Agility of knowledge-based organizations

Abstract

Uncertainty and volatility of the environment in which modern enterprises need to operate require management concepts and methods to be continually monitored and adjusted so that the high level of market competitiveness and attractiveness could be maintained. It is possible to attain such a state thanks to taking full advantage of knowledge contained both in an enterprise itself and its environment. Enterprises aspiring to succeed need to shape their internal structure and management mechanisms in a way which will make it possible for them to achieve the level of a knowledge-based enterprise characterized by a high level of agility. An agile knowledge-based enterprise is marked by high sensitivity and ability to seize opportunities it encounters, which stem from its internal configuration of resources conducive to such a behaviour. The aim of the paper is to define agility features of a knowledge-based enterprise and to identify mechanisms which influence the improvement of an enterprise potential in areas favourable for agility development. The paper is a collection of theoretical cogitations which have led to formulating a multi-aspect model of a mechanism used to shape agility of a knowledge-based organization.