Play Book Tag discussion

This book is about the negatives (mostly) of Amazon, Apple, Google, and Facebook. He discusses how they were able to disrupt the market and become giants, how they are now competing with each other, and who is set up to become the first company values at a trillion dollars. (Which we know Apple did in 2024)

Galloway also discusses how other business are or aren't surviving against the Big 4, and though he does delve too deep, into the class differences that does keep brick and mortar in business in high-end, middle-class areas.

Then, Galloway goes into the evils of the Big 4. How they are using our data and invading our privacy with our acceptance. How they break laws, hire lobbyists, and seek world domination.... okay maybe I took that last part a bit too far.

The worst part of the book is the author. He loves to pat himself on the back, claim that companies he was on the board failed because he wasn't listened to, and even is giving advice to the Big 4 on how to stay relevant or how to disrupt the college and education market. I rolled my eyes several times at him.

Interesting read but not great.

So topical, Jason - what a fabulous find, even if it does push things too far and become self-congratulatory. I need to read this. Even though it is work related!

The book sounds interesting even if the author isn’t completely credible as an expert. The privacy issues are huge for me. I’m concerned that google has access to nearly all my devices and passwords. It feels risky. When they started, their policy manual was real simple - “Do no evil.” I dropped Facebook long ago, and I get the impression that they are still using algorithms to flame the divisiveness in our nation.

Did he talk about their reputations as employers at all? Or discrimination and labor practices? I can’t remember if it was a group of google engineers who were refusing to hire women a few years back. I’m curious about Amazon’s hiring practices. There are calls right now to boycott Amazon, but I don’t know if it’s due to discriminatory practices, or if it’s just because they dropped controversial words (DEI) from their policies online. (I’d like to think that the employers dropping the terms, will still follow all the EEO federal and state laws. The ones that required Congressional and senate approval. If they cut the budget of the EEOC though, we’re in trouble. )

I just read a book about Edison vs Westinghouse re electricity. The author included many quotes from both Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, which fit. (They were modern day equivalents to Edison and Westinghouse when the book was written). Westinghouse and Microsoft are comparatively boring companies, but they are still in the Fortune 500. GE is still there too, but it dropped Edison from the company name.

I’m not sure you went too far with that last part. Dominating the world’s economy gives them a lot of power in the world. They don’t have to please a nation of voters, just their own stockholders and board. I’m not sure if that’s better or worse for the rest of us.

NancyJ wrote: "Did he talk about their reputations as employers at all? Or discrimination and labor practices? I can’t remember if it was a group of google engineers who were refusing to hire women a few years back...."

He does talk a little about hiring but not in the direction you are thinking. He discusses hiring in regards of these four companies taking the best and the brightest, their arbitrary hiring practices, and the clout having one of those names on your resume. He also discusses the challenges of not becoming the evil giant that the new generation doesn't want to work for.

This sounds interesting to me. Though I didn't work for one of these four, I worked in the tech industry. I'd like to compare my experiences with what the author describes.

I’m interested in others thoughts when y’all read this too