Eric Schaeffer and David Sovie – Reinventing the Product: Book Review & Audio Summary

Book Info

• Book name: Reinventing the Product: How to Transform Your Business and Create Value in the Digital Age
• Author: Eric Schaeffer, David Sovie
• Genre: Business, Technology, Digital Transformation
• Published Year: 2019
• Publisher: Kogan Page
• Language: English

Audio Summary

Synopsis

Here’s the deal: two Accenture bigwigs are telling you that the 200-year-old model of ‘make thing, sell thing, move on’ is dead. Stone cold dead. In its place? Something they call ‘Product X.0’ – smart, connected products that don’t end at the cash register but keep delivering value (and data) forever. Schaeffer and Sovie want you to stop thinking like a manufacturer and start thinking like a service provider. Your drill isn’t a drill anymore – it’s a hole-delivery system. Sounds a bit consultant-y? Yeah. It is. But there’s something here worth unpacking.

Key Takeaways

• The Big Idea: Products are no longer endpoints – they’re platforms for ongoing customer relationships and continuous value delivery
• The Controversial Point: Legacy businesses that don’t digitally transform their entire core (not just marketing) are basically walking dead
• The Actionable Part: Shift your business model from point-of-sale thinking to outcome-based thinking – sell the result, not the tool
• The Hidden Gem: Your workforce transformation matters as much as your tech stack – fast, flexible, digitally-native teams are non-negotiable

My Summary

Another Digital Transformation Book. But Wait.

Look, I’ll be honest – when I saw ‘Accenture Senior Managing Directors’ on the cover, my eyes nearly rolled out of my head. Consultant books have this reputation, right? Lots of frameworks. Lots of jargon. Very little you can actually use on Monday morning.

And yeah, Reinventing the Product has some of that DNA. But here’s the thing – Schaeffer and Sovie are actually onto something that matters. They’re not just talking about slapping an app on your toaster. They’re talking about a fundamental rethinking of what a ‘product’ even is.

The Core Argument (In Human Terms)

For like 200 years, business was simple. Source materials. Make stuff. Sell stuff. Count money. Repeat. The transaction ended when the customer walked out the door.

That’s dead now. Or dying. Pick your metaphor.

What Schaeffer and Sovie are pushing is this idea of ‘Product X.0’ – products that are digitally connected, constantly updated, and designed to deliver ongoing experiences rather than one-time purchases. Think Tesla sending you software updates while you sleep. Think Peloton turning a stationary bike into a subscription service.

The point of sale? That’s just the beginning now. The real relationship – and the real money – comes after.

The Writing Quality (Let’s Be Real)

Okay, here’s where I gotta be straight with you. This is a consultant book. It reads like a consultant book. The prose is clean, competent, and – I’m gonna say it – kinda dry. There are case studies. There are frameworks. There’s that polished, almost sterile quality you get from books that probably went through seventeen rounds of corporate review.

Is it engaging? Not particularly. Will it keep you up at night turning pages? Nope. But that’s not really the point, is it? This is a reference book. A thinking tool. You’re not reading it for the vibes.

(Though honestly, a few more stories and a little less PowerPoint-speak wouldn’t’ve hurt.)

What Actually Works

The best parts of this book are when the authors get specific about what ‘digital transformation’ actually means in practice. Not the buzzword version – the real version.

They talk about needing a ‘digitally ready workforce’ that can move fast and adapt. They talk about connecting engineering, production, sales, and support into one feedback loop. They talk about software updates going out the day after launch.

This isn’t abstract strategy stuff. This is operational reality for companies that want to survive. And the authors – coming from the trenches of helping massive companies actually do this – have credibility here.

What Doesn’t Work

The book gets a bit repetitive. Once you get the core concept – products are platforms now, experiences matter, outcomes over objects – you kinda get it. But the book keeps circling back, reframing the same ideas in slightly different ways. By chapter 8, you’re like, ‘Okay, I got it. What else?’

Also – and this is a bigger issue – the advice skews heavily toward large enterprises. If you’re running a small business or a startup, some of this stuff is gonna feel disconnected from your reality. Building a ‘digital twin’ infrastructure isn’t exactly weekend project territory.

The Verdict

Here’s my take: Reinventing the Product is a solid B+ business book. It’s not revolutionary – a lot of these ideas have been floating around the ‘digital transformation’ discourse for years. But Schaeffer and Sovie package them well, back them up with real examples, and give you a framework that actually makes sense.

If you’re a product manager, a business strategist, or anyone trying to figure out how to make your company relevant in 2024 and beyond – yeah, this is worth your time. Just don’t expect fireworks. Expect clarity. That’s valuable too.

(And maybe keep some coffee handy for the drier chapters.)