Major, ongoing change is the distinguishing characteristic of the business environment worldwide and it affects how contemporary organisations operate and deal with change. Organisations still need to do more with less. In addition, they need to provide for the needs of customers who, with more exposure to local and global markets, have higher expectations relating to the cost, quality, speed and innovation of the services and products they purchase from these organisations.

Due to this global need for managing change, ‘new’ forms of organisation are replacing the ‘old’ traditional bureaucracy and presenting managers with unique challenges. Thus managers of contemporary organisations need to take a holistic view of the changes in their environments and need to apply a completely new set of skills.

The approach towards contemporary management principles offered in this publication integrates discussions on vital managerial competencies and skills with information on traditional and essential managerial concepts that have been effective in the past and are still effectively used today in many business organisations.

The emphasis is on the vital role of human resources in the success of an organisation and the need for modern managers to self-actualise and embrace the practice of life-long learning.