Big Ideas in Business and Law

Here are some of the big ideas in business over the past 100 years, according to a short feature in BusinessWeek.  Many were fads, but most — even the early ones — have had staying power:

• Open Innovation – 2000
• Reengineering – 19990
• Outsourcing – 1989
• Six Sigma – 1987
• 360-Degree Performance Reviews – 1973
• Scenario Planning – 1967
• Lean Manufacturing – 1950’s
• Skunk Works – 1943
• Brand Management – 1931
• Market Segmentation – 1920
• The Assembly Line – 1910

I haven’t found a comparable list of ideas in Law, but I’m intrigued by a book, The Little Book of Big Ideas: Law by Robert Hockett, forthcoming this spring.