In the words of Jack Welch the legendary former CEO of General Electric todays organizations must become "boundaryless" if they are to be successful. In this thoroughly revised and updated edition of The Boundaryless Organization four of the management experts who helped GE create a boundaryless culture explain what it takes to make the boundaryless organization a reality. Drawing on both theory and practice, they show how to break through the four most common types of organizational boundaries-hierarchical (or vertical), functional (or horizontal), external, and geographic-to achieve the speed, flexibility, integration, and innovation needed to survive and thrive in todays business environment. Using examples from GE, Schwab, GlaxoSmithKline, and other successful companies, the authors demonstrate how the free flow of ideas, resources, and talent in and out of the organization, up and down the hierarchy, and across geographic boundaries can result in outstanding performance.