Big Bang Disruption Book Summary - Big Bang Disruption Book explained in key points

Listen to the Intro

00:00

Big Bang Disruption summary

Name: Big Bang Disruption
Rating: 4.2 (42 reviews)
Author: Larry Downes and Paul Nunes

Larry Downes Paul Nunes

Business Survival in the Age of Constant Innovation

4.2 (42 ratings)

20 mins

Brief summary

'Big Bang Disruption' by Larry Downes and Paul Nunes is a guide to navigating the world of continuous, sudden technological dislocation. It describes how businesses and individuals can adapt to and thrive during these turbulent times of rapid innovation.

Topics

Strategy Innovation Entrepreneurship

Table of Contents

Big Bang Disruption
Summary of 7 key ideas

Audio & text in the Blinkist app

Key idea 1 of 7

What’s in it for me? Equip your business to survive a big bang.

Billions of years ago, the big bang brought the universe into being. In the blink of an eye, all matter, all space-time, suddenly was. Today, businesses burst into markets as our universe once burst into the void, creating unforeseen market possibilities and decimating the markets that came before.

These companies are Big Bang Disruptors.

Obviously, it’s best to be one of these companies, but, if that’s not possible, it’s crucial to understand the process of Big Bang Disruption. And that’s what these blinks are all about.

Learn about the four-stage life cycle of disruption, and along the way, become well-acquainted with the 12 rules of disruption survival. Whether you’re plotting a big bang of your own or just trying to figure out how not to get blown away, these blinks will help you in the ever-changing multiverse that is the modern marketplace.

You’ll also find out

when to seek out truth-tellers;
what’s probably in store for AOL; and
why it’s wise to relax about strategy.

Exponential technologies enable innovators to upset markets by creating low-priced, high-quality products.

Remember paper road maps? Those awkwardly large, folded sheets that once hibernated in almost every glove compartment, waiting to be consulted by turned-around motorists? Today, these unwieldy guides, with their fold creases and crackling pages, are all but extinct.

Analog roadmaps went out with a bang – the big bang that was the introduction of GPS systems to the driving public. In 2000, Garmin, a company whose sales had increased throughout the 1990s, sold three million GPS devices while the sale of paper road maps began to decrease.

At the time, relatively inexpensive GPS was an example of a Big Bang Disruptor: an innovative product that’s both superior to – and, usually, more affordable than – competing products on the market.

But it wasn’t long before Garmin’s devices were blasted away by another big bang.

In 2009, after the advent of the smartphone, Google introduced Google Maps: A service that, because it was free and easy to update, could be improved at a pace equal to modern-day needs. From the moment it hit the market, it proved to be the best and cheapest navigational technology available – and it still is.

But what made it possible for Google to oust Garmin just as Garmin had ousted analog maps? Well, Google took advantage of exponential technologies.

For a technology to qualify as exponential, its performance and value must have a pattern of exponential increase – doubling, for instance, on an annual or biennial basis. Cloud-based computing – data-processing or data-storage software that runs online – is one example of an exponential technology.

Equipped with such technologies, a Big Bang Disruptor can upend an established market.

This is exactly what Google did. In fact, Google Maps leverages the power of cloud-based computing, as well as taking advantage of the internet and smartphones.

All this means that Google is able to offer Google Maps for free. Indeed, it’s now the default app on pretty much all smartphones, which guarantees that it’s used by millions of people every day.

It’s hard to imagine a bigger bang than that.

Big Bang Disruptors have three characteristics: undisciplined strategy, unconstrained growth and unencumbered development.

If you don’t want to get obliterated by the next big bang, then you should learn how to spot disruptors before the disruption begins. Luckily, this isn’t so hard to do, as all Big Bang Disruptors have three characteristics in common.

First, they use undisciplined strategy. Businesses of yore tended to limit themselves to a single “market discipline.” That is, they’d conduct a considerable amount of research and do a great deal of strategizing before bringing a product to market. If the analysis indicated that the potential product wasn’t superior to, or cheaper than, competing products, then it was a no-go.

Big Bang Disruptors have a four-stage life cycle: the Singularity, the Big Bang, the Big Crunch and Entropy.

We live in a cyclical world. The things that are today will, at some point, no longer be. And Big Bang Disruptors are no exception.

