Technology Meets Flowers

Why do the Dutch continue to play a central role in the global production, sales, and distribution of flowers? What are the origin and history of the bulb and flower industry in the Netherlands? How are Artificial Intelligence (AI), complex algorithms, and modern distribution systems ensuring that fresh flowers reach their destination on time? This very entertaining and informative book introduces readers to the global flower business, and highlights the surprising factors that helped the Dutch become global leaders on the flower markets. The book reveals the complexity of the flower markets in terms of their ability to produce, transport, and deliver fresh flowers on a global scale. In addition, it explores how information advantage is created by blending business with technology, from robotized glasshouses to the use of AI-driven algorithms for flower production and distribution. In closing, the book presents lessons learned regarding the circular and digital transformation of the high-speed flower business and markets in order to deliver sustainable value for customers. Combining the light beauty of flowers with the harsh language of the digital universe is a masterfully executed task in this book, organized as a bouquet of algorithms, data science, and digital platforms. Eduardo Diniz, Professor, Fundação Getulio Vargas, São Paulo, Brazil This unique book leads you through the bulb fields and auctions of the Netherlands, through history, logistics, auction design and internet technology, to draw lessons in business management from the study of flowers. With beautiful illustrations. A tour de force. John Kay, Economist, Author of Radical Uncertainty and Greed is Dead, and Fellow, St. John’s College, University of Oxford, United Kingdom If you want to understand the impact of information and technology on a fascinating industry, this book is a must read. Martin Mocker, Professor, Reutlingen University, Reutlingen, Germany, and Research Affiliate, MIT, Sloan Center for Information Systems Research, Cambridge, USA