Organizations of the Future

IBM recently released the 2009 version of the Global CEO Study. The study included in-person interviews with 1,130 CEOs, general managers and senior public sector and business leaders from around the world. The study was intended to understand the differences between financial out-performers and under-performers. While financial performance is just one facet of success, no organization can exist without revenue or income of some kind.

The results of the study indicate that organizations are bombarded by change. 80% of the CEOs see significant change coming and a growing gap between the expected changes and their ability to manage it. The outperformers see demanding stakeholders not as a threat, but as an opportunity to innovate.

Whether your organization calls those it serves customers, clients or the public, there are lessons to be learned. The study reports that financial outperformers are making bolder plays. Nearly all CEOs are adapting their business models, two-thirds are implementing extensive innovations. The organization of the future is characterized as:

• Hungry for change - capable of adapting quickly, shaping and leading change. They see change as a chance to move ahead of others competing for the same resources and revenue.
  
• Innovative beyond imagination - surpassing the expectations of increasingly demanding constituents and customers, the out-performers form deep collaborative relationships to make primary stakeholders, partners and themselves more successful.
  
• Globaly intergrated - ready to access the best capabilities, knowledge and assets wherever they reside in the world. If you're a local or regional organization, the implication is also true for you. Allow your thnking to take you beyond traditional narrow boundaries while delivering value and services locally.
• Disruptive by nature - spend time thinking about where the next disruption will come from and be ready to design and lead changes to the way you create and deliver value to your partners and primary stakeholders. For non-profits this means creating solutitions that benefit your mission as well as the communities in which they live and work.
  
• Genuine, not just generous - are you collaborating with non-profits and for-profits? Are you gaining insights from current government initiatives that can be applied to serve your primary stakeholders? How are you ensuring that the value you create is consistent with your stated values and policies?

Leading systemic change is about creating the future you desire for your primary stakeholders, employees and organization. You can't do one for long if you're not attending to the other two. These findings should not be considered as an answer, but a catalyst to build the capacities your organization will require to sustain itself now and into the future.