10 rules for the intangible economy

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10 Rules For The Intangible Economy


10 Rules for the Intangible Economy lays out the essential dynamics of the

emerging financial order.


These rules are fundamental principles that are hardwired into the intangible economy,

and that apply to all businesses and industries, not just

high-tech ones.

Think of these principles as new economic rules of thumb.


Rules are mental models, regulations governing

conduct, action or procedure aimed at

getting a result.


When the rules change you have to change “how” you think

before you can change “what” you do to get the

results you want.


The old rules for economic gains were designed to produce and

sell tangible things


The new rules for economic gains are to create

and distribute valuefrom intangible things


The new rules for the intangible economy

start by thinking smarter, rather than working harder.


Smarter Companies

Follow The

Rules Of The

Intangible Economy


These Are The 10 Rules For The Intangible Economy


#1 Throw Out The Old Rules

• The old rules were about centralized control

• The new rules are about decentralized control

• The old rules were about managing people

• The new rules are about enabling people

• The old rules were about counting things

• The new rules are about counting value


#2 Create Collaborative Advantage

• It used to be about competitive advantage

• Now it is about collaborative advantage

• We used to compete for the same market.

• Now we collaborate to expand the market

• Competition is about beating someone

• Collaboration is about working with someone


#3 Feed The Minds

• Productivity is no longer measured in time

• Productivity is now a measure of smarter thinking

• The better we learn to think the more we can do

• Give people information and they’ll wonder why

• Give people knowledge and they’ll know how


#4 Increase Value

• Tangibles represent 20% of the value

• Intangibles represent 80% of the value

• More value comes from the 80% than the 20%

• Minds create more value than machines

• Human capital rest in people minds

• Engage the minds and increase your capital


#5 Give Value Freely

• Generosity begets wealth. The law of reciprocity

• Sharing ideas generously begets creativity

• Value creation begins with an idea (Intangible Capital)

• Good ideas are the ones that create new rules

• If you create the new rules you rule

• The rule is to give everyone value freely


#6 Maximize Network Value

• Shift from maximizing the firm’s value to maximizing the network’s value (Strategic Capital)

• Unless the network survives, the firm perishes (Relationship Capital)

• The network is much bigger than the firm

• The network is were all value is created, distributed and consumed (Structural Capital)

• To feed the minds feed the network.


#7 Accelerate Innovation

• What was is now obsolete

• Innovation comes from idea factories

• Idea factories produce value not things

• The factory isn’t contained in building

• The factory is within human networks

• Human networks create intangible capital from innovation


#8 Think Mind Share• It used to be about market share

• Now it is about mind share

• Mind share is created from interaction

• Interactions create relationship capital

• Relationship capital creates interest

• Interest is the dividend of the intangible economy


#9 Improve Intangible Capital • Define what value means to people

• Quantify the meaning to points of value created

• Measure perceptions of value by stakeholders

• Improve value creation through engagement

• Correlate improvements to results

• Start over again and never stop improving


#10 The Soft Trumps The Hard

• Tangible things are easy to manage and see

• Intangible things are difficult to manage and see

• The most precious and valued assets are invisible and intangible

• Social technology has made the intangibles visible

• Identifying, measuring and enabling intangible capital is how more value will be created


The Intangible Economy Isn’t In The Future….

It Is Here Now


So Now Is The Time….

To learn how to create more value from the Intangible Economy by collaborating with Smarter Companies who know how.