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The Geek Way: The Radical Mindset that Drives Extraordinary Results Hardcover – November 14, 2023
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In this "handbook for disruptors" (Eric Schmidt), The Geek Way reveals a new way to get big things done. It will change the way you think about work, teams, projects, and culture, and give you the insight and tools you need to harness our human superpowers of learning and cooperation.
When all four norms are in place, a culture emerges that is freewheeling, fast-moving, egalitarian, evidence-driven, argumentative, and autonomous. Why does the geek way work so much better? McAfee provides an original answer: because it taps into humanity's superpower, which is our ability to cooperate intensely and learn rapidly. By providing insights from the young discipline of cultural evolution, McAfee shows that when we come together under the right conditions, we quickly figure out how to build reusable spaceships and self-correcting organizations. Under the wrong conditions, though, we create bureaucracy, chronic delays, cultures of silence, and the other classic dysfunctions of the Industrial Era.
Mixing cutting-edge science, history, analysis, and stories that show the geek way in action, McAfee offers a new way to see the world and empowering tools for seizing the big opportunities of today and tomorrow.
- Print length336 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherLittle, Brown and Company
- Publication dateNovember 14, 2023
- Dimensions6.4 x 1.13 x 9.65 inches
- ISBN-100316436704
- ISBN-13978-0316436700
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Editorial Reviews
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"In industry after industry, corporate boards are asking management what their plan is to thrive in an unsettled, fast-changing environment. The Geek Way contains among the best answers I've seen to this critical question."―Dambisa Moyo, Global Economist; Member, House of Lords
"I've worked closely with Andy for more than a decade, I'm still blown away by this book. It's bold and original, relevant and rigorous, and immediately useful for any restless, curious innovator. In other words, for any geek."―Erik Brynjolfsson, Director of the Stanford Digital Economy Lab and co-author of the New York Times bestselling The Second Machine Age
“Juxtaposed to our outsized celebrity obsessed culture is the rise of a subtler but infinitely more powerful shift toward geek culture. The hegemony of geekdom in Silicon Valley and across the world is the underlying force that drives innovation and powers our economy. Andrew McAfee’s The Geek Way is the guidebook for understanding this shift and navigating these turbulent times.”―Richard Florida, bestselling author of The Rise of the Creative Class and The New Urban Crisis
“By combining management theory, competitive strategy, the science of evolution, psychology, military history, and cultural anthropology, McAfee has produced a remarkable work of synthesis that finally explains, with a single unified theory (which he dubs "the geek way") the reasons why the tech startup approach has taken over so much of the world.”―Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn and New York Times bestselling author of The Start Up of You
"How fast can you find out you are wrong? This is the predictive metric of success in Silicon Valley. Mcafee explains why the leaders who build organizations that will help everyone who works there learn really quickly whether they are right or wrong will win in the new economy. And he shows why the leaders who allow their success to dampen their eagerness to hear about it when they are wrong have sown the seeds of their own failure. Essential!"―Kim Scott, author of the New York Times bestselling Radical Candor and Radical Respect
“The Geek Way makes a fascinating case that the most important technological revolution of our time isn’t what companies make, but how they’re managed. Andy McAfee is a world-class intellectual provocateur—he never ceases to challenge my assumptions and sharpen my thinking—and reading this book will do the same for you. It’s the most compelling analysis I’ve seen of what Silicon Valley has learned about building more effective organizations, and what they still have to learn.”
―Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of THINK AGAIN and HIDDEN POTENTIAL, and host of the TED podcast Re:Thinking“Andy understands that we haven’t just been creating new technologies in Silicon Valley — we’ve also been creating new ways to run a company in a world permeated by tech. Here he distills what we’ve come up with. This book is a handbook for disruptors.”―Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google
"I can see dead companies. They're the large incumbents who still run themselves as if software isn’t eating the world. If you’d rather lead the transformation than be consumed by it, start putting this book's insights into practice as quickly as you can."―Steve Jurvetson, geek
"Andrew McAfee's The Geek Way outlines what has become a critical advantage for the United States, for Silicon Valley, and for many American companies. If you wish to understand the last twenty years of American life, and probably the next twenty as well, this book is essential reading."―Tyler Cowen, author of Big Business: A Love Letter to an American Anti-Hero
"Solid business economics meets a nouveau-science insistence on quick learning and quicker cultural evolution...A valuable guide for would-be economic, technical, and cultural disruptors."―Kirkus Reviews
“Touting geek culture as a pathway to transformative business growth, McAfee embraces the definition of geekiness as obsessive and celebrates the burning curiosity that drives inquiry into both the how and the why of solutions…This volume in McAfee’s stable of books will be a welcome addition to business collections in academic and public libraries.”
