"There is a central difference between the old and new economies: The old industrial economy was driven by economies of scale; the new information economy is driven by the economics of networks..."
Increasing globalization, accelerated technological changes, shorter product life cycles, and mass customization - all are driving the competitive pace ever faster. Under pressure for improved performance and enhanced shareholder value, globally, CEOs instinctively are trying to exert more and more control over the organizations they manage. However, the competition, today, is based not on price or product, but on service and support. Also, unlike in the past, as competition becomes stronger and more global, competitive advantage will increasingly depend on superior performance, superior service and superior delivery of products. Organizations need to stay attuned to new developments and the pace of innovation should be beyond their core markets. Such competitive advantage depends on using knowledge - knowledge of suppliers, knowledge of customers, knowledge of how to solve problems, knowing how to manage the business - better and faster. This is one reason that managing knowledge effectively and efficiently is important: It is a key source of competitive advantage in global knowledge-based economy. |
