Book

The Prosperity Paradox

How Innovation Can Lift Nations Out of Poverty

Karen Dillon, Efosa Ojomo and Clayton M Christensen

HarperBusiness, 2019

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Concrete Examples
Inspiring

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Forget digging wells in poor villages as a way to fight poverty. The real road to prosperity lies in building creative, profitable businesses, argues the late innovation expert Clayton M. Christensen. He and his co-authors, Efosa Ojomo and Karen Dillon, posit that trillions in development dollars sent to struggling nations could be put to better use. It’s a contrarian claim, but the authors manage to support their position without seeming mean-spirited. Their book will inspire business leaders and innovators concerned about poverty in the developing world.

Take-Aways

Prosperity has progressed unevenly across the globe.
Opportunity lies in targeting “nonconsumption.”
“Market-creating innovations” transform economies and societies.

About the Authors

Clayton M. Christensen (1952–2020) was a professor at Harvard Business School, the author of 12 books and the co-founder of four companies. Efosa Ojomo leads the Global Prosperity research group at the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation. Karen Dillon is the former editor of the Harvard Business Review.

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