22Encouraging Initiative and Innovation

THE PACE OF BUSINESS continues to accelerate. Technology has made the faster pace possible while intense domestic and global competition has made it necessary. Amazingly, it was not that long ago that overnight delivery, faxes, e-mail, and web conferencing did not exist. These are just some examples of tools that have quickened the speed at which business is conducted. It is only in the last few decades that companies have had to learn to compete effectively with foreign competitors.

Older, more layered, and gradual management structures and methods worked fine when all organizations used them. But as technology and communications tools have supported faster decision making, the old methods have had to ...

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