Wikinomics: How Mass Communication Changes Everything

KEY MESSAGES

Some of the most successful attempts at collaboration and innovation have taken teamwork to a global scale, involving thousands of people.
Teams are becoming more egalitarian, more eclectic, more dispersed and more open about what they know and who they’re willing to help.
While large-scale collaborations have pitfalls, they often lead to great benefits such as creative new ideas, increased ability to compete in business, and unprecedented achievements in learning and scientific discovery.

This is a summary of a book by Don Tapscott and Anthony D. Williams

“Wikinomics” has become the way of the future when it comes to collaboration, say Don Tapscott and Anthony D. Williams. The authors write about the concept in their 2006 book with the same name. It’s a concept that embraces the idea that the more people who participate in innovation, the better (and more lucrative) the result.

The word “wikinomics” comes from a type of software called a “wiki” that allows anyone to contribute to the software and change it. One of the most popular wikis is Wikipedia—it is an online encyclopedia that allows anyone to alter its contents. At first blush, this might seem like a ridiculous idea—if anyone can tamper with the contents, then isn’t it bound to be riddled with errors? Not so—Wikipedia has 10 times more information than the Encyclopedia Brittanica and is nearly as accurate! In fact, a recent article in Nature magazine that compared 42 science-related articles in each encyclopedia found similar error rates – Wikipedia had about 4 errors per article, while Brittanica had about 3 errors per article.

What makes wikinomics so powerful?

Openness is the first of four principles that Tapscott and Williams have identified as the key to success in wikinomics. The openness principle encourages organizations to seek talented people from around the world to contribute to their work. The second principle―peering―eliminates traditional hierarchies and puts participants on a level playing field. Sharing is the third principle and it encourages collaborators to share their infrastructures, resources and insights. The fourth principle is acting globally, encouraging organizations to keep abreast of global developments in their field.

Who can reap the success?

Of course, businesses are making money from using the principles of wikinomics. Tapscott and Williams tell the story of a failing gold mine company that–although completely unheard of in such a secretive field—put all its information on the Internet, offering a cash award for anyone who could suggest where they might start drilling next. Geologists responded en masse, along with grad students, mathematicians and military officers, among others. Half the respondents recommended new drill sites, 80 percent of which yielded substantial amounts of gold.

Multinational manufacturer Proctor & Gamble also harnessed the power of collective thinking. Now people can work for the company without ever having a job interview. As many as 90,000 scientists worldwide volunteer their time and expertise online for the company in the hopes of earning a cash reward for their ideas and inventions.

But wikinomics has benefits for other sectors too, say Tapscott and Williams. For example, its collective power can cure diseases and tackle environmental problems. Naturally there are naysayers who predict potential catastrophes from this kind of cooperation. For example, some argue that wikinomics can bring increased vulnerability to terrorism and criminal networks. Still many more will reap the benefit from mass collaboration, including manufacturers, scientists, software creators, charities and even democratic governments.

Bibliographic Reference(s)

Tapscott D & Williams A. 2006. Wikinomics: How Mass Communication Changes Everything. Penguin Group: New York.

This summary is an interpretation and is not necessarily endorsed by the author(s) of the work cited.