Description: This book examines how organizations can, and should, transform their practices to compete in a world economy. Research results from a multi-disciplinary team of MIT researchers, along with the experiences and insights of a select group of industry practitioners, are integrated into a model that stresses the need for systemic and transformative rather than piecemeal or incremental changes in organization practices and public policy. This integration of research and experience results in an argument for a new organizational learning model--one capable of gaining advantage from employee diversity, cooperation across organizational boundaries, strategic restructuring, and advanced technology. The book begins with a foreword by Lester C. Thurow.
Review Quotes: "A timely contribution. Most major corporations are grappling with the issues discussed in this book. It provides a wealth of good ideas and real experience. I highly recommend it."-- Paul A. Allaire, Chair and Chief Executive Officer, Xerox Corporation
"At a time when corporations are undergoing a paradigmatic change in organizing and managing people, this book makes an important contribution to out understanding of that change. It contains many new and diverse insights which together provide a comprehensive and systematic perspective of the corporate transformation taking place....[T]his book joins many of the omprtant issues which managers and academicians must come to understand if a new and more adaptive learning organization is to emerge."--Michael Beer, Harvard Graduate School of Business"Transforming Organizations reports an especially wide ranging perspective on systematic organization change. This multi-faceted project has been able to effectively link economic, strategic, organizational, technological, and ouman resource management issues as they relate to organization learning. Ideas in this book will be of importance for any student or manager."--Michael Tushman, Columbia University Graduate School of Business"This [is a] very insightful book....The belief that the process of change is elusive and difficult to manage makes the collection of lessons presented in this book extremely useful. The scope of Transforming Organizations is quite broad, and it should be very helpful to anyone who has to deal with the process of organizational change."--Paul Lego, Chair, Westinghouse Electric Corporation"It is rare to read a book, like this one, in which all the contributions are excellent....Each is full of food for thought. The authors go to the heart of the most difficult issues and their analyses are crisp and tight....The book helped me to reflect, to agree, and to disagree. I recommend the book."--Chris Argyris, Sloan Management Review