Encyclopedia Britannica Inc.
HBR.ORG
March 2013 reprinT R1303A
How I Did It
Encyclopædia
Britannica’s President on Killing Off a
244-Year-Old Product
The Idea: By the time Britannica’s top management decided to stop producing bound sets of the iconic encyclopedia, the company had made sweeping changes to put itself at the forefront of the online education market. by Jorge Cauz
This article is made available to you with compliments of Jorge Cauz. Further posting, copying or distributing is copyright infringement.
How I Did It…
For article reprints call 800-988-0886 or 617-783-7500, or visit hbr.org
Jorge Cauz is the president of
Encyclopædia Britannica.
Encyclopædia Britannica’s
President on Killing Off a
244-Year-Old Product by Jorge Cauz
Photography: EncyclopÆdia Britannica, Inc.
O
The Idea
By the time Britannica’s top management decided to stop producing bound sets of the iconic encyclopedia, the company had made sweeping changes to put itself at the forefront of the online education market.
ne year ago, my announcement that Encyclopædia Britannica would cease producing bound volumes sent ripples through the media world.
Despite the vast migration of information from ink and paper to bits and screens, it seemed remarkable that a set of books published for almost a quarter of a millennium would go out of print. But in our Chicago offices this wasn’t an occasion to mourn.
In fact, our employees held a party the day of the announcement, celebrating the fact that Britannica was still a growing and viable company. They ate the print set—in the form of a cake that pictured the 32-volume,
129-pound encyclopedia. They displayed
244 silver balloons—one for each year the encyclopedia had been in print. They toasted the departure of an old friend with champagne and the dawning of a new era with determination.
We had no need for a wake because we weren’t grieving. We had known for some time that this day was coming. Given how
March 2013 reprinT R1303A
How I Did It
Encyclopædia
Britannica’s President on Killing Off a
244-Year-Old Product
The Idea: By the time Britannica’s top management decided to stop producing bound sets of the iconic encyclopedia, the company had made sweeping changes to put itself at the forefront of the online education market. by Jorge Cauz
This article is made available to you with compliments of Jorge Cauz. Further posting, copying or distributing is copyright infringement.
How I Did It…
For article reprints call 800-988-0886 or 617-783-7500, or visit hbr.org
Jorge Cauz is the president of
Encyclopædia Britannica.
Encyclopædia Britannica’s
President on Killing Off a
244-Year-Old Product by Jorge Cauz
Photography: EncyclopÆdia Britannica, Inc.
O
The Idea
By the time Britannica’s top management decided to stop producing bound sets of the iconic encyclopedia, the company had made sweeping changes to put itself at the forefront of the online education market.
ne year ago, my announcement that Encyclopædia Britannica would cease producing bound volumes sent ripples through the media world.
Despite the vast migration of information from ink and paper to bits and screens, it seemed remarkable that a set of books published for almost a quarter of a millennium would go out of print. But in our Chicago offices this wasn’t an occasion to mourn.
In fact, our employees held a party the day of the announcement, celebrating the fact that Britannica was still a growing and viable company. They ate the print set—in the form of a cake that pictured the 32-volume,
129-pound encyclopedia. They displayed
244 silver balloons—one for each year the encyclopedia had been in print. They toasted the departure of an old friend with champagne and the dawning of a new era with determination.
We had no need for a wake because we weren’t grieving. We had known for some time that this day was coming. Given how