Zur Virtualisierung von Organisationen – Mehr Effektivität oder „Kultur des Misstrauens?

The author describes the emergence of the „virtual organisation” concept as a tendency towards customization of products on the one hand and the development of a suitable technological basis on the other hand. Networking is discussed as a necessary but not sufficient prerequisite. First and foremost, the process of virtualisation requires changes in the organisational structure of companies that may go as far as a redefinition of the relationship between employees who, if forced into a role of competing „intrapreneurs”, will desist from cooperation. In this context, knowledge management is identified as the problem crucial to the success of a virtual organisation.