―Val Edwards, BooklistThe Geek Way shows how easy it can be to slip into such organizational flaws as runaway bureaucracy and management by fiat. By fashioning the alternatives into a coherent system, Mr. McAfee has created a powerful synthesis that anyone who occupies or aspires to a position of authority would do well to explore.―The Wall Street Journal
"Technology guru Andrew McAfee posits that underlying the remarkable performance of the Silicon Valley giants is not just that they are at the center of a technological revolution, but also, that they are leading a revolution in how business is done—which he describes as the Geek Way."―Fortune
About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : Little, Brown and Company
- Publication date : November 14, 2023
- Language : English
- Print length : 336 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0316436704
- ISBN-13 : 978-0316436700
- Item Weight : 1.2 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.4 x 1.13 x 9.65 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #33,859 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #142 in Business Management (Books)
- #197 in Communication & Social Skills (Books)
- #219 in Entrepreneurship (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Andrew McAfee (@amcafee), a principal research scientist at MIT, studies how technology changes the world. His new book "The Geek Way: The Radical Mindset that Drives Extraordinary Results" explains how a bunch of geeks iterated and experimented until they came up with a better way to run an organization. His previous books include "More from Less," "Machine | Platform | Crowd" and "The Second Machine Age" with Erik Brynjolfsson, and "Enterprise 2.0."
McAfee has written for publications including Harvard Business Review, The Economist, The Wall St. Journal, the Financial Times, and The New York Times. He's talked about his work on The Charlie Rose Show and 60 Minutes, at TED, Davos, the Aspen Ideas Festival, and in front of many other audiences.
He and Brynjolfsson are the only people named to both the Thinkers 50 list of the world’s top management thinkers and the Politico 50 group of people transforming American politics.
McAfee was educated at Harvard and MIT, where he is the co-founder of the Institute’s Initiative on the Digital Economy. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, watches too much Red Sox baseball, doesn't ride his motorcycle enough, and starts his weekends with the NYT Saturday crossword.
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Customers appreciate the book's information quality, particularly noting its real-world examples and research-driven analysis. The writing style receives mixed feedback, with one customer praising how the author masterfully distills complex breakthroughs into tangible concepts, while another finds it wordy for the insights.
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Customers appreciate the book's information quality, with multiple reviews highlighting its numerous real-world examples and research-driven analysis. One customer notes it is a practical business book with evidence, while another describes it as a brilliant thinker's work.
"...His own curious, original, and independent style of thinking MATCHED with his ability to synthesize a wide body of complex/dynamic ideas AND THEN..." Read more
"I read the book twice so far, a lot of great real life examples and really easy to read. I am geeked up" Read more
"...Speed, ownership, science and openness are shown to outweigh the messiness that often makes us want to control, organize, gate keep and get buy-in...." Read more
"...reading this book it highlighted importance of speed, ownership, science and openness treats in successful, or how author calls them- geek companies...." Read more
Customers have mixed opinions about the writing style of the book, with some finding it well written and easy to read, while others note it is wordy and lacks specifics.
