Coming soon · Book Profile
Tomorrows Organization Crafting Winning Capabilities in a Dynamic World
To achieve competitive advantage in a dynamic global economy, organizations must continuously transform their design, management practices, and human resource systems to build flexible, winning capabilities.
A profile of this book is on the way.
What it’s about
In an era of hypercompetition where traditional sources of advantage are fleeting, "Tomorrow's Organization" argues that the ultimate key to success lies in superior organizational design. Drawing on eighteen years of research with Fortune 1000 companies, the authors from the Center for Effective Organizations provide a comprehensive blueprint for building the agile, fast, and flexible enterprises needed for the 21st century. The book moves beyond management fads to offer practical, hands-on solutions for redesigning corporate structures, enabling high performance, managing people strategically, and leading transformation. It details emerging models like customer-product, networked, and global organizations, and shows how to align them with new approaches to strategic pay, learning contracts, and technology integration to create enduring competitive capabilities.
The through-line
- Who it’s for
- A manager, leader, or consultant in an established organization who is struggling to keep their company competitive amidst rapid global competition and technological change. They want to create a more effective, profitable, and flexible organization that can win in the 21st century.
- The problem
- The company's traditional, bureaucratic organization is too slow, rigid, and inwardly focused to compete effectively. Product advantages are short-lived, and nimbler competitors are winning. The leader feels frustrated, uncertain, and overwhelmed, knowing the organization must change but lacking a clear roadmap. They feel stuck applying outdated management models that no longer work.
- The plan
- Design Competitive Organizations: Learn to implement new forms like customer-product, networked, and dynamic global structures.
- Enable Competitive Performance: Build core competencies and capabilities by leveraging information technology and integrating improvement frameworks.
- Manage People for Competitiveness: Transform HR into a strategic partner, create a new learning contract with employees, and design strategic pay systems.
- Transform the Organization: Use teams, technology, and performance management as integrated levers to accelerate organizational learning and change.
- The payoff
- The organization becomes a flexible, agile, high-performance entity that consistently outmaneuvers competitors. · The company develops competitive advantage through superior, hard-to-imitate organizational capabilities. · The reader becomes a respected leader known for successfully guiding their company into a profitable and sustainable future.
See our guide
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Additional reading
- The Organism · Kurt Goldstein
Maslow sources the term 'self-actualization' from Goldstein and builds upon his holistic view of the organism.
- Explorations in Personality · H. A. Murray, et al.
Cited as providing an 'excellent discussion' on the basic principle of centering motivation theory on goals rather than instigation or behavior.
- Social Interest · Alfred Adler
Maslow credits Adler and his followers for stressing the importance of the 'esteem needs,' which he felt were neglected by Freudian psychoanalysts.
- Wisdom of the Body · W. B. Cannon
Provides the foundational concept of 'homeostasis,' which Maslow uses as the starting point for his discussion of physiological needs.
- Multipliers · Liz Wiseman
Explores how leaders can either amplify ('multiply') or diminish ('diminish') the intelligence and capabilities of their teams, a key concept for creating a positive, low-anxiety environment.
- The Fearless Organization · Amy Edmondson
Provides the foundational research and practical steps for creating psychological safety, which the book identifies as crucial for reducing interpersonal anxiety and encouraging people to speak up.
- Mindset · Carol Dweck
Explains the difference between a 'growth mindset' and a 'fixed mindset,' which is presented as a key tool for helping employees manage perfectionism and see failures as learning opportunities.
- Crucial Conversations · Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, et al.
Recommended as a resource for employees to learn how to navigate difficult, high-stakes conversations, directly addressing the book's theme of moving from conflict avoidance to healthy debate.
- Better Allies · Karen Catlin
The author is quoted on specific, actionable steps for allyship, making her book a practical guide for implementing the principles in Chapter 7.
- Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People · Mahzarin R. Banaji and Anthony G. Greenwald
Explains the science of implicit bias, which is central to the book's argument that leaders need to be proactive allies because 'not being racist/sexist' isn't enough.