The Global Age and Global Economy
Abstract
v PrefaceThe Global Age and Global Economy SAGE Publications, Inc.1999DOI: 10.1177/152342239900100401 Michael J. Marquardt early 3 billion people watched the finals of the Soccer NWorld Cup in France in the summer of 1998-understanding and cheering the same game. Companies selling products worldwide (for example, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Toyota) reached televisions in homes and clubs throughout Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Australia. Over 160 countries were competing for the World Cup when competition began two years earlier. Now citizens from most of those countries filled the stadium. We have entered the Global Age. We are a more global people and share many global values and practices. More and more, we are working for global organizations. Globalization has caused a converging of economic and social forces, of interests and commitments, of values and tastes, of challenges and opportunities. We can easily communicate with people ten thousand miles away because we share a global language (English) and a global medium for communications (computers and the Internet). Globalization has dramatically changed the world and the workplace. The global economy has created a level of complexity that most organizations and individuals are unprepared to understand, let alone deal with. One may need to