„‚ CONDITIONS THAT HINDER EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT
1. Technological Change. The rapidly changing technological environment will hasten and aid
the decentralization process. Technology improvements will provide the means for less direct
centralized operational control and will permit effective decentralized functional control, while at
the same time enabling senior management to obtain timely and usable financial information for
decision making.
2. Demographic Change. The “baby boom” will slow down the rate of career progression and increase
the need for “career development,” that is, changes in work assignment through lateral
transfers.
3. Economic Change. Free trade zones will result in increased competitiveness in most
countries. This competitiveness will increase the rate of change in the economy.
INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT
1. Technological Change. The focus of technology implementation will continue to shift from
automating what we are currently doing to developing new and better ways of doing things and
to improving the range and quality of services provided. Additional staff training in the use of
computer technology will be required if we are to realize the full potential of existing and future
computer hardware and software.
2. Human-Resource Change. The company has a good mix of age groups and should not be
faced with a sudden turnover due to retirements. It will be an ongoing challenge to keep
performance and morale up in a climate of increasing work loads, change, and uncertainty.
There is a risk of cutbacks and freezes, particularly if there is a downturn in the economy.
3. Work-Load Change. The work load will continue to increase, and the work will become less
routine.
Figure 1. Sample Environmental-Trend Analysis
department, which relies on adaptive skills. Such differences are a reflection of the
conflict inherent in the tasks acted out by the different subsystems.
At certain times in an organization’s life, it may be necessary to highlight certain
skills over others. For instance, at times it may be appropriate to develop skills that
assist in changing and adapting. Also, changes in one functional area (in one subsystem)
will affect other areas. Thus, after a major change, it might be appropriate to emphasize
problem-solving skills.
In most cases, the conference participants will be able to forecast skill responses to
environmental trends by brainstorming answers to four questions:
■ What skills will we need to respond to future changes?
■ What skills will we need to improve our internal management?
■ What skills will we need to improve our internal efficiency and cost
effectiveness?
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The Pfeiffer Library Volume 6, 2nd Edition. Copyright ©1998 Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer