THE COMING OF KNOWLEDGE-BASED BUSINESS

The next wave of economic growth is going to come from knowledge-based businesses. What will those businesses and their products look like? A tire that notifies the driver of its air pressure and a garment that heats Or cools in response to temperature changes are early versions of knowledge-based, or ''smart,'' products already on the market. They are smart because they filter and interpret information to enable the user to act more effectively consumers become learners when they use smart products, which both oblige them to learn and assist them in lea rning. And businesses become educators when they make products that pr omote the learning experience. In the years ahead, Davis and Botkin ar gue, people's use of knowledge-based products will be critical to thei r economic success. And businesses that know how to convert informatio n into knowledge will be more successful than those that do not. The a uthors identify six basic elements of knowledge-based business to help companies get started. development of knowledge-based business reflec ts an even larger transformation occurring in our society. Education i s no longer focused on the student years but is considered a lifelong pursuit. In knowledge economies, the rapid pace of technological chang e means that learning must be constant and that education must be upda ted throughout one's working life. Business, more than government, is instituting the changes that are required for the emerging knowledge-b ased economy. And over the next few decades, the private sector will c ome to eclipse the public sector as our predominant educational instit ution.