A New Age of Organizational Structure

A New Age of Organizational Structure - Nu Leadership Series

“ Every failure is a blessing in disguise, providing it teaches some needed lesson one could not have learned without it. Most so-called Failures are only temporary defeats.”
Napoleon Hill

What is the new structure of 21st century organizations? This is the question most executives must ponder. Leadership expert Gray Kelly proposed that “…future structures must configure ‘real time’ for maximum capacity and connectivity.” Some individuals point to organizational changes as the result of knowledge workers coming to age. Handy, author of The Age of Paradox, argues that intellectual property will prove to be the most valuable commodity because it has the ability to acquire and apply knowledge for wealth building. Let’s dig deeper.

Here’s the paradox: today’s managers want more control over processes and decision-making while knowledge workers want more independence to make decisions that benefit organization. Tomorrow’s organizations depend on an engaging workforce. Hoyle, author of Leadership and Futuring , suggested a new type of leader that empathizes with workers. Furthermore, Morgan, author of Imagination, suggested that forward-thinking organizations utilize innovation and imagination to infuse new thinking into their processes while moving beyond traditional bureaucratic boxes. However, for the most part, today’s organizations have a “top down” organizational structure. If organizations want to be competitive in the future, this mindset must change. Only time will determine if this transformation will happen.

References:

Handy, C. (1997). The Age of Paradox. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.

Hoyle, J. (1995). Leadership and Futuring. New York: Corwin Press, Inc.
Morgan, G. (1997). Imagination. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.

© 2008 by Daryl D. Green

Discuss the dominant structure of organizations in the future. Nu Leadership is a column that explores the changing workforce and social environment as it relates to leadership development.

Daryl D. Green has published over 100 articles in the field of decision-making and leadership. Mr. Green is an author of several books, including More Than A Conqueror. He has been noted in USA Today and AP. For more information, you can email him at www.darylgreen.org.

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