WHAT'S NEXT?: Exploring the New Terrain for Business

Kelly and Leyden, of Silicon Valley– based consultancy Global Business Network, chat with 50 "remarkable people," including entertainers like Laurie Anderson and geographic demographers like Joel Garreau, about everything from China's role in world politics to biotechnology, while trying to figure out how these trends mesh. After everyone's chimed in, the authors propose that the 21st century's successful business leaders will be those who develop an "adaptive advantage" over their competitors, learning to gauge the culture as effectively as the marketplace. They further suggest such corporate-minded entrepreneurs will be the most likely candidates to develop creative solutions for the world's toughest problems. The enthusiasm for corporations isn't unexpected, given Leyden's pro-globalization stance in 1999's The Long Boom, which he co-authored; and much effort is spent explaining why today's recession hasn't nullified those earlier predictions for a prosperous future. One analyst compares the wave of failed dot-coms to "regular brushfires to... make space for fresh growth," while another believes increased antidepressant usage created fearless investors, who pumped the market up to unsustainable levels. With so many people discussing subjects outside their specialized fields, the reflections swerve from insightful to inane, and despite the authors' attempt to structure the book thematically, there's still a disjointed feel to what is, essentially, a hodgepodge of excerpted transcripts. "Things are going to be wild and crazy much sooner than we expect," one contributor warns (as if they weren't already!), but for all the speculation, the book's only practical advice is to learn how to think fast. (Oct.)