The term “creative destruction” was knicked from Karl Marx and repurposed by the Austrian-American economist Joseph Schumpter to describe the impact of new technologies and innovations on established social structures. It helps people understand the reshaping impact the Internet has had on one industry after another. We all love the “creative” part, but the “destruction” part can be brutally hard on businesses and individuals. In their new e-book, Race Against the Machine, MIT Sloan School of Management professors Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee take a hard look at the impact of today’s acceleration of technology on jobs and the economy.
They argue that while the global financial crisis, off-shoring of jobs, taxes and regulations have all had an impact on jobs in the United States, technology is also a significant factor. They say we’re in the early throes of a Great Restructuring. “Our technologies are racing ahead but many of our skills and organizations are lagging behind. So it’s urgent that we understand these phenomena, discuss their implications and come up with strategies that allow human workers to race with machines instead of racing against them,” they write in the book’s introduction.
Brynjolfsson and McAfee call themselves “digital optimists.” They argue that information technology tools are “greatly improving our world and our lives, and will continue to do so.” They put forth ideas for using technologies to accelerate organizational innovation and enhance human capital.
So how do we resolve this conundrum? Information technologies make people and economies more productive and efficient. They enable collaboration and creativity. They help people make better decisions and live smarter. Yet they also make it possible for organizations to perform more work with fewer people–or to do different kinds of work that doesn’t require as many people.
What are your ideas for how we can get the best of technologies and also best handle the “destruction” part?