In an issue of Business Week devoted to the future of business, writer John Byrne speculated about
Question:
In an issue of Business Week devoted to the future of business, writer John Byrne speculated about the future of leadership. He said that the twenty-first century would be unfriendly to leaders who try to run their companies by sheer force of will, and that success would come instead to companies that are "leaderless"-or companies whose leadership is so widely shared that they resemble ant colonies or beehives. In a world that is becoming more dependent on brainpower, having teams at the top will make more sense than having a single top manager. The Internet enables companies to act more like beehives because information can be shared horizontally rather than sent up to the top manager's office and then back down to lower organizational levels again. Decisions can be made instantly by the best people equipped to make them. One of the best examples of this is Wikipedia.
In the past, uniform thinking from the top could cripple an organization. Today, however, team leadership is ideally suited for the new reality of fast-changing markets. Urgent projects often require the coordinated contribution of many talented people working together. Such thinking does not happen at the top of the organization; it takes place lower down the organization among the workers.
Developments in digital communication have made remote work a viable option for company employees, an option that does not affect workers' productivity or achievement of team goals.
Leaderless companies are becoming more and more common in our modern world. One such example is cryptocurrencies, which have the ability to be autonomous because they rely on peer-to-peer, decentralized networks. Finance and farming are two sectors that seem to have the most leaderless businesses. Denmark's Lynetten Wind Cooperative is one example and Wisconsin's Organic Valley farms is another. These 1,600 farms include communities in both the United States and Mexico, and every employee is a family-owned and operated farm.
In the future, therefore, managers are more likely to be chosen for their team experience and their ability to delegate rather than to make all key decisions themselves. Companies in the future, it is said, will be led by people who understand that in business, as in nature, no one person can be in control.
Discussion Questions
- What would you look for on a resume that would indicate that a job candidate was a self-motivated team player? Are you that type? How do you know?
- Given your experience with managers in the past, what problems do you see for managers who let employees decide for themselves the best way to do things and give them the power to obtain needed equipment?
- What would happen if all businesses in your area had their employees interact with customers to hear their comments and complaints? Would that be an effective or ineffective approach? Why?
- What are the various ways you can think of for companies to pay bonuses to team members? One way is to divide the money equally. What are other ways? Which would you prefer as a team member?
Foundations Of Financial Management
ISBN: 9781259265921
11th Canadian Edition
Authors: Stanley Block, Geoffrey Hirt, Bartley Danielsen, Doug Short, Michael Perretta