In a factory-based
economy supplying local markets, hierarchical models served businesses
well. But globalization and the information economy mean new business
models and organizational forms will dominate the 21st century.
The 21st century will see greater changes in the
world and in the lives of its people than any century that has gone
before. New business thinking and creative organizational forms are
necessary to deal with those changes.
The hierarchical business model developed early
in the 20th century served well in a system based on factory-produced
products made from raw materials for sale in stable, local markets.
It will not suffice in the 21st century for delivering services based
on information and ideas for rapidly changing, global markets. A factory
door can be locked at night and the business assets protected, but a
human mind cannot be. Indeed, the assets all walk out the door at night.
What new business models and organizational forms
will dominate in the years ahead? Several characteristics are likely
to be important. These, in turn, are bound together by integrity and
by respect for others and their ideas. No one person alone can create;
no one alone can build an organization; no one alone can lead.
Human talent. Finding and nurturing human
talent is the key ingredient to long-term success. Companies must invest
in training and professional development on an ongoing basis and provide
rich opportunities for employees to learn through the experience of
challenging assignments.
Connections vs. connectedness. Hierarchies
have been dismantled left and right during the last decade. What remains
is more horizontal, less rigid and not entirely controlled by the company.
New alliances are evolving, many of which cross national borders or
include one's competitors. These alliances are frequently person-to-person
relationships, not business-to-business.
Information. Entrepreneurial companies must
be able to handle huge volumes of data from disparate sources and transform
the data into useful information. Without an understanding of information
-- how it is acquired, transformed and communicated -- we cannot build
companies, nor can we provide clients and customers with the products
and services they require at prices they can afford.
Technology. Technology is both an enabler
of corporate processes and, for many companies, the focal point of their
products and services.
Global view. Tomorrow's leaders must have
a global view, which is best built through global experiences. They
must be comfortable in multiple cultures, both corporate and national,
and be able to translate actions and words from one culture and language
to another without losing their meaning. Some understanding can be learned
by study, but more can be absorbed by experience.
Simplicity and complexity. For the basic
processes of a company to be performed well and in a timely fashion,
there must be simplicity to its organizational structure. Yet, in knowing
what to do, when to do it, where and how requires complex relationships
that resemble a net far more than a pyramid.
Nimbleness. The pace of change seems to be
ever accelerating. The speed we move at is faster, and the time to respond
is shorter. Companies must be able to react quickly to changes in the
marketplace and to provide new or modified products and services at
a moment's notice. Whereas mass production characterized the 20th century,
mass customization will characterize the 21st.
The ability to transform or reinvent oneself and
one's company in response to or in anticipation of changed external
and internal circumstances will be necessary for corporate survival.
Yet, the time to take a company through a change management process,
frequently in the face of deep-seated behavioral resistance, has not
shortened: It still seems to take five years.
Putting balance in life. The pace of change,
pressures to succeed, the wear and tear of travel, and sheer time commitments
all take their toll on even the most talented individuals. Keeping one's
work life balanced properly balanced with one's physical, social, community
and spiritual lives is not easy, but is vitally important for providing
perspective. Part of this balance involves tempering ideas from young
talent with the wisdom of experienced survivors.
Successful entrepreneurs will be those who can put
these and other characteristics into creative, coherent forms with decisiveness
and the energy to lead others in pursuit of a global vision for the
future of their company.
Note that we must be careful not to think of entrepreneurial
creativity as applying only to small businesses. Indeed, one can argue
that such creativity is even more important at the helm of large corporations
as they seek to remain strong leaders in the face of incredible changes
in the marketplace and in technology.
As we journey into the future, change will be our
constant companion. It is the constant that bridges the generations,
even the centuries. Yet if we stop to survey key trends, we can chart
a confident future and break through the barriers that limit our thinking.
It is truly a wonderful time to be alive, for we
have within our hands in the 21st Century the ability to feed, clothe
and house everyone on the face of the earth and to provide all with
education, health care and, most important, the freedom to create and
pursue new opportunities to benefit themselves, their communities and
our world.
