the.world.is.flat-第50章

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WPP　assembled　a　customized　team　to　handle　everything　from　the　naming　of　the　new　
company…Genworth…all　the　way　down　to　its　first　advertising　campaign　and　
direct…marketing　program。　〃As　a　leader　withinthis　organization；〃　said　Adamson；　〃what　


you　have　to　do　is　figure　out　the　value　proposition　that　is　needed　for　each　client　
and　then　identify　and　assemble　the　individual　talents　within　WPP's　workforce　that　
will　in　effect　form　a　virtual　company　just　for　that　client。　In　the　case　of　GE；　we　
even　gave　a　name　to　the　virtual　collaborative　team　we　formed：　Klamath　Communications。〃　
When　the　world　went　flat；　WPP　adapted　itself　to　get　the　most　out　of　itself。　It　changed　
its　office　architecture　and　practices；　just　like　those　companies　that　adjusted　their　
steam…run　factories　to　the　electric　motor。　But　
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WPP　not　only　got　rid　of　all　its　walls；　it　got　rid　of　all　its　floors。　It　looked　at　
all　its　employees　from　all　its　companies　as　a　vast　pool　of　individual　specialists　
who　could　be　assembled　horizontally　into　collaborative　teams；　depending　on　the　unique　
demands　of　any　given　project。　And　that　team　would　then　become　a　de　facto　new　company　
with　its　own　name。　
It　will　take　time　for　this　new　playing　field　and　the　new　business　practices　to　be　
fully　aligned。　It's　a　work　in　progress。　But　here's　a　little　warning。　It　is　happening　
much　faster　than　you　think；　and　it　is　happening　globally。　
Remember；　this　was　a　triple　convergence！　
Convergence　III　
How　so？　Just　as　we　finished　creating　this　new；　more　horizontal　playing　field；　and　
companies　and　individuals　primarily　in　the　West　started　quickly　adapting　to　it；　3　
billion　people　who　had　been　frozen　out　of　the　field　suddenly　found　themselves　
liberated　to　plug　and　play　with　everybody　else。　
Save　for　a　tiny　minority；　these　3　billion　people　had　never　been　allowed　to　compete　
and　collaborate　before；　because　they　lived　in　largely　closed　economies　with　very　
vertical；　hierarchical　political　and　economic　structures。　I　am　talking　about　the　
people　ofChina；　India；Russia；　Eastern　Europe；Latin　America；　and　Central　Asia。　Their　
economies　and　political　systems　all　opened　up　during　the　course　of　the　1990s；　so　that　
their　people　were　increasingly　free　to　join　the　free…market　game。　And　when　did　these　
3　billion　people　converge　with　the　new　playing　field　and　the　new　processes？　Right　
when　the　field　was　being　flattened；　right　when　millions　of　them　could　compete　and　
collaborate　more　equally；　more　horizontally；　and　with　cheaper　and　more　readily　
available　tools　than　ever　before。　Indeed；　thanks　to　the　flattening　of　the　world；　many　
of　these　new　entrants　didn't　even　have　to　leave　home　to　participate。　Thanks　to　the　
ten　flatten…ers；　the　playing　field　came　to　them！　
It　is　this　triple　convergence…of　new　players；　on　a　new　playing　field；　developing　new　
processes　and　habits　for　horizontal　collaboration　…　that　I　be182　
lieve　is　the　most　important　force　shaping　global　economics　and　politics　in　the　early　
twenty…first　century。　Giving　so　many　people　access　to　all　these　tools　of　collaboration；　
along　with　the　ability　through　search　engines　and　the　Web　to　access　billions　of　pages　
of　raw　information；　ensures　that　the　next　generation　of　innovations　will　come　from　
all　over　Planet　Flat。　The　scale　of　the　global　community　that　is　soon　going　to　be　able　
to　participate　in　all　sorts　of　discovery　and　innovation　is　something　the　world　has　
simply　never　seen　before。　


