The triple convergence explains how the world became flat, how we used it our advantage, and how this together changed the playing field.
Convergence I: The combination of the ten world flatteners created a new global platform. This new platform allowed us to collaborate and communicate in ways in we never have before. This new platform allowed us to collaborate without regard to geography, time, or distance. It is interesting to see how the ten seemingly unrelated flatteners came together to create a new global platform. It was as if the world was revolving right before our eyes and we did not really realize what was happening until after it was said and done.
Convergence II: This new platform would not be useful if we did not change the way we did business. What it took business process to change, adapt and benefit from new technologies is what is Friedman refers to as “horizontalization”. In globalization 3.0, we moved from a vertical chain of command to a horizontal chain of command for value creation. These lead companies to focus less on chain of command and more on connection and collaboration. Companies have begun to realize the advantages created by thinking horizontally and have begun to use collaboration to their advantage.
Convergence III: Before the flattening of the world, the global economy consisted of about 2.5 billion people. The flattened world allowed another 150 million people to be added to the global connected workforce. More importantly globalization is now being driven by the individual not by governmental agencies. Because of the new flat world we now have access to collaboration tools and raw information. As I stated in a previous post it is necessary for us to accept and adapt to this new flat world in order to be competitve. In India these individual are referred to as Zippies. Zippies are the Indian youth who have come to age since India shifted away from socialism. Instead of trying to get a Visa to work or study in the U.S. this generation has discovered they can now stay in India and be just as successful. The point is clear then that the ten world flatteners have enabled Indians, Chinese, and Russians to innovate without having to emigrate.
The Other Convergence: The other convergence helps to explain why the triple convergence occurred and so many of us did not seem to notice it. I personally believe that it takes time for the world to adjust to new trends and it is not something that can happen over night. We did not miss it we were aware of it but distracted by other global events. Friedman points out three smokes screens the caused us to “miss” the triple convergence\. The first thing he attributes to the smoke screen is dot-com burst. So many people associated dot-com with globalization that when it failed we believe globalization as well. I agree with him that this is ludicrous but I do not think that many people associated this with globalization. The other two factors attributed to the smoke screen were 9/11 and the corporate scandals. This just support my theory that we were distracted by other world/economic crisis at the same time that the triple convergence occurred.
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5 comments:
For me, Convergence I was a bunch of nonsense. Friedman is just listing the new technologies out their in the market and putting his ten flatteners together. Any dumby could figure out from the last chapter that of course all of these flatteners have an effect on globalization. The main & most important Convergence I believe is Convergence II. Businesses had to readjust their whole structure and culture in able to be globlaized. The whole hierarchy of traditional business practice came tumbling down once the horizontalization practice came about. To me Convergence II makes me think about the Gap between the Baby Boomers and Generation Y, the new workforce.
I think this chapter was one of the most boring in the whole book. It is even boring for me to comment on it. So I think he could have done away with this chapter, and instead of incoprorated his ideas on the three different convergences in chapter 2 or the chapters that follow. It would have flowed much better if he did that.
(Erica) I agree with Liz that Chapter 3 was the most boring and redundant chapter of the book. After reading the hundreds of pages that are chapter 2, I already got Friedman’s point that worldwide, people are using a Web-enabled platform to collaborate horizontally. The only insight I saw was how some people may have been distracted by certain events like the dot-com era and 9/11, and how the media’s focus on these events could have distracted people from noticing the world is becoming more flat/global.
I didn't understand the meaning
It's simple to understand the development in technology , the dot com and web use all over the world , horizontal imagination and last but not the least maximum Participation of grass root level of mankind with no fear rather uplift of the society
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