Time for change: empowering organizations to succeed in the knowledge economy

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a more effective way for businesses to compete successfully in the rapidly‐evolving global market.Design/methodology/approach – A range of published literature in the field of management has been used to develop guidelines that should assist companies in making necessary changes from a traditional management style to a knowledge management approach in order to achieve sustainable competitive advantages.Findings – Due to the rapidly changing global economy, businesses need to consider a serious change in strategy, and begin to focus more on knowledge management even at the mundane line levels. The new “knowledge managers” and their supervisors must take on new responsibilities and roles of self‐direction. Workers, managers and executives will need to change the way they view the company. Management requirements should be transferred to the worker, freeing the managers to act more as leaders and coaches. In order to retain intellectual capital, companies mus...