Some believe that the 21st century will bring significant change. Gary Hamel (co- author of The Future of Management) believes that strategic leaders will need to greatly change how they manage. The 20th century model of designing and managing companies, which emphasized hierarchy and the importance of labor and capital inputs, is no longer applicable1. Forward-looking executives will respond to this challenge by developing new ways to bring innovative products and services to the marketplace2. New approaches to managing employees and organizing talent to maximize wealth creation may provide companies with a competitive advantage. As companies change the direction of the firm, they will have to balance revolutionary thinking with practical experience3.
Scholars believe that the management of technology will be crucial for success within the first few decades of this century. There are three reasons why technology will be important in the current and future environment4. As Lowell (author of Mobilizing Minds) says, first is the impact of new technology. Technology provides the availability of powerful new tools for coordinating human effort. Second, increasing global demand for goods and services will require companies to be adaptable and innovative5. Third, technology can be used to identify unmet consumer needs much more quickly than in the past (e.g., i-phone)6.
Lowell believes that strategic leadership must include innovation. The scarce resources in any company today are discretionary spending, talent, and knowledge. The issue isn’t just innovation, but being able to implement the innovation throughout the company. Bryan believes that the ideas on how to run firms in the 21st century have now reached a stage of maturity which will require managers to consciously innovate.
Bryan believes that we may be entering an area of new technology innovation which will