"...body of complex/dynamic ideas AND THEN deliver a unified theory in a clear, unique, and engaging writing style – is second to none...." Read more
"...Yes, like most biz books, this has its share of fluff and unnecessary verbiage/stories that do not greatly enhance the argument...." Read more
"...the book twice so far, a lot of great real life examples and really easy to read. I am geeked up" Read more
"...The book left me with a feeling of incompleteness and a lack of specifics." Read more
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Essential part of manager’s bookshelf
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2025Format: HardcoverVerified PurchaseWhat an unfortunate title for very good book. McAffee makes a good case that culture drives the company. And, after coaching hundreds of companies over decades, I am convinced he is correct. That it derives from Silicon Valley should surprise no one. That it has the word "geek" in the title is at once demeaning and endearing, as he means no disrespect. Nevertheless, I found it off-putting, not offensive. This could have been titled "How Silicon Valley Radicals Forever Changed Corporate Culture--For The Better". But that may just be me. Yes, like most biz books, this has its share of fluff and unnecessary verbiage/stories that do not greatly enhance the argument. Yes, it could have been written in perhaps 150-200 pages instead of its 250+. And yes, Silicon Valley success stories share the open-mindedness, and swiftness that separates them from the "Big Dumb Corporate Blobs" (you know who they are). It is all about the leadership. The boards and officers who value results over process...Get this book and Deploy, Execute, Implement (DEI?) its principles and strategies.
- Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2025Format: Audible AudiobookOutstanding product and amazing Seller!
- Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2025Format: HardcoverVerified PurchaseVery good book, I’d recommend it to all mid to top managers and leaders.
5.0 out of 5 starsVery good book, I’d recommend it to all mid to top managers and leaders.Essential part of manager’s bookshelf
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2025
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- Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2025Format: HardcoverVerified PurchaseGreat book! Started implementing right away!
- Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2023Format: HardcoverVerified PurchaseI’ve read each book authored by McAfee along with virtually every paper he’s written. There are few whose writing and articulation of topics I enjoy as much as his. His own curious, original, and independent style of thinking MATCHED with his ability to synthesize a wide body of complex/dynamic ideas AND THEN deliver a unified theory in a clear, unique, and engaging writing style – is second to none. To sum up McAfee: A brilliant thinker… Always guided by interesting questions… Always extensively researched… Always clear in his delivery… And always practitioner-friendly (practical and actionable).
In my own work, The Geek Way is particularly applicable. I help client organizations (executives and practitioner teams) identify how they might best incorporate technology to better compete now and in the future. Our engagements are most often initiated by executive teams approaching us frustrated (and often frantic) with the news that they’ve deployed $XXXM (often ranging hundreds of millions of dollars) into their digital transformation effort but that they haven’t captured value from those investments. Essentially, what began as an attempt to take a page out from the playbook of companies in the tech space to “be more innovative” has spiraled out of control. Those executives are then surprised (and often reluctant) when, instead of diving headfirst into the technology and attempting to perfectly map out what’s going to happen, we focus a majority of the attention on helping them rethink (and redesign) their organizational culture, organizational models (business and operating models), governance, etc. in order to harness the value of these technologies.
McAfee understands what many executives struggle to understand and put into practice, which is: In most cases, it’s NOT the design and development of new technologies that’s holding them back. Instead, what’s often holding them back is a failure to design, build, and lead corresponding new/modern (and more effective) organizational cultures that support innovation, speed, agility, and execution simultaneously. Unleashing new technologies that are “bolted on” to classic, industrial-era corporate culture models is a recipe for disaster. In fact, the rate of change and innovation in these new technologies necessitates an upgrade to the standard corporate culture, a modern company that’s able to move faster and innovate more. In The Geek Way, McAfee provides the playbook to help executives build a modern organization and thrive in a faster-moving world.
- Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2024Format: HardcoverMcAfee, an author of many tech books, now puts the culture of successful companies in front of us. He asserts that the culture of speed, openness and other elements provide the medium for growth. He provides data to support his claim, which I’ll discuss below. While the author claims this new way of operating companies started in the 2000s, and is codified in a Netflix presentation openly shared with everyone, he also says that the crux of the Geek Way is found in a stack of business books sky-high. Which probably would include “Creativity Inc.” by Ed Catmull about Pixar’s culture. McAfee’s experience makes this a fun read, but for those of us who have read the mile-high stack of business books about cultures of mutual trust—competence, reliability/dependability, openness, acceptance (of failure in particular) and integrity—and driving accountability, responsibility and creativity will hardly learn much here. We would have seen similar things in Deming’s work, the culture of Westinghouse’s Hawthorne Works operations from the 1920s and 1930s, famous Skunkwork developments for World War II, high-reliability/high-performance military and civil operations teams, and so on. Much of McAfee’s advice can be found in “Built to Last” by Collins and Porras. Or McFarland’s “The Breakthrough Company” for the small- or medium-sized enterprises. Still, this book will help start-up leaders set the right course for their fledgling companies.
