In Search of the Agile Manager

by Kerry F. Gentry

We live in a world of epochal change in technology and how it is managed. Since the dawn of civilization, when agricultural technology allowed the human race to move forward from a hunter-gatherer to an agrarian society, specialization has dominated the workplace and its management. Only in the past few years has specialization -- an almost monolithic principle of production and management -- begun to be challenged. This challenge stems from today's rapid rate of technological and business change, which has outstripped the ability of many technical and management staff to adapt. It's clear that we must continue to have dedicated specialists to keep pace with the surging rate of technical development, but something else is also required -- agility. We must have agile workforces that are enabled and directed by agile management. This Executive Report focuses on agile managers, as their importance is only now being recognized and defined.