Which industries are ripest for disruption?

Killer question! Call centers, anything having to do with energy production, and accounting firms. Avatars are here now and capable of handling call center duties. If an abundant source of inexpensive energy were announced the entire balance of political forces would change over night. Herman Cain could change the accounting business with his 9-9-9 program. Why would we need accountants?

Believe it or not, the Arab Spring is just beginning... note the occupation of Wall Street. Google the gini coefficient and see what is our likely future.

I agree that financial services and education are particularly good targets and would add health care and energy to your list. I look for industries that:

1. Have large gross revenue figures;
2. Employ large numbers of employees;
3. Have complex supply chains;
4. Are dominated by large, legacy firms;
5. Lack a vibrant start up culture.

Now whether these dynamics are predictive of whether an industry will be disrupted is an entirely different story.

Loyalty - the idea of carrying around 10-15 different loyalty cards is not agreeable with the consumer. With mobile on the rise and single sign ons - there's going to be a simple solution that will drive mass adoption.

I don't think that this question is readily answerable.

Who would have thought the answer was music ten years ago?

Disruptions often show up between industries in space that isn't readily identifiable.

Publishing, Telecoms & Media
Healthcare
Financial Services
Retail banking
Public Institutions

Telecom Carrier business, the telcos have not yet realized the disruption broadband will have and most are trying to do business as usual but over broadband. I will not work and there will be enourmous disruption in the near future. Smartphones are only the tip of the iceberg

Enterprise Software - they are solutions for a time gone by. This market is already being disrupted but the sheer size and complexity of the market will insure it takes a few more years to unravel.

Financial services due to regulatory pressures from Dodd Frank which will create whole new services segments.

Healthcare and health insurance due to massive regulatory reforms.

I also agree with Scott that education is ripe for disruption, particularly post-secondary where tuition rates are getting way out of control.

We just went through and are still having problems with the supply chain. Everything manufactured in Japan was affected by the tsunami/earthquakes.

The auto industry that relies on JIT inventory systems almost stopped their production lines do to lack of raw and wip material.

Defense/Military - Innovation will come from among the ranks. Retiring servicemembers who do not want to work in the federal system experience the same job opportunity crunch as civilians. This is causing them to think differently, creating innovative ways to sell to their former employers.

I agree with every response, but I am intrigued by the accounting suggestion. I have some statistics in the manufacturing sectors that suggest that business administration now far exceeds direct costs. There are a lot of factors involved, but with one of my clients, administration is not only a huge non-value-add cost it is also the constraint to flow on the shop floor. It appears to me that this might be the case with every industry that has been suggested. Also, more software is not the solution, it is a root cause.

I agree with Larry MacDonald. It depends on which moment we are talking about. However, I would say financial and accounting services.
60 years ago, may be the banks and stationeries.

I think practical experience in current decade is showing that financial service industries are most vulnerable in this regard.

Government.

Every single other industry mentioned by the other responses is subject to competition and market forces. When it comes to governments, however, a citizen is forced to accept an entire government with all it entails (political, social and economic environment, taxes, immigration policy, human rights or their abuse, warantless surveillance etc.). The barrier to entry is extremely high - you'd need to win a war or start a revolution.

Governments have had very little inventive to improve - until now.

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I agree that many of the industries listed could be ripe for disruption. However, for most of these, the largest barrier to entry and thus disruption is US govt regulation and policy. The easy examples of healthcare and accounting are getting worse, not better. More technology and more data have not made either industry better. In fact they have made them more complex and more divorced from the customer's reality. New question, "How do you disrupt bureaucracy, short of revolution?"

All of them...

All of them...are ripe for disruption, as many are already experiencing the unanticipated...with more to come.