Each Big Bang Disruption goes through a four-stage life cycle.

During the Singularity stage, pay attention to three things: truth-tellers, timing and experimentation.

If you sense that a company has entered the Singularity stage, your best defense against the impending market explosion is to simply play along and get ready to do some disrupting of your own. Doing this is a matter of following three rules.

First off, hunt down and talk to the inquisitive individuals who’ve taken the time to gain an expert-level understanding of your industry. These people – we’ll call them truth-tellers – will be able to help you forecast how emerging technologies and cutting-edge strategies may affect the industry’s future landscape.

When the Big Bang hits, be braced for “catastrophic success”, seize “winner-take-all markets” and create “bullet time”.

Boom. The Big Bang hits – and everything is changing, fast. Old markets are abandoned as customers are drawn to the new one like iron filings to an all-powerful magnet.

You’ve survived the Singularity, and, luckily, you’re part of this new market. That means it’s time to start following the next three rules.

To get through the Big Crunch, anticipate saturation, harvest the value of assets and quit while you still can.

During the Big Bang, market disruptors will generate a great deal of value and profit. As one of them, you’ll be feeling pretty optimistic. But remember, even during this exciting ascent you should prepare for decline. The next stage in the disruption life cycle is never far off.

When the Big Crunch begins, the disrupted market will reach saturation point, and all your inventory and capacity could become useless.

During the Entropy stage, avoid black holes, reconfigure your business and seek new Singularities for your products.

So you made it through the Big Crunch. But now you’ve got to survive the final stage in the Big Bang Disruption life cycle: Entropy. There are three rules that’ll help you do this.

The first – rule number ten – is to avoid black holes. After being disrupted, a market can soon turn into a black hole, as customers leave and take their business to the new market created by the big bang.

Want to see all full key ideas from Big Bang Disruption?

Key ideas in Big Bang Disruption

More knowledge in less time

Read or listen

Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.

Find your next read

Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.

Shortcasts ^New

We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.

What is Big Bang Disruption about?

Big Bang Disruption (2014) explains how disruptive innovations are endangering many of today’s businesses, and how to keep your business alive despite these disruptions. It describes the four stages of market disruption and provides 12 rules that’ll help you get through them.

Big Bang Disruption Review

Big Bang Disruption (2014) is an insightful exploration of how digital technology is disrupting industries at an unprecedented speed. Here's why this book is worth reading:

It provides a fascinating analysis of how established businesses can be quickly overtaken by innovative startups in the digital age.
The book offers practical insights into how companies can adapt and thrive in a rapidly changing business landscape.
With its compelling examples of companies that failed to adapt and those that succeeded, it offers valuable lessons for entrepreneurs and business leaders alike.

Who should read Big Bang Disruption?

Executives and managers
Investors and entrepreneurs
Economists and strategists

About the Author

Larry Downes is an internet industry analyst whose columns for both Forbes and CNET discuss the effects of disruptive technology on policy and business. His other books include Unleashing the Killer App (1998) and The Laws of Disruption (2009).

Paul Nunes is the global head of research at the Accenture Institute for High Performance and a senior editor at Outlook, Accenture’s journal on leadership. He’s also the author of Jumping the S-Curve (2011).

Categories with Big Bang Disruption

Entrepreneurship

Book summaries like Big Bang Disruption

Connected CRM

David S. Williams

Implementing a Data-Driven, Customer-Centric Business Strategy

Learn, Lead, and Live Without Barriers

Why You Don't Have to Be Born Into a Legacy of Wealth to Leave One Behind

To Live, to Love, to Learn, to Leave a Legacy

14 min

4.6

The Singularity Is Nearer

Ray Kurzweil

When We Merge with AI

17 min

4.4

Sales Management. Simplified.