Like many other business books, McAfee’s suffers from a lack of contradictory evidence. He and others can write about the 10-50 successful companies practicing the Geek Way. He cannot or does not uncover if there are thousands of companies practicing the Geek Way outside of Silicon Valley, outside of tech, and how successful or not they are. There may be many that don’t succeed. How many tech startups have died, and yet had a Geek Way culture? How many other business failures—and the number is staggering in the first five years of any one business—weren’t prevented by the Geek Way? We may never know because Harvard Business School—of which McAfee had been a faculty member—cannot tell us. There isn’t a database for this.
While he applauds the social aspects of Geek companies—cultural evolution—he neglects some of the complaints that have happened even inside his star companies. There’s still tribalism in society and in tech companies: gender, race, caste are still obstacles to hearing and accepting another’s input or feedback. While constructive debate might be healthy, psychological safety can be key as McAfee points out. Still different personality types and different inherent motivational bases need different communication environments, methods and venues for safety and overcoming timidity. Ethical failures have also occurred in Geek Way companies. Maybe in a few decades we’ll know if Geek Way companies are “built to last.”
Likewise, the inertia in organizational dynamics and corporate culture requires several years to change a non-Geek company into one practicing the Geek Way. It’s why some startup kings and queens have had a hard time moving over to established companies. The people have “grown up” under a different kind of leadership and have a hard time trusting the new leadership styles, especially in the lower ranks who have less exposure to the C-suite.
The author avoids the trap of multiple anecdotes masquerading as data. However, McAfee fails to discern the quality of the data he includes. For example he touts a study of GlassDoor comments. GlassDoor surveys are self-selected, not random. This has an inherent bias towards the theoretical ends of company-culture distributions: the really bad and the really good. So we know nothing of the cultures—perhaps some operating in the Geek Way—of the middlingly rated, middlingly successful companies.
While there are some inherent flaws in McAfee’s approach—but not unique for business books—his work can be important for those who need to hear and want to hear how the successful tech companies are thriving.
Top reviews from other countries
- Mr. Rupert Ls SmithReviewed in the United Kingdom on March 9, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars Worth reading
What I liked about this book is that everything it is discussing, I kind of already knew about and had figured out for myself, its just that I had never put it all together into a coherent structure. So its great to see it all written down in a framework that makes sense. I feel so empowered by this because I can now explain all these things to other people and have lots of examples to draw on.
The book is quite short, almost a collection of around 6 essays. Perhaps in future edition the author could expand upon specific practices employed to implement the geek way more. More practical guidelines on how to introduce geek culture or maintain it would be welcome. No matter, I still give it 5 stars.
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BerndReviewed in Germany on June 9, 2025
5.0 out of 5 stars Ein Must-Read für die Zukunft der Arbeitswelt – inspirierend, fundiert und absolut zeitgemäß
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase„The Geek Way“ von Andrew McAfee ist eines der beeindruckendsten und erhellendsten Business-Bücher, das ich in letzter Zeit gelesen habe – und das vollkommen zurecht auf den Empfehlungslisten von The Economist und Financial Times gelandet ist.
McAfee gelingt es auf brillante Weise, die tiefgreifenden Veränderungen zu erklären, die durch die sogenannte „Geek-Mentalität“ in der Unternehmenswelt ausgelöst werden. Statt traditioneller Hierarchien und verstaubter Managementmethoden setzt diese neue Generation von Führungskräften auf Transparenz, Experimente, Zusammenarbeit und kontinuierliches Lernen – Prinzipien, die sich im digitalen Zeitalter als weitaus effektiver erweisen.
