sábado, 31 de marzo de 2007

How the world really shapes up

Fuente: Daily Mail

"But a new series of extraordinary maps shows our planet in a very different light.

Rather than defining each country by size, these computer-generated modified maps - or cartograms - redraw the globe with each country's size proportionate to its strengths, or weaknesses, in a whole series of categories.

For instance, when it comes to military spending, the U.S. appears bloated, but Africa is huge when HIV prevalence is mapped.

The cartograms were produced in a unique collaboration between the universities of Michigan in the U.S. and Sheffield. Here are images and more details on some of the most fascinating..."

miércoles, 7 de marzo de 2007

The Apotheosis of David Beckham

Fuente: Strategy Op. Ed.: The Apotheosis of David Beckham

"...the individual now defines himself purely and simply as product.

If this sounds like Karl Marx's version of wage labor to you, forget it. Nothing could be further from the truth. Instead of the proletariat selling their bodies to the capitalists, it is the capitalist entrepreneur who sells his body to the avaricious proletariat in the digital format so desired. It is a fair transaction, transparent and honest. A legitimate exchange along well-defined utility curves.

Of course, David Beckham did not invent this idea. The concept is explained beautifully in Chapter 1 of Robert Grant's Contemporary Strategy Analysis, the standard strategy textbook in many MBA programs. Grant gives three examples of "Person as Product", based on three individuals who developed successful strategies"