Organizations fail or decline more frequently because of what they did not do than because of what they did.                                                            

The last few weeks of the US presidential campaign are roiling forward as the world awaits resolution of US political turmoil.  However, there is a not inconsiderable risk that whoever wins the election, dissension will be loud and lasting, and a new and deeper gridlock will be created in Washington.  The Chicago Council on Global Affairs has just published a new survey (below) which is a deep dive into the attitudes and opinions behind this new uncertainty. November 9th might be too soon to take off your seatbelt.

There is a dynamic underway in the space industry that is disrupting the way space technology is developed and deployed.  This new dynamic may accelerate the expansion of human presence in space and the colonization of the moon and Mars. This latest area of “democratization” of technology will also open the use of space to a wide range of players, including non-state actors, all over the planet.  Some of what the startups are doing theoretically could have been done by the aerospace giants but were likely inconceivable within their business models.

Last week, I attended the 2016 edition of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago's Payments Symposium. As I listened to the presentations, it became clear to me once again how important internetworked technologies are to the future of the financial system in terms of individual empowerment and corporate control.

Manufacturing built America. The iconic automotive industry epitomizes this organic relationship between industrial strength and economic growth. Since the early days of Ford and General Motors, car-makers have followed a clear playbook: design an appealing product, manufacture efficiently, market aggressively, and sell units at high volume.

This is my book review for Samuel Bowles's the Moral Economy: Why Good Incentives Are No Substitute for Good Citizens.

The leaders in FinTech and banking are featured as American Banker releases its annual list of FinTech companies to watch, and Burnmark releases an excellent and comprehensive report on challenger banks throughout the world. Take a look, too, at a future without cash in this week's links.

Co-authored with Daniel Wagner.

After having been the top destination of inward foreign direct investment for decades, China’s investment orientation has become increasingly outward looking. In 2014, China’s outbound FDI surpassed inbound FDI for the first time. Last year, the country became the world’s second-largest source of outward FDI. And in the near term, its overseas investments are expected to grow 10 percent a year, and exceed $2 trillion by 2020.