THE REASONS UNDERLYING THE PRESENT HIGHLY VOLATILE, UNCERTAIN, COMPLEX AND AMBIGUOUS BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT

Abstract

To help develop reliable managerial strategies in the VUCA environment, this paper examines what unprecedentedly happened in recent decades that made the environment appear. It demonstrates, among other results, that (i) the increasing attention towards economic development and the formation of cross-regional economies of 1990s made the business world more volatile than before, (ii) the massively increasing competition and the advent of internet in 1990s represent one critical reason for the business world to experience worsening uncertainty, (iii) the increasing use of partially reliable or totally unreliable knowledge since the 1990s made the business world more complex than before, (iv) the accelerated circulation of information since late1980s motivated decision makers and scholars to shift their knowing from the realm of thinghood to that of systemhood. That shift led to the appearance of various ambiguities for business professionals to face. This paper concludes with managerial recommendations and questions for future research.