Introduction
21st-century management is social management. In the modern world, only the company that creates favorable opportunities for the maximum growth of the intellect of specialists in the field of management and, in general, the intellectual potential of management can develop rapidly. The strategy of small and medium-sized industrial enterprises must be based on the new realities of a period of rapid change and complete uncertainty in the 21st century. Unlike in the 20th century, when the most valuable asset of a company was production equipment, in the 21st century, the most beneficial support of any organization in the 21st century is knowledge workers and their productivity, so increasing their yield should be one of the most significant achievements of a company that sets its goal prosperity. In periods of fundamental structural transformation, only those organizations survive that are sensitive to the trends of change instantly adapt to them, using the opportunities that open up to their advantage.
Intellectual Capital
It can be concluded that the primary source of income is brain activity, the active use of the intellect of the company’s employees, or the own intellectual capital of an individual entrepreneur. Intellectual capital is a rather complex category that combines heterogeneous intangible resources of an organization. The variety of different approaches of researchers to the definition of the concepts of intellectual capital has led to the fact that in the scientific community, only a general idea of its composition has been formed. A single point of view on the relationship between its composition and hierarchy has not yet taken shape (Agostini & Filippini, 2019). As a result of this problem, no methodology currently allows for determining the effectiveness of investments in intellectual capital with a proper degree of reliability. There are no unified approaches to assessing this type of investment to decide on their financial result. Intellectual capital includes three components: human capital, organizational or structural capital, and client capital, each of which can be either borrowed or owned.
Change of the Main Form of Accumulation
In a market society, people’s intellectual abilities inequality is most striking. The gap between what a person is and their existing successes, on the one hand, and what they think about their capabilities and achievements, on the other hand, is mercilessly exposed. In modern society, intellectual capital becomes the basis of wealth. It determines the competitiveness of economic systems and acts as a critical resource for their development (Schneider, 2018). The present time is characterized by the fact that the main form of accumulation is not the accumulation of material elements of production, as it has always been.
The main form of accumulation nowadays is the collection of knowledge, information, intangible forms of wealth, and investments in culture, education, and health care. In other words, the emphasis is shifting from investment in physical capital to investing in a person as a carrier and producer of information (Al Taji & Bengo, 2018). At the same time, the effective use and development of intellectual capital and the ability to create and master the latest technologies are becoming not only critical conditions for a sustainable increase in the standard of living but also the main qualitative criteria that distinguish advanced companies from those that are lagging.
Uncertainty in New Approaches
New trends in scientific management will require non-traditional approaches to improve managers’ economic and managerial culture. To this end, it is expedient to introduce advanced training courses for specialists at universities and academies everywhere, which would reveal the possibilities of the real economic potential of the sectors of the national economy, ways to increase the science intensity of products and reduce their energy intensity and material intensity (Schneider, 2018). Many modern small and medium-sized enterprises are now restructuring their traditional hierarchical structure based on functional specialization and a centralized chain of command. The conventional design becomes a kind of brake on the development of those activities where consumer preferences are concentrated not on standardized products but on goods made to order and have unique properties (Schneider, 2018). The implementation of the chosen strategy is much more effective when the work of the departments between which the performance of strategically significant and critical activities is distributed is appropriately coordinated and integrated.
Conclusion
To conclude, strategically essential operations can be unified, and the time and costs for their implementation are reduced while they must meet consumers’ changing requirements and expectations. Thus, the organizational structure of the company must meet the strategic objectives of the company. Most management problems have arisen due to humanity’s transition to a new stage of development due to the rapid growth of modern technologies. But the above problem is only indirect because the main problem lies in outdated hierarchies and management systems that require restructuring. Changes are needed in the management of private companies and governments because, as mentioned earlier, worthy competition with other participants in the market or political arena is possible only by keeping up with the times. In part, the problems will be solved on their own because soon, the laggards realize they are doing something wrong and decide to restructure their companies. The only drawback of this solution is the inability to determine the period for which the restructuring will occur accurately.
References
Agostini, L., & Filippini, R. (2019). Organizational and managerial challenges in the path towards Industry 4.0. European Journal of Innovation Management, 22(3), 406-421. Web.
Al Taji, F. N. A., & Bengo, I. (2018). The distinctive managerial challenges of hybrid organizations: Which skills are required?Journal of Social Entrepreneurship, 10(3), 328-345. Web.
Schneider, P. (2018). Managerial challenges of Industry 4.0: an empirically backed research agenda for a nascent field. Review of Managerial Science, 12(3), 803–848. Web.