Was das Buch besonders lesenswert macht, ist die gelungene Verbindung aus wissenschaftlicher Tiefe, praktischen Beispielen und einer klaren, mitreißenden Sprache. McAfee schöpft aus fundierten Erkenntnissen aus Psychologie, Wirtschaft und Organisationsforschung und beleuchtet anhand konkreter Fallstudien, wie Unternehmen wie Amazon, Google oder andere Tech-Vorreiter diese neue Denkweise bereits erfolgreich leben.
Besonders beeindruckt hat mich, wie McAfee den „Geek Way“ nicht als kurzfristigen Trend, sondern als grundlegende kulturelle Transformation beschreibt – eine, die Unternehmen nicht nur effizienter, sondern auch menschlicher machen kann. Er zeigt überzeugend auf, dass Führung nicht mehr durch Autorität, sondern durch Neugier, Offenheit und die Bereitschaft zum Scheitern geprägt sein sollte.
Fazit: Wer verstehen will, wie moderne Organisationen funktionieren – oder besser funktionieren könnten – kommt an The Geek Way nicht vorbei. Es ist ein kluges, inspirierendes und praxisnahes Buch, das nicht nur Führungskräften, sondern allen, die sich für die Zukunft der Arbeit interessieren, neue Perspektiven eröffnet. Klare Kaufempfehlung!
BerndEin Must-Read für die Zukunft der Arbeitswelt – inspirierend, fundiert und absolut zeitgemäß
Reviewed in Germany on June 9, 2025
McAfee gelingt es auf brillante Weise, die tiefgreifenden Veränderungen zu erklären, die durch die sogenannte „Geek-Mentalität“ in der Unternehmenswelt ausgelöst werden. Statt traditioneller Hierarchien und verstaubter Managementmethoden setzt diese neue Generation von Führungskräften auf Transparenz, Experimente, Zusammenarbeit und kontinuierliches Lernen – Prinzipien, die sich im digitalen Zeitalter als weitaus effektiver erweisen.
Was das Buch besonders lesenswert macht, ist die gelungene Verbindung aus wissenschaftlicher Tiefe, praktischen Beispielen und einer klaren, mitreißenden Sprache. McAfee schöpft aus fundierten Erkenntnissen aus Psychologie, Wirtschaft und Organisationsforschung und beleuchtet anhand konkreter Fallstudien, wie Unternehmen wie Amazon, Google oder andere Tech-Vorreiter diese neue Denkweise bereits erfolgreich leben.
Besonders beeindruckt hat mich, wie McAfee den „Geek Way“ nicht als kurzfristigen Trend, sondern als grundlegende kulturelle Transformation beschreibt – eine, die Unternehmen nicht nur effizienter, sondern auch menschlicher machen kann. Er zeigt überzeugend auf, dass Führung nicht mehr durch Autorität, sondern durch Neugier, Offenheit und die Bereitschaft zum Scheitern geprägt sein sollte.
Fazit: Wer verstehen will, wie moderne Organisationen funktionieren – oder besser funktionieren könnten – kommt an The Geek Way nicht vorbei. Es ist ein kluges, inspirierendes und praxisnahes Buch, das nicht nur Führungskräften, sondern allen, die sich für die Zukunft der Arbeit interessieren, neue Perspektiven eröffnet. Klare Kaufempfehlung!
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FrancoisReviewed in France on March 19, 2025
3.0 out of 5 stars Un point de vue alternatif sur le numérique.
Alors qu'on pense que tout a été dit sur le numérique, ses origines, son histoire, ses évolutions, ses révolutions, ce livre apporte un point de vue alternatif qui peut se révéler intéressant pour renouveler son regard dans un domaine aujourd'hui connu et reconnu.
Cependant, étant donné la particularité de ce point de vue, on ne peut le conseiller qu'aux spécialistes du domaine.
- Russ HowardReviewed in Canada on January 11, 2024
1.0 out of 5 stars Too much panergeric
Format: KindleVerified Purchase1. The book could be much shorte without so many selective stories. 2. The book might be more appropriate for someone who need a crash course without practical details.
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Marcelo G NovaesReviewed in Brazil on March 19, 2025
5.0 out of 5 stars Muito simples e direto para os dias de hoje
Recomendo para quem gosta de tecnologia, uma leitura prazerosa