Thought provoking indeed -the idea that keeps creeping into my mind is that it seems the gap between technological evolution and organization evolution is closing. I often use the changes in technology as a model for organizations. For example, the transition of database technology from hierarchical to relational to object-oriented some what mirrors the evolution of organizations moving from hierarchical to collaborative to function-based organizations. It seems that at each step the time lag between adoption of each stage of evolution is decreasing. I think there are similar constructs in the centalized vs. decentralized debate as well. Using these models, I think you are dead on that as we continue to make the iterations of organizations, they will become more function-based and that the model of the “enterprise” will evolve more along the lines of object-oriented programming and that the speed which that happens will be governed by the economic models and psychological changes that will be need to support the evolution. Do you know of any research that that draws on this type of model? Do think there is anything to this model?
Yes, it speaks for a new organizational paradigm where structure dictates strategy. I think the economic model, the organizational model, and the technological model are all mutually reinforcing aspects of the same phenomenon. Technology enables a new mode of organization which, in turn, facilitates pursuit of new economic or business models. I've not come across much research that takes a holistic view of these issues. Partcularly interesting is the psychological change that you talk about. For example, in all my interactions with outsourcing managers, they don't have an HR plan for transition. What is the mindset that must be encouraged to help employees adapt to an increasingly vertically disaggregated organizational form? How do you motivate retained employees? Have you faced any of these issues or researched them? These are interesting times.
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