　if　you　did　not　respond　and　offer　
customers　what　they　wanted；　someone　else　would；　and　you　would　be　dead。〃　Where　once　
the　financial　services　companies　acted　big；　now　they　strove　to　act　small　and　to　enable　
the　consumer　to　act　big。　〃Companies　who　prosper　today；〃　argued　Caplan；　〃are　the　ones　
who　understand　the　self…directed　consumer。〃　For　E*Trade；　that　meant　thinking　of　the　
company　not　as　a　collection　of　individual　financial　services…a　bank；　a　brokerage；　
and　a　lending　business…but　as　an　integrated　financial　experience　that　could　serve　
the　most　self…directed　financial　consumers。　〃The　self…directed　consumer　wanted　
one…stop　financial　shopping；〃　said　Caplan。　〃When　they　came　to　our　site　they　wanted　
everything　integrated；　with　them　in　control。　Only　recently；　though；　did　we　have　the　
technology　to　really　integrate　all　our　three　businesses…banking；　lending；　and　
brokerage…and　pull　them　together　in　a　way　that　didn't　just　deliver　the　price；　not　
just　the　service；　but　the　total　experience　they　wanted。〃　
If　you　came　to　the　E*Trade　site　just　three　or　four　years　ago；　you　would　see　your　
brokerage　account　on　one　screen　page　and　your　lending　on　another。　Today；　said　Caplan；　
〃On　one　page　you　can　now　see　exactly　where　you　stand　in　terms　of　your　brokerage　in　
real　time；　including　your　buying　power；　and　you　see　your　bank　account　and　the　scheduled　
payments　for　your　loans…what　is　pending；　what　is　the　balance　on　your　home　mortgage；　
and　＇what　is　your＇　line　of　credit…and　you　have　the　ability　to　move　seamlessly　between　
all　three　to　maximize　the　benefit　of　your　cash。〃　
While　Fadi　Ghandour　coped　with　the　triple　convergence　by　taking　a　small　company　and　
devising　a　strategy　to　make　it　act　very　big；　Mitchell　Caplan　survived　by　taking　a　
big　company　and　making　it　act　very　small　so　that　his　customers　could　act　very　big。　
Rule　#4：　The　best　companies　are　the　best　collaborators。　In　the　flat　world；　more　and　
more　business　will　be　done　through　collaborations　
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within　and　between　companies；　for　a　very　simple　reason：　The　next　layers　of　value　
creation…whether　in　technology；　marketing；　biomedicine；　or　manufacturing…are　
becoming　so　complex　that　no　single　firm　or　department　is　going　to　be　able　to　master　
them　alone。　
〃What　we　are　seeing　in　so　many　different　fields；〃　said　Joel　Cawley；　the　head　of　IBM's　
strategic　planning　unit；　〃is　that　the　next　layers　of　innovation　involve　the　
intersection　of　very　advanced　specialties。　The　cutting　edge　of　technical　innovation　
in　every　field　is　increasingly　specialized。〃　In　most　cases；　your　own　company's　or　
your　own　department's　specialization　is　going　to　be　applicable　to　only　a　very　small　
piece　of　any　meaningful　business　or　social　challenge。　〃Therefore；　to　come　up　with　
any　valuable　new　breakthrough；　you　have　to　be　able　to　combine　more　and　more　of　these　


increasingly　granular　specialties。　That　is　why　collaboration　is　so　important；〃　Cawley　
said。　So　you　might　find　that　a　pharmaceutical　company　has　invented　a　new　stent　that　
allows　it　to　dispense　a　whole　new　class　of　drugs　that　a　biomedical　company　has　been　
working　on；　and　the　real　breakthrough…where　the　real　profit　is　created　for　both…is　
in　their　collaboration　in　getting　the　breakthrough　drugs　from　one　firm　together　with　
the　breakthrough　delivery　system　from　another。　
Or　take　a　more　colorful　example：　video　games。　Game　makers　have　long　been　commissioning　
special　music　to　go　with　games。　They　eventually　discovered　that　when　they　combined　
the　right　music　with　the　right　game　they　not　only　sold