Throughout　the　Cold　War　there　were　just　three　major　trading　blocs…North　America；　
Western　Europe；　and　Japan　plus　East　Asia…and　the　competition　among　the　three　was　
relatively　controlled；　since　they　were　all　Cold　War　allies　on　the　same　side　of　the　
great　global　divide。　There　were　also　still　a　lot　of　walls　around　for　labor　and　
industries　to　hide　behind。　The　wage　rates　in　these　three　trading　blocs　were　roughly　
the　same；　the　workforces　roughly　the　same　size；　and　the　education　levels　roughly　
equivalent。　〃You　had　a　gentlemanly　competition；〃　noted　Intel's　Chairman　Craig　
Barrett。　
Then　along　came　the　triple　convergence。　The　Berlin　Wall　came　down；　the　Berlin　mall　
opened　up；　and　suddenly　some　3　billion　people　who　had　been　behind　walls　walked　onto　
the　flattened　global　piazza。　
Here's　what　happened　in　round　numbers：　According　to　a　November　2004　study　by　Harvard　
University　economist　Richard　B。　Freeman；　in　1985　〃the　global　economic　world〃　
comprised　North　America；　Western　Europe；　Japan；　as　well　as　chunks　of　Latin　America；　
Africa；　and　the　countries　of　East　Asia。　The　total　population　of　this　global　economic　
world；　taking　part　in　international　trade　and　commerce；　said　Freeman；　was　about　2。5　
billion　people。　
By　2000；　as　a　result　of　the　collapse　of　communism　in　the　Soviet　Empire；　India's　turn　
from　autarky；　China's　shift　to　market　capitalism；　and　population　growth　all　over；　
the　global　economic　world　expanded　to　encompass　6　billion　people。　
As　a　result　of　this　widening；　another　roughly　1。5　billion　new　workers　entered　the　
global　economic　labor　force；　Freeman　said；　which　is　almost　exactly　double　the　number　
we　would　have　had　in　2000　had　China；　India；　and　the　Soviet　Empire　not　joined。　

True；　maybe　only　10　percent　of　this　new　1。5　billion…strong　workforce　entering　the　
global　economy　have　the　education　and　connectivity　to　collaborate　and　compete　at　a　
meaningful　level。　But　that　is　still　150　million　people；　roughly　the　size　of　the　entire　

U。S。　workforce。　Said　Barrett；　〃You　don't　bring　three　billion　people　into　the　world　
economy　overnight　without　huge　consequences；　especially　from　three　societies　＇like　
India；　China；　and　Russia＇　with　rich　educational　heritages。〃　
That　is　exactly　right。　And　a　lot　of　those　new　workers　are　not　just　walking　onto　the　
playing　field。　No；　this　is　no　slow…motion　triple　convergence。　They　are　jogging　and　
even　sprinting　there。　Because　once　the　world　has　been　flattened　and　the　new　forms　
of　collaboration　made　available　to　more　and　more　people；　the　winners　will　be　those　
who　learn　the　habits；　processes；　and　skills　most　quickly…and　there　is　simply　nothing　
that　guarantees　it　will　be　Americans　or　Western　Europeans　permanently　leading　the　
way。　And　be　advised；　these　new　players　are　stepping　onto　the　playing　field　legacy　
free；　meaning　that　many　of　them　were　so　far　behind　they　can　leap　right　into　the　new　
technologies　without　having　to　worry　about　all　the　sunken　costs　of　old　systems。　It　
means　that　they　can　move　very　fast　to　adopt　new；　state…of…the…art　technologies；　which　
is　why　there　are　already　more　cell　phones　in　use　in　China　today　than　there　are　people　
in　the　United　States。　Many　Chinese　just　skipped　over　the　landline　phase。　South　Koreans　
put　Americans　to　shame　in　terms　of　Internet　usage　and　broadband　penetration。　
We　tend　to　think　of　global　trade　and　economics　as　something　driven　by　the　IMF；　the　

G…8；　the　World　Bank；　the　WTO；　and　the　trade　treaties　forged　by　trade　ministers。　I　
don't　want　to　suggest　that　these　governmental　agencies　are　irrelevant。　They　are　not。　
But　they　are　going　to　become　less　important。　In　the　future　globalization　is　going　
to　be　increasingly　driven　by　the　individuals　who　understand　the　flat　world；　adapt　
themselves　quickly　to　its　processes　and　technologies；　and　start　to　march　
forward…without　any　treaties　or　advice　from　the　IMF。　They　will　be　every　color　of　the　
rainbow　and　from　every　corner　of　the　world。　
The　global　economy　from　here　forward　will　be　shaped　less　by　the　ponderous　
deliberations　of　finance　ministers　and　more　by　the　spontaneous　explosion　of　energy　
from　the　zippies。　Yes；　Americans　grew　up　with　
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the　hippes　in　the　1960s。　Thanks　to　the　high…tech　revolution；　many　of　us　became　yuppies　
in　the　1980s。　Well；　now　let　me　introduce　the　zippies。　
〃The　Zippies　Are　Here；〃　declared　the　Indian　weekly　magazine　Outlook。　Zippies　are　the　
huge　cohort　of　Indian　youth　who　are　the　first　to　come　of　age　since　India　shifted　away　
from　socialism　and　dived　headfirst　into　global　trade　and　the　information　revolution　
by　turning　itself　into　the　world's　service　center。　Outlook　called　India's　zippies　
〃Liberalization's　Children〃　and　defined　a　zippie　as　a　〃young　city　or　suburban　resident；　
between　15　and　25　years　of　age；　with　a　zip　in　the　stride。　Belo