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Chen Chunhua: New Individuals and New Organizations in Digital Age

Jun 17-2021   



In her new book Value Symbiosis, Prof. Chen Chunhua sets forth her answers to questions about organizational management in the digital age. Business organizations are still built around customer value creation, yet value creation has taken on new forms and contents, and as such the relationships between individuals and their organizations have undergone drastic changes.

 

Prof. Chen is the Dean of BiMBA Business School. She expounds her views on the topic in a recent event by BiMBA and Posts and Telecom Press. It has taken her ten years to complete the book, beginning with the first one of the series – Activating Powerful Individuals – in 2015 and three more in the ensuing years on different aspects of organizational changes as a result of digitalization.

 

Individuals and organizations are the two most important variables of organizational management. In the digital age, they have both changed significantly, to the extent that they deserve to be called ‘new individuals’ and ‘new organizations’, says Prof. Chen.

 

The digital age has presented five major challenges to organizations, the first one being the emergence of ‘powerful individuals’. These new-generation employees tend to be captivated and driven by what they like and trust; they make use of information and tools to transcend past experiences and solve problems efficiently; and they care a lot about commitments from organizations.

 

Consequently, ‘new organizations’ should be particularly focused on dynamics and effectiveness. To be dynamic, organizations should be concerned about factors beyond the stability of staff, so that their capabilities are built to cope with uncertainties and changes. To be effective, organizations should deploy three classic theories that have been made much easier to practice in the digital age: open-system theory, organization learning theory, and stakeholder theory. On top of this, organizations should aim for self-evolution and iteration.

 

In the industrial age, the underlying logic for organizations was about division of work, power and profit; in the digital age, it has become symbiosis. Therefore, the future organization that we need must pursue more meaningful value creation, more soul-touching existence, and more perceptible accomplishments. When people come together, they don’t merely work for business targets.

Chen Chunhua: New Individuals and New Organizations in Digital Age

Jun 17-2021   



In her new book Value Symbiosis, Prof. Chen Chunhua sets forth her answers to questions about organizational management in the digital age. Business organizations are still built around customer value creation, yet value creation has taken on new forms and contents, and as such the relationships between individuals and their organizations have undergone drastic changes.

 

Prof. Chen is the Dean of BiMBA Business School. She expounds her views on the topic in a recent event by BiMBA and Posts and Telecom Press. It has taken her ten years to complete the book, beginning with the first one of the series – Activating Powerful Individuals – in 2015 and three more in the ensuing years on different aspects of organizational changes as a result of digitalization.

 

Individuals and organizations are the two most important variables of organizational management. In the digital age, they have both changed significantly, to the extent that they deserve to be called ‘new individuals’ and ‘new organizations’, says Prof. Chen.

 

The digital age has presented five major challenges to organizations, the first one being the emergence of ‘powerful individuals’. These new-generation employees tend to be captivated and driven by what they like and trust; they make use of information and tools to transcend past experiences and solve problems efficiently; and they care a lot about commitments from organizations.

 

Consequently, ‘new organizations’ should be particularly focused on dynamics and effectiveness. To be dynamic, organizations should be concerned about factors beyond the stability of staff, so that their capabilities are built to cope with uncertainties and changes. To be effective, organizations should deploy three classic theories that have been made much easier to practice in the digital age: open-system theory, organization learning theory, and stakeholder theory. On top of this, organizations should aim for self-evolution and iteration.

 

In the industrial age, the underlying logic for organizations was about division of work, power and profit; in the digital age, it has become symbiosis. Therefore, the future organization that we need must pursue more meaningful value creation, more soul-touching existence, and more perceptible accomplishments. When people come together, they don’t merely work for business targets.