Human Resource Management Policies Designed for the Industrial Age Are Not Appropriate for Work in the Knowledge Age.

Human resource (HR) policies are systems of codified decisions, established by an organization, to support administrative personnel functions, performance management, employee relations and resource planning. They can help an organization demonstrate, both internally and externally, that it meets requirements for diversity, ethics and training as well as its commitments in relation to regulation and corporate governance.

Contradiction between the industrial age and knowledge age:
Work performed in factories by machines is being replaced by work in offices or at computer terminals. And instead of working with things, people increasingly work with ideas and concepts. Information and knowledge have replaced manufacturing as the source of most new jobs.
1. From Restricted Markets to Globalization
Our old local regional vision is giving way to a new global economic order and business vision. The new demand is thinks globally and acts locally. We are also used to dealing with restricted or concentrated markets. We need to become accustomed to dealing with business from a new global perspective.
2. From Bureaucracy to Adhocracy
The rigid organizational hierarchy with its monolithic chain of command is giving way to integrated team networks based on autonomy and flexibility. Rigid departmentalization is being replaced by flexible organizational structures that change rapidly.
3. From Stability to Change
Static, permanent organizations designed for a stable and predictable world are giving way to flexible, adaptive organizations more suited for a new world of change and transformation. Emphasis on permanence, tradition and the past is giving way to creativity and innovation.
4. From Command to Orientation
The traditional hierarchical notion of authority based on vertical imposition of orders and instructions is giving place to democratic leadership based on the organization's mission and vision. Blind, reactive obedience is giving place to spontaneous,...