Retail Insights ‐ Summer 1998

Abstract

It seems that one of the major buzzwords of the late 1990s is “virtual”we have heard of virtual bookshops, virtual universities, virtual shopping malls, virtual offices and, of course, virtual reality. So is the virtual world simply a passing fad or is it something which is truly changing the way we live our lives and the way we work and communicate? Despite the proliferation of virtuality it is difficult to find a common definition of “virtual” which is applicable in all of its uses. We do believe, however, that the concept has real value when addressing the subject of organizational development; and as a concept it is not so much about managing in the sense of planning, controlling, directing and organizing, but more concerned with the notion of continuous or institutionalized change. This implies not management but a process which is both self‐regulatory and selfperpetuating.

Citation

Pollitt, D. (1998), "Retail Insights ‐ Summer 1998", International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, Vol. 26 No. 5, pp. 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1108/09590552199800002