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The book discusses at length the idea of managing uncertainty. Can you share some insights
about this issue?
MacMillan:
The entrepreneurial leader is able to
absorb uncertainty for people so they’re not penalized by
it. The basic idea is to say, ‘The world is uncertain. It is
my judgement that this is the direction it is going to be
heading, that X is going to happen, not Y. Let me worry
about whether it does or does not happen. I’ll absorb the
uncertainty.’ What people need to understand is that if
they are told to assume that world X is going to happen,
you may come back later and say, ‘Look, I’m sorry that it
isn’t X; you’re now going to have to assume it’s Y.’ They can’t
look to you to be prophets, but they can look to you to
absorb the uncertainty and give them direction. This is
enormously liberating for them – if you don’t absorb uncertainty
for them, many people freeze in the headlights.
What distinguishes the ideas in your book from
previous research on entrepreneurship?
MacMillan:
The important thing is the context.
This book is not about being an entrepreneur; it’s about
creating an entrepreneurial organization, irrespective of its
age and size. It’s about surviving in a world of uncertainty.
The days when strategy meant careful analysis and careful
planning and trying to outthink your competitors are
over. Today, you need to be able to position yourself to
grasp opportunity and exploit it quickly. Thus, the concept
of strategy is shifting from analytical strategies to
much more opportunistic strategies.
What are the key takeaways in your book?
MacMillan:
Entrepreneurial thinking is not an
option. It has become a necessity in even the largest organizations.
The leader’s responsibility is to nurture and
encourage entrepreneurial thinking throughout the entire
workforce.
A Different Game:
Giving Leaders the
Tools to Manage
Emerging Technologies
By Robert
Gunther
Emerging technologies such as the Internet
and biotechnology are changing the world. But
beneath the hype and anecdote, what do we really
know about managing emerging technologies?
Earlier this year, a team of Wharton faculty from
the Wharton Emerging Technologies Management
Research Program, which started working
on these challenges back in 1994, published a
new book for managers, Wharton on Managing
Emerging Technologies . We recently spoke to
the editors, George Day and Paul
Schoemaker, about the project.
Many Internet firms came in vowing to change
all the rules. Now, there are new questions
raised about their viability –even stalwarts such
as Amazon.com –and whether these companies might end up having to live or die by the
“old rules.” Beyond the hype, how different are
these emerging technologies?
Day:
Managing emerging technologies is a different game
but not a new game. Every generation of managers thinks
it is the first to face these challenges, but technology firms
have had to address many of these same issues in the past.
What is truly new is that with the rapid expansion of information
technologies, these management challenges are far
more widespread, change is faster and more likely to destroy
existing competencies, and the level of uncertainty and
complexity are much higher. The systematic approaches we
have taught in business school focused on more stable environments
and organizations. Managing emerging technologies
is different from what most managers have been
trained to do, so they need new tools and approaches. That
was a void we hoped to help fill with this book.
What are some of the new skills and perspectives that managers can use to get better at
playing this game?
Schoemaker:
We discuss many approaches from
diverse disciplines. Managers need new approaches for
assessing technologies, understanding technology development
paths and the role of government. They also need
more flexible approaches to assessing nascent markets and
they have to understand the staying power of complementary
assets. In developing strategy, managers can use creative
approaches such as scenario planning, and also need
to recognize the limitations of patents. In making investments,
there are a variety of approaches such as real options
and off-balance-sheet funding. Finally,
managers need to rethink their
organizations, to manage knowledge
networks, use alliances effectively,
create new organizational forms and
design “customized workplaces.”
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