The Politics Industry: How Political Innovation Can Break Partisan Gridlock and Save Our Democracy

Leading political innovation activist Katherine Gehl and world-renowned business strategist Michael Porter bring fresh perspective, deep scholarship, and a real and actionable solution, Final Five Voting, to the grand challenge of our broken political and democratic system. Final Five Voting has already been adopted in Alaska and is being advanced in states across the country.

The truth is, the American political system is working exactly how it is designed to work, and it isn't designed or optimized today to work for us—for ordinary citizens.

Most people believe that our political system is a public institution with high-minded principles and impartial rules derived from the Constitution. In reality, it has become a private industry dominated by a textbook duopoly—the Democrats and the Republicans—and plagued and perverted by unhealthy competition between the players. Tragically, it has therefore become incapable of delivering solutions to America's key economic and social challenges. In fact, there's virtually no connection between our political leaders solving problems and getting reelected.

In The Politics Industry, business leader and path-breaking political innovator Katherine Gehl and world-renowned business strategist Michael Porter take a radical new approach. They ingeniously apply the tools of business analysis—and Porter's distinctive Five Forces framework—to show how the political system functions just as every other competitive industry does, and how the duopoly has led to the devastating outcomes we see today.

Using this competition lens, Gehl and Porter identify the most powerful lever for change—a strategy comprised of a clear set of choices in two key areas: how our elections work and how we make our laws. Their bracing assessment and practical recommendations cut through the endless debate about various proposed fixes, such as term limits and campaign finance reform. The result: true political innovation.

The Politics Industry is an original and completely nonpartisan guide that will open your eyes to the true dynamics and profound challenges of the American political system and provide real solutions for reshaping the system for the benefit of all.

THE INSTITUTE FOR POLITICAL INNOVATION
The authors will donate all royalties from the sale of this book to the Institute for Political Innovation.

Katherine M. Gehl is a business leader, entrepreneur, author, and speaker. She is the founder of the Institute for Political Innovation and the CEO of Venn Innovations, focused on new thinking about intractable problems. Gehl was formerly president and CEO of Gehl Foods, a $250 million high-tech food manufacturer. She holds degrees from Notre Dame, Catholic University, and Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. She lives in Wisconsin with her two children.

Michael E. Porter is the Bishop William Lawrence University Professor at Harvard Business School. He was named a University Professor by Harvard's president in 2000. Porter is the author of nineteen books, including Competitive Strategy, Competitive Advantage, The Competitive Advantage of Nations, On Competition, and Redefining Health Care, as well as countless articles in both scholarly and nonscholarly publications. He lives in Boston.

You can find the authors at:
Katherine M. Gehl: katherinegehl.com/, twitter.com/katherinegehl, and linkedin.com/in/katherine-gehl-53625/
Michael E. Porter: hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/profile.aspx?facId=6532, twitter.com/MichaelEPorter, and linkedin.com/in/professorporter/