In a World of Change

Rolf W. Habbel

Chapter Chapter 1 in The Human Factor, 2002, pp 1-38 from Palgrave Macmillan

Abstract: Abstract It would probably be an exaggeration to say that the thought of globalisation fills most people with feelings of enthusiasm. Rather, the prospect of living in a global village makes many people feel uncomfortable in the face of what is unfamiliar. The former mayor of Stuttgart, Manfred Rommel, articulated this feeling of discomfort towards the supposed threat represented by the new scale of things in a brief but double-edged story: ‘There was once a man who wanted to buy a globe. After inspecting the various models, he came to the conclusion that he would be quite happy with a globe of Germany.’2 I believe that this tale should not only provoke us to respond with the wry smile of those in the know, but should also be a cause for reflection among a thinking audience. Generally, individuals do not like to be stripped of their surroundings, and required to reorient themselves on a global scale instead of going about their business confidently in a familiar setting. Countering the challenges of globalisation with a human scale is proving to be an issue all too easily forgotten in the rush towards the new global dimensions - especially when managers forge ahead in the seven-league boots of megamergers.

Keywords: Supervisory Board; Mobile Telephone; Knowledge Society; Universal Mobile Telecommunication System; Telecommunication Industry (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2002
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pal:palchp:978-0-230-51048-7_1

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.palgrave.com/9780230510487

DOI: 10.1057/9780230510487_1

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Palgrave Macmillan Books from Palgrave Macmillan
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().