The 20 Theses of New Management

Fernando Polo has published 20 Theses on Management 2.0, which deserve to be regarded as an update to the Cluetrain Manifesto. The 20 theses, as Fernando Polo puts it, summarise lessons drawn from observing phenomena occurring in services commonly referred to under the Web 2.0 concept, in turn compared with classic and postmodern business management theories. They are all worth reading, although personally I would highlight the following:

• The problem is not that people lack talent; it is that we keep it to ourselves. The issue with talent is not attracting or retaining it. The issue is that it takes talent to recognise talent.
• Just as the influence that peers exert on one another grows (recommendations from friends, colleagues and so on), what peers will say carries greater weight as an element of authority and accountability within the company.
• On the internet (and in society), there are myriad people who do things without expecting money in return. Increasingly, a good salary will be a necessary but insufficient condition.
• Information wants to be free, ubiquitous and accessible. This also applies within organisations. Insisting on keeping it under lock and key will always prove fruitless in the medium term.
• In many cases, given the necessary information and sufficient time or the right tools, knowledge generated by many is more accurate than knowledge generated by a few.
• Far more often than people think, people do not like being told what to do. Almost all of us prefer to be able to decide on our own responsibilities and tasks.

Digital transformation and interconnectivity are revolutionising the way organisations operate, breaking down hierarchical barriers and enabling a more horizontal flow of communication. In this new paradigm, the productivity of knowledge workers is no longer measured in terms of physical activity, but according to their mental and creative capacity. Traditional management models, based on discipline and control, are becoming obsolete in the face of the importance of passion and commitment as the new drivers of workplace performance. In this context, talent must not only be attracted and retained, but also recognised and developed within the organisation.