11.  THE FUTURE OF CONSULTING.
        
             Developing images of a preferred future is one of the
        primary responsibilities of all consultants as they prepare to do
        strategic planning.  One strategy toward developing these images
        is to scan the environment and identify trends that will
        significantly impact on any organization as it moves toward the
        future.  Areas of focus in the search for trends are:  high
        technology, life style, the economy, politics, population, and
        distribution of resources.  As clients improve in environmental-
        scanning processes, the consultant can help them move from
        identifying and summarizing specific trends to deriving the
        implications of those trends for their organizations.  
        
             Every organizational leader needs to perceive his or her
        system as a total resource system, rather than as separate
        departments, units, or sections.  In assisting a large system
        cope with the challenges and puzzles of centralization versus
        decentralization, the consultant will need to assist the client
        organization in reviewing its mission, values, and functions and
        in establishing criteria for determining what to centralize and
        what to decentralize.  
        
             Interorganizational collaboration is a recent trend that is
        on the rise.  As limited resources and increased complexity
        confront the organizations of the future, sharing, collaboration,
        and support among organizations is becoming increasingly
        necessary.  This development may be seen in such practices as the
        shared use of temporarily laid-off personnel and expensive
        equipment.  
        
             There is increased momentum toward merging of line and staff
        functions in many important aspects of company operations. 
        Another change is the increasing emphasis on identifying and
        supporting the use of all internal resources.  Futurists indicate
        that technical, human, and sociotechnical problems will become
        more complex with each decade.  This means that assembling the
        right people into groups to address specific issues will be
        progressively more important.  
        
             In almost all types of work and community systems, there is
        a trend toward pluralism, or a greater mix of ages, sexes, races,
        ethnic and social backgrounds, technical and work experience.  In
        order to enhance organizational adjustment to increased
        pluralism, consultants must become more knowledgeable about
        differences in cultures, values, and perspectives of subgroups
        within a system.  They also must be able to serve as third-party
        links in identifying and using complementary differences in
        assembling task forces, and they must be competent at handling
        issues of prejudice and insensitivity.  
        
             Perhaps the most important trend to which consultants must
        respond in the future is that of seeking a more workable and
        satisfying balance between the growth opportunities, health, and
        satisfaction of individuals on the one hand and the total
        organizational culture on the other.  As economic and political
        pressures continue to necessitate "doing more with less,"
        consultants will find it more crucial to begin the consulting
        process with a thorough analysis of desired outcomes or the
        bottom line (Lippitt & Lippitt, 1986, pp. 206-208).