Product-development cycles are often measured now in months rather than years. Any management system unable to generate continuous innovation will appear increasingly antiquated and will find itself outpaced by other organizations for whom innovation has become second nature. That is as true for government as for any other organization. Just as large corporations in the last few decades have sought ways to encourage a more entrepreneurial approach within their ranks, government must also become more entrepreneurial in its management styles, policy-making and service delivery. H. Alan Raymond of Stanford University suggested a number of years ago that entrepreneurial, organic management systems were the key to Information Age organizations, both corporate and governmental.
Organic management relies upon the design of flexible and responsive organizations.
It allows the development of a corporate culture that, while providing the framework for decision-making on a decentralized basis, does not hinder creativity, entrepreneurship and innovation. Organic management guides an organism, not a machine. In this mode, the chief executive officer develops a corporate culture by 'plugging' in the right people or by 'genetically splicing the right genes,' in order for the corporate evolution to move in the right direction. The CEO becomes the catalyst of the creation, but not its pilot. Just as the development of the organic corporation will strip away many layers of costly, obsolete middle management, this development will also strip away many layers of costly, obsolete government bureaucracy, and entire government agencies in some cases.