Over the past several decades, rapid technological development has served to heighten the value of information and knowledge to the level that they have now replaced the former key sources of economic power, those being goods and labor. The resulting premium on information and knowledge has caused the pace and scope of change to escalate, thereby reducing our ability to accurately predict how change will occur within economic and work environments, and generating a milieu of uncertainty described as "permanent white water". It is no longer possible for organizations to plan for change in a proactive sense; rather, it has become necessary for organizations to respond and adapt to change spontaneously, after the fact. In order to do so, organizations have generally become less rigid and more flexible by adjusting structures and processes through downsizing and re-engineering. These adjustments in the workplace have served to transform the purpose, essence, and nature of work along with the requirements of the workforce.