The Peters mantra, "crazy times call for crazy organizations", sounds crazy itself. But the author is perfectly sane. Separate out the hype and exaggeration and the underlying message is one that all managers should heed: prepare to reinvent yourself and embrace change.
The new orthodoxy
According to Peters, nothing is for ever. Orthodoxy itself is changing. To succeed in management, you need to move towards the new orthodoxy — or the orthodoxy of the moment. Already managers are having to learn how to work in organizations that have moved decisively from traditional vertical structures towards horizontal ones. In these more flexible companies autonomous units, or even temporary ones, are the key building blocks.
Developing skills
The new orthodoxy requires managers with all-round business skills. You need to be as knowledgeable as an independent contractor, which is what many people have become. Already, your dependence on people networks, both inside and outside the organization, is far greater than that of previous generations. Increasingly your day-to-day work, and what you ultimately produce and sell, involves more; knowledge (or "software") and relatively less "hardware".
The certainty of change
This intellect-dominated output is what is required by today's market, which places a large premium on what is new. It demands that you must be intellectually inquisitive and productive. Managing efficiently is important, but it is no longer enough. The only certainty in today's environment is that it is continually changing. To meet this challenge, strive to reach ever higher levels of effectiveness and adaptability.
Revolutionary management
Peters calls this process the "perpetual revolution". To deal with this new state of affairs, aim to be an eminently sound and successful business manager as well as the revolutionary that Peters describes.
