the Manufacuring Age versus the Information Age |
 |
Has the so-called information age really changed the way the world works? In some ways, the answer is yes. Let's contrast our view of the world as the Manufacturing Age (MA)
business model versus the Information Age (IA) business model. The differences can help everyone gain a better understanding of what is happening in the market today and why.
• The game in the MA was bulk-material manufacturing, while in the IA it is the design and use of technology.
• The goal in the MA was commodity products, while in the IA it is knowledge-based products.
• The domain in the MA was mainly regional, while in the IA it is global.
• In the MA, the future appeared predictable and pre-determined. In the IA, the future is uncertain with probability and possibility constantly in question.
• Change represented a steady rate and caused less indigestion in the MA, but in the IA change must be a way of life, often overwhelming.
• The rules of the MA were linear cause and effect, while in the IA they are based on nonlinear complex interactions.
• The MA game plan was the classic five year plan. The IA game plan is based on three year probability scenarios.
• The leader was the person who managed a plan to its end state in the MA. In the IA, the leader envisions and coaches on direction.
• Ownership in the MA meant centralized decision-making and responsibility, while in the IA these are distributed.
• In the MA, the challenge was based on demand versus capacity to deliver. In the IA, it is demand versus capacity for change.
• Resources meant material and financial capital in the MA, but in the IA resources means human, social and intellectual capital.
• Risks in the MA meant moving to quickly and being out of control, while in the IA it means moving to slowly and falling out of the race.
• The approach in the MA was to seek out quality, low cost production, price standards and diminishing returns. In the IA, the approach is to try to be first and best with high cost R&D. You try to achieve market lock-on for high margins and pursue increasing returns.
• In the MA, the role of the team was the optimization of quality and productivity, the application of raw energy, repetitive day-to-day operations and the processing of resources. In the IA, the team aims for quality, productivity and adaptability with the application of ideas, the quest for innovation and the processing of information being central themes.
• The process in the MA involved interaction in a set sequence with end-to-end efficiency being key and standardization always the answer. In the IA, the process is represented as the whole emerging from the interacting parts and feedback loops offer direction.
These are, of course, not mutually exclusive. Parts of each are used and should be used to help promote the smooth functioning of the system as a
whole. The differences do exist though and show why some companies succeed while others do not, some companies thrive while others whither on the proverbial vine. What these
differences demonstrate strikingly well is that this is as much a technological revolution as it is a cultural revolution. The world is changing and so is the nature of change itself.
|
|
|
