Book Review

Agile Competitors and Virtual Organizations:
Strategies for Enriching the Customer

By Steven Goldman, Roger Nagel, and Kenneth Preiss

Reviewed by Steve Buchwald, CIRM

Some time ago, I attended a chapter meeting where Carol Ptak of APICS Society gave a presentation on virtual organizations. I knew nothing then of virtual organizations, and because of that, probably missed the importance of her talk. Maybe some of you remember that discussion and felt the same way also.

Then, at the APICS International Conference, I was introduced to TC2, an agile manufacturing consortium. I got some nice golf shirts, however, I'm afraid I missed the importance again. Nonetheless, I am now much more enlightened and I am here to tell you that technology is moving at an alarming rate. If you don't get educated on these and other related topics, you will soon be left out in the cold. Virtual organizations, to simply the concept greatly, is an opportunity based organization with no geographic limitations. They are an important tool for the agile competitor, to simplify once again, a competitor that is change based and thrives on positive change to gain a competitive advantage.

While these ideas are neither mutually inclusive or mutually exclusive, it is the understanding of and application of both of them that helps deliver the best "strategies for enriching the customer", which interestingly enough is the subtitle of this book.

This book is a comparison of the tried-and-true competitive strategies of the last 100 years; mass production and all it's associated ramifications, with the new and emerging concept of mass customization. Or as one company put it, mass customerization. It is a very complete book, and although it has over 400 pages including the epilogue, the appendix, and the suggested reading list, it is a very readable book. The authors use real examples to describe the advances companies are making in the area of agility and virtuality, and make note that not all changes are technological changes. The book is the result of extensive research in cooperation with industry and government leaders including the Iacocca Institute facilitators that originally envisioned agile competition and edited the 21st Century Manufacturing Enterprise Strategy report. In fact, it even includes a forward written by Lee Iacocca himself.

The book, aimed at the general and the avid business reader as well as management and non- management types is divided into two parts; confronting change and uncertainty, and thriving on change and uncertainty. It covers:

• The strategic objectives of agile competition.
• The new organizational structures that support agility.
• The importance of core competencies and how they relate to the virtual organization.
• The new relationships among marketing, design and product development.
• The importance of people and information and their impact on the bottom line.

In the words of Jerry Jenkins, CEO Texas Instruments, "This book is right on target! It clearly and concisely depicts the dramatic changes that are taking place in the marketplace. I recommend this book to every company that wants to remain competitive in an agile world". However, don't get misled, this book is not a magic pill. It only outlines the criteria necessary to compete in today's markets and demonstrates how many of the leading companies have succeeded in applying the knowledge to their own environment. Nonetheless, if you have no knowledge of these topics or of other related topics like Organizational Webs and/or Intranets, to name a few, then this is just the place to start learning.

Good reading!