business

The Collapse of Complex Business Models « Clay Shirky

The ‘and them some’ is what causes the trouble. Complex societies collapse because, when some stress comes, those societies have become too inflexible to respond. In retrospect, this can seem mystifying. Why didn’t these societies just re-tool in less complex ways? The answer Tainter gives is the simplest one: When societies fail to respond to reduced circumstances through orderly downsizing, it isn’t because they don’t want to, it’s because they can’t.<br />
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In such systems, there is no way to make things a little bit simpler – the whole edifice becomes a huge, interlocking system not readily amenable to change. Tainter doesn’t regard the sudden decoherence of these societies as either a tragedy or a mistake—”[U]nder a situation of declining marginal returns collapse may be the most appropriate response”, to use his pitiless phrase. Furthermore, even when moderate adjustments could be made, they tend to be resisted, because any simplification discomfits elites.

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Guanxi - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Guanxi describes the basic dynamic in personalized networks of influence, and is a central idea in Chinese society.

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Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs is Europe’s new mobility scheme that aims at helping new entrepreneurs to acquire relevant skills for managing a small or medium-sized enterprise (SMEs) by spending time in a business in another EU country. It was initiated by the European Union (EU) on the 19 February 2009.<br />
Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs is financed by the European Commission and is in operation across 21 EU countries with the help of more than 100 intermediary organisations competent in business support. By 2010, a total of 870 stays abroad will be in action.

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