Baker takes on eight dysfunctional people management practices originating from the scientific
management and offers practical solutions for changing these practices and increasing
organizational agility. Agile is the new black. Every business now has to be adaptive nimble
and ready to pivot - managers have to be comfortable with ambiguity and constantly ready for
change. And yet... While agility is regarded as essential for competitive advantage most
organizations are still unthinkingly applying people management practices rooted in Frederick
Taylor's scientific management philosophy of the early 20th century designed to ensure
consistency and efficiency on production lines but which actively prevent the sort of
creativity and flexibility needed in the modern workplace. 100 years of scientific management
has led to the creation of eight performance myths. Myths that impede the agility necessary to
compete in the age of the knowledge worker but which are so instinctively embedded in
management psyche that they go unchallenged despite the fact that the changing world of work
has rendered them dysfunctional and counterproductive. Through case studies and examples Baker
demonstrates how the right workplace culture for promoting and applying agile decision-making
consists of eight values shared by employer and employee - values that are polar opposite of
the values and assumptions of traditional management styles. A new psychological contract that
enables the collaborative working relationship necessary for agility to flourish.
