Managing in an Information Age: Organizational Challenges and Opportunities

Lynda M. Applegate

Background Note | HBS Case Collection | August 1995 (Revised September 1995)

Managing in an Information Age: Organizational Challenges and Opportunities

Abstract

Managers and management theorists spent the majority of this century building and perfecting the hierarchy; however, if we believe the press, they now appear to be engaged in destroying it. While many proclaim the dawning of the "Information Age" organization and the fading of the hierarchical organization as a trend of the 1990s, the roots of these changes can be traced to the 1950s. This note provides an overview of the organizational design challenges that firms face in the 1990s, their historical roots, and the characteristics of the emerging Information Age organization model.

Keywords: Management; Information Technology; Problems and Challenges; Opportunities;

Format: Print

19 pages

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Applegate, Lynda M. "Managing in an Information Age: Organizational Challenges and Opportunities." Harvard Business School Background Note 196-002, August 1995. (Revised September 1995.)

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Managing in an Information Age: Organizational Challenges and Opportunities

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