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The characteristics and attributes that typify a managerial career are shifting along with developments in organization structure. The competencies needed b a successful manager in today's organizations may be inadequate in the emerging organizational forms of the 21st century. Based on an analysis of organizational trends, as well as on interviews and a questionnaire survey, we identify the mix of competencies required for a successful career in business organizations of the future. First, we describe careers in traditional hierarchical organizations. Next, we examine the impact on careers of the currently popular network form of organizing. Finally, we describe a new organizational form, the "cellular" structure, and its accompanying managerial characteristics and careers.
What will managerial careers look like in the 21st century? Managers of several leading-edge companies, as well as members of the International Association of Corporate & Professional Resources,l a group of human resource executives and executive recruiters, agreed that future managerial careers will be based on:
* a knowledge-based technical speciality
* cross-functional and international experience
* competence in collaborative leadership
* self-management skills
* personal traits of flexibility, integrity, and trustworthiness
The managers in our study attributed these career characteristics to the evolving shape of organizations, especially to modern network structures and even more futuristic designs. Both their predictions, and the reasons given for them, are, we believe, essentially correct. The evolution of organizational forms has always driven the ingredients and paths of managerial careers. Indeed, a trend line of future career characteristics can be drawn using three key ideas about organization structure.2
1. Organization structure dictates core managerial competencies. Traditional organizations relied almost exclusively on the technical knowledge and skills of their managers. Most managers at the turn of the century, for example, expected to spend their entire careers in a single technical specialty, such as manufacturing, engineering, or sales. Only a few top executives were exposed to the broader commercial aspects of a firm, where they could obtain an understanding of all business functions and how they interacted to produce company profits. Nor were the managers and employees of various functional areas expected to be self-governing-to exercise responsible self-direction and self-control in pursuit of company goals. Instead, elaborate structures and systems were constructed to monitor and control employee behavior....