It seems as if I receive a book in the mail or someone recommends that I read another book at least once every week. I find many of these books to have one or two interesting ideas that would be better presented as a short article rather than an entire book.
However, I received a book last month that contradicted my thoughts above because it provided many interesting insights. The book is titled, Proximity: How Coming Breakthroughs in Just-in-Time Transform Business, Society, and Daily Life.
Proximity was written by Rob Wolcott, a fellow professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, and Kaihan Krippendorff, the founder of Outthinker Networks.
The book’s opening paragraph immediately caught my attention:
What if you could have whatever you want, produced and provided immediately and affordably no matter how customized―with minimal environmental impact? Products, services, and experiences on demand. Just-in-time anything, anywhere, anytime. This radical change is underway, as digital technologies push the production and provision of value ever closer to the moment of demand.
Most of us grew up in a business environment where there is a significant trade-off between cost and customization (getting the product or service the customer wants ASAP). Companies often attempt to forecast and predict future demand to achieve longer production runs, economies of scale, and lower unit cost. The challenge is that predicting future demand is difficult. By waiting until demand actually occurs, proximate business models “require less prediction of future demand and generate less waste.”
Proximity provides specific examples where customization can be achieved at a lower cost, quickly and efficiently. One interesting example is in healthcare and addressing the problem of shortages of essential pharmaceuticals in war zones. How do you get the right drug to the right patient in war zones? Proximity tells the story of Colonel Geoffrey Ling who asked the question, “Could we produce the right drugs at small scale onsite, immediately where and when required?” By recognizing that most drugs require a limited number of basic inputs, he and his team created a system “capable of small-scale production of generic drugs….the size of a small refrigerator… essentially a printer for pharmaceuticals.”
Another topic discussed is the advantages and disadvantages of artificial intelligence in a very BALANCED (my favorite word🤣) way. Yes, there will be amazing positive changes in the world going forward, but we must be aware of the immense energy requirements necessary to achieve these changes. For example, the authors quote the work of Peter Bryant, “We are shifting from a fossil fuel intensity to a minerals-intensive energy system. We now face a minerals famine in key minerals like copper, nickel, and lithium that will undermine reaching the 2035–2050 goals set by companies and governments.” (For info on Bryant’s work, go to http://www.Peter-Bryant.com)
Proximity is a book definitely worth exploring! I highly recommend it and urge you to check out its website to learn more: ProximityBook.net
Have a great week!
