This is the first of a series of blog posts on a new, effectively hidden, but fast growing phenomenon in our current economy. I call it “The Bootstrap Economy”. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 68% of hiring in 2010 was contract-based. According to the recent issue of Businessweek, independent workers now make up 31% of the nation’s workforce (over 40 million are self employed in the U.S).  The BLS predicts that this will … Continue reading »;

We’re going to focus here on five big, global, macro trends – the trends that will affect how and where people live and work. For this post, I’m not going to talk about the obvious trends like mobile and social media. We’ll look at general business trends and general consumer trends. We’ll conclude each section with a probing, strategic question for you to ask your management team so you can integrate these trends into your … Continue reading »;