William E. Halal, editor, writes, "This book brings together the views of prominent leaders in the trenches of the Information Revolution to examine the revolutionary new principles for managing knowledge. Here's a quick overview of these confusing but exciting management heresies.

Principle 1: 'Complexity Is Managed Through Freedom': Success is no longer achieved by planning and control-but through entrepreneurial freedom among people at the bottom.

Principle 2: 'Cooperation Is Economically Efficient': Economic strength does not come from power and firmness-but out of the cooperative flow of information within a corporate community.

Principle 3: 'Progress Is Guided by Knowledge and Spirit': Abundance is not the result of material riches-but of understanding the subtle workings of an infinitely complex world.

There are the new laws governing institutions today, the economic imperatives that determine who succeeds and who fails, the keys to pioneering an unexplored frontier of boundless knowledge-The Infinite Resource" (from the Introduction).

In this context, Halal organizes this invaluable collection into three parts that each focuses on the principles outlined as below:

1. Halal writes, "Part I shows that today's hierarchical structures are being replaced by an emerging foundation of management based on enterprise. The complexity of a knowledge era has made our old command-and-control systems obsolete, and so entrepreneurial freedom is now crucial, not only in economic systems but also to permit free enterprise in organizational systems." Thus, authors of this part, S.Goldsmith, R.L.Ackoff, J.P.Starr, W.Gable, and M.Lehrer mainly focus on decentralized structures, self-supporting units, entrepreneurial freedom, internal competition, and accountability to clients.

2. Halal writes, "Part II illustrates how entrepreneurial organizations must also use cooperation to form collaborative communities. Knowledge differs from physical resources because it increases when shared, making collaborative working relations productive not only in strategic alliances but between buyer and seller, employee and employer, business and goverment, and other stakeholders." Thus, authors of this part, G.H.Taylor, R.E.Miles, J.Lipnack and J.Stamps, T.Holbrooke, and R.Oklewize mainly focus on virtues of teamwork, networking among internal units, shared knowledge, spherical organization, collaborative alliances, and corporate communities.

3. Halal writes, "Part III descibes the intelligent infrastructures now being built to guide this corporate community in creating powerful forms of knowledge." Thus, authors of this part, R.W.Smith, D.Walters, M.Malone, G. and E.Pinchot, R.Kuperman, and W.A.Owens mainly focus on global information networks, free flow of information, knowledge society, employee training, virtual organizations, strategic direction, and vision.

Finally, Halal writes that "the message my colleagues and I want to stress is that the world is entering such an uncharted new frontier, an epoch so fundamentally different that the old rules no longer apply. The conventional wisdom of the past must be replaced by concepts that conform with the new realities of infinite knowledge:

* Order can be best achieved-not through control and planning-but through entrepreneurial freedom.

* Strength comes-not out of power and firmness-but through cooperative community.

* Abundance flows out of-not material riches-but a subtle frontier of boundless understanding, meaning, and spirit."

Strongly recommended.

There are far too many books out there that focus on 'knowledge' as if it existed in a vacuum. These tend to be one person's opinion; a single 'flavor of the month,' if you will. This collection of essays explores the impact that the free sharing of information will have: changes in management, changes in employee relations, changes in the free enterprise system itself. As an unforeseen bonus, a very few of the articles are now a bit dated (the "Information Superhighway" article by the CEO of Bell Atlantic was doomed to be old as it was penned), a fact that only reinforces the tremedous speed of change many of the essayists speak to. The many references provide one the ability to more deeply research a particular area.

There are far too many books out there that focus on 'knowledge' as if it existed in a vacuum. These tend to be one person's opinion; a single 'flavor of the month,' if you will. This collection of essays explores the impact that the free sharing of information will have: changes in management, changes in employee relations, changes in the free enterprise system itself. As an unforeseen bonus, a very few of the articles are now a bit dated (the "Information Superhighway" article by the CEO of Bell Atlantic was doomed to be old as it was penned), a fact that only reinforces the tremedous speed of change many of the essayists speak to. The many references provide one the ability to more deeply research a particular area.

A clear, convincing projection of organizational life in the next decade or two. In writing our book Leveraging People and Profit, co-author Bernie Nagle and I found reaffirmation in Halal's belief in the human factors rising to the top of management's priority list. Complexity is putting an end to the old style of management and the old way of viewing the corporation. New approaches give us hope of unleashing the spirit of enterprise.

William Halal is one of the important thinkers of the 21st century. Despite I read hardcover edition of "The New Management", I purchased again paperback edition of the same book for only Halal's excellent introduction "From Capitalism to Democratic Enterprise/Minding the Economic Imperatives of Knowledge". I recommend this invaluable work of Halal to everybody.

A wealth of valuable insights into the workings of the new global economy. Halal, Taylor, and their contributors have laid bare the type of world we will soon be living in. I can't praise this book enough. Buy it!