Mike Weinberg

The Straight Truth About Getting Exceptional Results From Your Sales Team

Successful Habits of Visionary Companies

19 min

4.4

Zero to One

Peter Thiel with Blake Masters

Notes on Startups, or How to Build The Future

26 min

4.6

Be Obsessed or Be Average

Grant Cardone

A bold and contrarian wake-up call for anyone truly ready for success

16 min

4.3

The New Trading for a Living

Dr. Alexander Elder

Psychology, Discipline, Trading Tools and Systems, Risk Control, Trade Management

16 min

4.2

Liberated Love

Mark Groves & Kylie McBeath

Release Codependent Patterns and Create the Love You Desire

How to Use Brain Science to Attract Attention and Persuade Others

13 min

4.0

Walmart

Natalie Berg and Bryan Roberts

Key Insights and Practical Lessons from the World's Largest Retailer

17 min

4.5

Value Proposition Design

Alexander Osterwalder

How to Create Products and Services Customers Want

15 min

4.3

How to Master the Art of Selling

Tom Hopkins

Boost Your Sales Skills With Proven Strategies and Techniques

17 min

Rich Dad, Poor Dad

Robert T. Kiyosaki

What the Rich Teach Their Kids about Money – That the Poor and the Middle Class Do Not!

Inside Elon Musk's Twitter

Make It Easy to Get the Right Things Done

21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time

13 min

4.4

Super Thinking

Gabriel Weinberg with Lauren McCann

The Big Book of Mental Models

22 min

4.3

What Does It All Mean?

Thomas Nagel

A Very Short Introduction to Philosophy

17 min

4.1

Blitzscaling

Reid Hoffman and Chris Yeh

The Lightning-Fast Path to Building Massively Valuable Companies

31 min

4.5

The Power of Instinct

Leslie Zane

The New Rules of Persuasion in Business and Life

Why Staying Small Is the Next Big Thing for Business

The “How To” book that gives YOU a “Check Up” from the “Neck Up” to eliminate “Stinkin Thinkin” and AVOID “Hardening of the Attitudes”

20 min

4.3

The Psychology of Winning

Denis Waitley

Ten Qualities of a Total Winner

21 min

4.3

Red Flags, Green Flags

Ali Fenwick

Modern Psychology for Everyday Drama

How to Create Intrigue and Connect with Anyone

A Manifesto for a Just Society

18 min

3.7

15 Secrets Successful People Know About Time Management

Kevin Kruse

The Productivity Habits of 7 Billionaires, 13 Olympic Athletes, 29 Straight-A Students, and 239 Entrepreneurs.

20 min

4.5

The Wealth Money Can't Buy

Robin Sharma

The 8 Hidden Habits to Live Your Richest Life

21 min

4.4

The End of Race Politics

Coleman Hughes

Arguments for a Colorblind America

20 min

4.3

The Courage to Be Disliked

Ichiro Kishimi & Fumitake Koga

The Japanese Phenomenon That Shows You How to Change Your Life and Achieve Real Happiness

How Fast, Inexpensive, Restrained, and Elegant Methods Ignite Innovation

12 min

4.0

The Intelligent Investor

Benjamin Graham and comments by Jason Zweig

The Definitive Book on Value Investing

How to Get Noticed at Work for All the Right Reasons

17 min

3.5

Smart Money Smart Kids

Dave Ramsey & Rachel Cruze

Raising the Next Generation to Win with Money

15 min

4.1

Read People Like a Book

Patrick King

How to Analyze, Understand, and Predict People’s Emotions, Thoughts, Intentions, and Behaviors

The Power to Predict Who Will Click, Buy, Lie, Or Die

How to Learn Any Language Fast and Never Forget It

17 min

4.3

The Art of Clear Thinking

Hasard Lee

A Stealth Fighter Pilot's Timeless Rules for Making Tough Decisions

The Art of Negotiation

Michael Wheeler

How to Improvise Agreement in a Chaotic World

A New Technique for Using Your Subconscious Power

19 min

4.4

Rich Dad’s Guide to Investing

Robert T. Kiyosaki

What the Rich Invest in, That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!

The Psychology of Human Relationships

Transform Your Life, Work, and Confidence with Everyday Courage

13 min

4.3

The Self-Driven Child

William Stixrud and Ned Johnson

The Science and Sense of Giving Your Kids More Control Over Their Lives

22 min

4.4

The Genius of Empathy

Judith Orloff

Practical Skills to Heal Your Sensitive Self, Your Relationships, and the World

The Secret to Achieving More with Less

18 min

4.3

People ❤️ Blinkist

Sven O.

It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.

Thi Viet Quynh N.

Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.

Jonathan A.

Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.

Renee D.

Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.