Group items tagged

"Transforming the Enterprise As We Know It"

Not large corporations, but networks of small companies and individuals will be the future drivers for innovation and prosperity. A policy paper of The Lisbon Council.

"How Freelancers and Technology-Savvy Start-Ups are Driving Growth, Jobs and Innovation, "

The employees are a company's most valuable assets. So they say. But do they really understand what it means?

Economies of scale are well understood. Bigger factories are more efficient, bigger distribution networks are more efficient, bigger ad campaigns can be more efficient. It's often hard to defeat a major competitor, particularly if the market is looking for security and the status quo.

But what about the economies of small? Is being bigger an intrinsic benefit in and of itself?

The MIX is an open innovation project aimed at reinventing management for the 21st century. However, does it make sense reinventing management, without first reinventing companies?

When trying to address complexity, we always try doing it in a logical way. We first try 'understanding' the problem at hand and then, we take 'logical' action. Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. You have to counter complexity with complex response.

Traditional design professionals who want to apply their methodologies to organizational systems change and business strategy should be prepared for a diversity of responses from organizational managers. Some will welcome your unique perspective and experiences, your creative problem-solving and communication skills, and your willingness to work collaboratively across disciplines. However, you also need to prepare for the possibility of disdain, confusion, and resistance from others.

With Enterprise 2.0, we are trying to solve some of the problems of today's business organisations. However, we must not forget that our business environment is rapidly evolving and therefore, we might be solving the problems of the past instead of those of the future.

Implementing change in an organisation is difficult, very difficult. There are numerous reasons or excuses for failure. However, the primary reason for failure is choosing the wrong destination.

Traditional businesses are struggling to recover from the economic downturn. They'll need to shift their focus from profits to authentic social engagement to have meaningful impact in the world.

Today's enterprises are increasingly facing challenges of rapid change, hyper-competition and complexity. Old methods and structures can no longer support the agility that is needed. Time for a radical management makeover?

What law decrees that our organizations have to be bureaucratic, inertial and politicized, or that life within them has to be disempowering, dispiriting and often downright boring? No law we know of. So why not build organizations that are highly adaptable, endlessly inventive and truly inspiring? Why not indeed. That's the goal that lies at the heart of the Management Innovation eXchange (MIX).

"You can smell the fresh paint as companies the world over complete their post-recession overhauls. Few business organizations, functions, and processes have escaped this rethink, which is meant to fortify organizations before the next downturn comes
At the risk of stirring a hornet's nest, I'd like to ask one question: How many of us CEOs included, as part of the rethink, changes to the CEO's role and responsibilities? "

"Technology and technology-driven change has virtually nothing to do with igniting a transformation from good to great. Technology can accelerate a transformation, but technology cannot cause a transformation." Jim Collins. Good to Great.

In life and in business, agility is a major advantage. However, in life it seems to come more or less naturally, while in business it seems an impossible dream. Some thoughts on change.

Dear World Leaders,\nThis relationship isn't working out. Its time for us to explore other government opportunities. We've tried to make it work. But it's not us - it's you (really).

To manage a system effectively, you might focus on the interactions of the parts rather than on their behaviour taken separately - Russell Ackoff