Make sure to read Fast Company's "The Great Tech War of 2012"!

About the Author – Phil Simon is the author of the The New Small (Motion, 2010), Why New Systems Fail (Cengage, 2010) and The Next Wave of Technologies (John Wiley & Sons, 2010). He is currently working on his fourth book, The Age of the Platform (Motion, 2011). A recognized technology expert, he consults companies on how to optimize their use of technology. His contributions have been featured on ZDNet, the American Express Open Forum, ComputerWorld, The New York Times, The Globe and Mail, Inc. Magazine, ReadWriteWeb, abcnews.com, forbes.com, and many other sites.

While not consulting, Phil speaks about emerging trends and technologies. He also writes for a number of technology-oriented media outlets. He received a BS in policy and management from Carnegie Mellon University and a masters in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University.

About the Book – In a nutshell, what’s The Age of the Platform about?  Funny you should ask. The book is an entirely new model of doing business: the platform. Companies such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google have built very robust and vibrant ecosystems–embracing partners and different users in extremely innovative ways. The book also provides many tips and examples on how to build your own platform.  According to the author:

• What’s unique about the book?  To my knowledge, no book looks at the platform as a new, critically important business model. I am unaware of any book that examined Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google–and other emerging platforms like Foursquare, Twitter, and LinkedIn from this standpoint.
   
• What kind of non-fiction book is this?  This is a management text, not a technical one. Yes, technology matters, but there’s no software code in the book. No confusing diagrams or jargon. This is a straight-ahead business book.
   
• Is this going to be a dry book?  Far from it. I’m big on humor where appropriate. Some of the quotes in the book are from Voltaire, Mark Twain, Joel Coen, Bob Dylan, Gordon Gekko (ok, he’s not a real person), and Bugs Bunny (ok, he’s really not a person). Beyond quotes, I believe in using interesting examples that illustrate my points. I can’t stand reading preachy books and wouldn’t want to write one. I prefer to show, not tell.