Andrew McAfee published "Europe Can't Get Out of Its Own Way" in Foreign Affairs on Sept. 23, arguing that European labor productivity has fallen well behind the United States since 2000 and locating the cause in Europe's own rules.
The piece examines the widening transatlantic productivity gap and contends that European regulatory frameworks, rather than workforce quality or work ethic, constrain economic performance. McAfee's argument centers on how policy choices shape competitive outcomes in technology-driven economies.
The stakes for leadership teams are substantial: organizations with European operations face strategic questions about where to invest, how to structure cross-border teams and how regulatory environments affect returns on technology adoption. McAfee's analysis provides a framework for assessing those trade-offs as boards evaluate exposure to different regulatory regimes.
Andrew McAfee is a principal research scientist at the MIT Sloan School of Management, co-founder and co-director of the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy and the inaugural visiting fellow at Google Technology and Society. His latest book, The Geek Way, named one of The Economist's best books of 2023, examines the management culture that allows organizations to profit from technology. He and Erik Brynjolfsson co-authored the New York Times bestsellers The Second Machine Age and Machine, Platform, Crowd.
Andrew McAfee is exclusively represented by Stellant Group for speaking engagements including keynotes, fireside chats and panel discussions with leadership teams thinking through technology strategy, competitive positioning and organizational transformation in economies shaped by regulation and innovation. For our consulting or advisory offerings, please reach out for a custom proposal.
