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Series:   Elements in Reinventing Capitalism

Aberrant Capitalism

The Decay and Revival of Customer Capitalism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 February 2024

Hunter Hastings  and
Stephen Denning
Hunter Hastings
Affiliation:
Bialla Venture Partners and Kingman Institute
Stephen Denning
Affiliation:
Forbes.com

Summary

The corporation was a timely emergent phenomenon of the capitalist system. Under entrepreneurial ownership with customer value creation goals, corporations introduced new products and services, new capital structures and new management processes capable of improving customer experiences in every facet of their lives. After entrepreneurship, the organizational model transitioned to managerial capitalism, and from there into command-and-control and central planning. Then came further transition into the era of financialization, where shareholder value replaced customer value as the purpose of the corporation. Managers diverted resources to their own enrichment as well as that of shareholders, at the expense of investment in future innovation. Capitalism's reputation has become tarnished and its purpose distorted. This Element ends with the promise of another emergent era, via the corporations of the digital age.
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Keywords

entrepreneurial managementcorporate capitalismfinancializationcustomer capitalismvalue creation
Type
Element
Information
Series: Elements in Reinventing Capitalism
Online ISBN: 9781009348867
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication: 14 March 2024

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