The Origin of Wealth

In the Origin of Wealth, Eric Beinhocker offers a thorough and convincing new way to think about economic growth and business management. The author begins by exploring the roots of modern economic theory and ultimately declares it outmoded and wrong. Instead, he suggests, markets and growth can best be explained by drawing on the emerging field of complexity economics: the study of markets and social systems as complex adaptive systems. Although biological metaphors in business have become familiar (i.e., organizations are living organisms), Beinhocker moves beyond metaphor to explain the revolutions in science that will inevitably change the way we think about economics, competition, and business. The Origin of Wealth raises important questions such as: How can one create strategy in uncertain and fast moving environments? Why is it hard for large organizations to be innovative and how should we organize for better results? What role should governments play in this new era?

Eric Beinhocker is a Professor of Public Policy Practice at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford, and an External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute. He is also the Executive Director of the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School. INET Oxford is a research center devoted to applying leading-edge interdisciplinary approaches to issues including financial system stability, innovation and growth, economic inequality, and environmental sustainability. Prior to joining Oxford, Beinhocker had an 18-year career at McKinsey & Company where he was a partner and held leadership roles in McKinsey's Strategy Practice, its Climate Change and Sustainability Practice, and the McKinsey Global Institute. Beinhocker writes frequently on economic, business, and public policy issues and his work has appeared in the Financial Times, Bloomberg, The Times, the Guardian, The Atlantic, Newsweek, and Democracy. Beinhocker is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the MIT Sloan School, and he is originally from Boston, Massachusetts.