The World Is Flat
A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century
About the book
Thomas L. Friedman, an American political commentator, argues that globalization at the start of the twenty-first century leveled the field on which countries, companies and individuals compete. The idea took shape on a trip to Bangalore; he calls the new era Globalization 3.0, after phases led by nations and then by multinationals. Friedman names ten flatteners behind the change, including the fall of the Berlin Wall, Netscape going public, workflow software, uploading, outsourcing and offshoring. Indian and Chinese firms in global supply chains serve as his examples. An expanded edition added over a hundred pages of new reporting. It was the first winner of the Business Book of the Year Award run by the Financial Times and Goldman Sachs.
Jamie Dimon included it on the reading list he e-mailed to JPMorgan summer interns in 2010. Erik Rostad, creator of the Books of Titans project, said its argument persuaded him to go to graduate school.
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This book has 2 recommendations
Jamie Dimon (CEO/JPMorgan Chase)
On Jamie Dimon’s reading list he e-mailed to JPMorgan summer interns (2010)
Erik Rostad (Creator/Books of Titans project)
I read this book in 2003 or 2004. I was out of college and working in my first job. Friedman convincingly showed that the world was rapidly changing and that I would soon be competing for jobs with people from around the world. I decided to go to graduate school as a direct result of being convinced of his argument in this book.
What's interesting is that I don't think these two books would have the same impact on me now than they did at the time I read them. Certain books are meant for certain seasons of life. Also, the Friedman one is probably quite outdated by now. In other words, these wouldn't necessarily be the books I recommend to people now, but they shaped the direction of my life.
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