Making a market in knowledge.pdf

明朝清风

Making a market in knowledge
For companies and their employees alike, knowledge is power—and profit.
Lowell L. Bryan
2004 Number 3
Just like people, companies in today's economy find that their primary source
of competitive advantage increasingly lies in the unique proprietary knowledge
they possess. Companies and individuals may have equal talent and access to
public knowledge, but the special value that comes with unique understanding
provides a real edge. The bond trader who is the first to understand an
opportunity to arbitrage securities across two different markets can earn
extraordinary returns until other traders figure out the secret. A company
thoroughly familiar with how to compete in a particular geographic market—
China, say—has huge advantages over competitors lacking that familiarity.
Put simply, there is great value in sharing, across a whole company, proprietary
insights into customers, competitors, products, production techniques, emerging
research, and the like. In practice, of course, companies find it far more difficult