The Pirate Organization: Lessons from the Fringes of Capitalism

Description

What can you learn from pirates? Plenty. Pirates have appeared at pivotal periods in history-when capitalism spread along the trade routes toward the Indies, when radio opened an era of mass communication, when the Internet became part of the global economy. Most people view them as solitary anarchists out to destroy capitalism. But as it turns out, the opposite is true. In The Pirate Organization, Rodolphe Durand and Jean-Philippe Vergne argue that piracy both drives capitalism's evolution and foreshadows the direction of the economy.

Rodolphe Durand is the GDF-Suez Professor of Strategy at HEC Paris. In 2010 he received the European Academy of Management's Imagination Lab Foundation Award for Innovative Scholarship. His work has been published widely in academic journals. Jean-Philippe Vergne is an assistant professor of strategy at the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario. His ongoing research on the global arms industry received the inaugural Grigor McClelland Doctoral Dissertation Award in 2011.

"...this is a stimulating book filled with new ideas. Philosophically minded land- lubbers will enjoy it just as much as barnacle-backs." -- The Economist "All this economic theory is paired with engaging analysis of the history and golden ages of piracy." -- Financial Times "An interesting and thought-provoking read. The book debunks popular myths about piracy being random and suggests instead that it is predictable, cannot be separated from capitalism and will be the source of capitalism's continuing evolution." -- The Irish Times "Rather than try to stamp out piracy, entrepreneurs and businesses should watch how pirates behave in order to stay successful." -- Telegraph.co.uk "This is an important book that adds to our understanding of the transition between different phases of capitalism...We recommend it." -- Compass, the magazine of the Association of Professional Futurists "Turns out piracy is not just opportunist brigandry, but a driver of capitalist evolution and a pointer to economic direction. So watch the pirates and stay ahead of the game. Yo, ho, ho and hoist the Jolly Roger!" -- The Australian Way (Quantas Airlines inflight magazine) Praise for the French Edition of The Pirate Organization (L'organisation pirate) "When laws and technologies change, piracy ... tends to arise. This was true when the age of navigation led sailors into waters where no one was ruler, and it is true on the frontiers of the information age today." -- Christopher Caldwell, Financial Times "A stimulating piece to savor" -- Le Monde "Daring, challenging, stimulating" -- Technikart "Inspiring ideas that push further the boundaries of reflection" -- Les Echos "A remarkable essay" -- Les Influences