Management skills development: a perspective on current issues and setting the future agenda

In recent years managerial work has changed considerably, largely because the organisational, economic and technological context in which it is conducted has changed beyond recognition. Organisations have been delayered; new work organisation concepts have been developed; organisations have been subjected to a host of managerial fads; the scale of IT‐enabled home‐based working has increased; the variety of communication channels that managers have had to cope with has increased; and globalisation has created a more competitive environment where businesses have had to become leaner, more flexible and adaptable. The consequences of this are that the skills and “capabilities” that managers need to be effective have change radically. The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature of these changes and to assess the implications of management development and education programmes.