In The Transformation Economy: Guiding Customers to Achieve Their Aspirations, B. Joseph Pine II argues that an economic shift is underway, in which transformations—not commodities, goods, services, or experiences—will become the highest form of value creation.

Pine is an internationally acclaimed author, known for having coined the term “experience economy” in the 1990s. He works as a speaker and advisor to Fortune 500 companies. In his new book, he suggests that most companies compete by improving what they sell, while missing what customers actually want: to become different people.

In his conversation with Adam Job, senior director at the BCG Henderson Institute, Pine discusses the evolution of economic value creation, the North Star for transformation businesses, and how to scale from one to many transformation journeys.

Key topics discussed: 

[01:01] The evolution of economic value creation
[03:35] How to get into the transformation business
[10:35] The North Star for transformation businesses
[15:07] Scaling beyond individual transformation journeys
[16:46] Different types of transformation journeys
[20:37] Making transformations last
[24:12] Taking the first step toward the transformation economy

Additional inspirations from B. Joseph Pine II:

• The Experience Economy, With a New Preface by the Authors: Competing for Customer Time, Attention, and Money, co-authored by James H. Gilmore (Harvard Business Review Press, 2019)