ABSTRACT
Network enterprises, which are a long-term arrangement among distinct, but related, for profit organizations, can be perceived as intermediary organizational forms between markets and hierarchies. Network businesses or enterprises are a realization of the vision of information technology IT/information system IS-enabled virtual network enterprises that reform and reconfigure automatically to address the opportunities available in the market. This chapter starts by identifying the features that are common to the newer organizational form of virtual organization. It then describes different forms of virtual organization and the conditions under which such organizations emerge, listing the benefits to be achieved from virtual organizations and their limitations. The chapter also describes how to manage the virtual organization, emphasizing the economic, technological, and organizational factors that need to be considered, and highlights the need for well-developed teamwork in virtual organizations. It also stresses the important role of It in the management of a virtual organization.
