Companies which ignore the technological and entrepreneurial revolutions
taking place in the workplace will lose their best staff to those who exploit
them, management guru Jack Black told the conference.
He said too many companies are stuck in the past with hierarchical
structures, still believing the most important person in the organisation is
the one at the top.
"The most important person now is the customer and the most important
people in the organisation are the people who make contact with
customers," he said.
If organisations fail to appreciate that and fail to draw on the wisdom that
those people provide, the best ones will be headhunted and move to companies
that do, he said.
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He added that the most successful people in the New Age are those who are
innovative, know where their future is taking them, have a positive attitude
and can cope with stress.
To keep those people organisations have to encourage innovation, allow
people to dictate their own futures, be positive and able to minimise and
manage the stress placed on their staff.
