Are You Ready for Massive Change?

Peter Drucker said:
“In a few hundred years, when the history of our time is written from a long-term perspective, it is likely that the most important event those historians will see is not technology, not the Internet, not e-commerce. It is an unprecedented change in the human condition. For the first time—literally—substantial and rapidly growing numbers of people have choices. For the first time, they will have to manage themselves. And society is totally unprepared for it.”

Massive changes are taking place as we live and these changes are ushering in a whole new era unlike any period in human history. In order to survive and succeed in this new age, today’s workers must make massive changes in his or her mindset, skills and behaviors. Failure to enter the new era with radically different tools will result in being left behind and unable to compete in the new society.

The first Age in human history was the Hunter/Gatherer Age and it lasted for millennia. The way to survive was to be a good hunter and gatherer, which meant developing the skills, mindset and behaviors that would make one effective in hunting game and gathering food from the wild.

The second Age in human history slowly encroached on this first age, and man began to use Agriculture to meet his needs. As a few men began to cultivate the earth, they discovered that they could produce fifty times as much food as the hunter/gatherers. Men began to develop the skills, mindset and behaviors needed to succeed in this new age, and within several millennia 97% of all men were farmers and only 3% were hunter/gatherers.

The third Age in human history burst on the scene as men discovered that by building factories they could increase productivity fifty times over the family farm. Within a century 97% of the population crowded into cities and industrial areas, leaving only 3% of the population on the farm. Those who learned the new skills, mindset and behaviors succeeded in this new age, while those who were slow in adapting suffered.

The fourth Age in human history has exploded in our faces within the past several decades. We are no longer in an Industrial Age but have transitioned to an Information/Knowledge Worker Age. The skills, mindset and behaviors of the Industrial Age will not work in this new age, and those who do not adapt will suffer. Within several decades 97% of all workers will be Knowledge Workers and only 3% will be Industrial Workers. What is fascinating the Information Age is the Knowledge Worker will be 100 times, 1,000 times, and even 10,000 times more productive than the Industrial Worker (according to Nathan Myhrvold, former Chief Technology Officer at Microsoft). Those who quickly obtain the proper skills, mindset and behaviors of the Information Age will find themselves light years ahead of those who cannot, or will not, learn to use the Knowledge Worker tools.

The near future holds unprecedented potential for those who have the foresight, wisdom and discipline to adapt quickly to these seismic changes. Those who can’t, or won’t, will be left behind.

Peter Drucker concludes:
“The most important, and indeed the truly unique, contribution of management in the 20th century was the fifty-fold increase in the productivity of the MANUAL WORKER in manufacturing.

The most important contribution management needs to make in the 21st century is similarly to increase the productivity of KNOWLEDGE WORK and the KNOWLEDGE WORKER.

The most valuable assets of a 20th century company were its production equipment. The most valuable asset of a 21st century institution, whether business or non-business, will be its knowledge workers and their productivity.”