Before progressing further, let us take stock. Expert individuals form the basis of our theories about new organizations and how they will develop. Experts are the catalysts, elements and structure of specific new organizations. Their opportunities, choices and lifestyles are particular. The power that they wield in both the labour and product markets suggest that they will impact on others as well. Organizational theory has tended to emphasize the importance of demand side influences on organizations. This has generally led to an underappreciation of the influences of individuals on organizations and change. In contrast, our theory emphasizes individual preferences, networks and agencies which constitute the essence of the emerging structure for organizations.

Our examination of experts suggests that market and technological conditions encourage them to abruptly break with traditional organizations and seek employment by serial at-will contracts which are frequently mediated by agencies. In specific areas this has led to increasingly important agency labour markets. Such breaks and such markets do not prevent organizations from forming internal systems that also strive to accommodate experts. However, these tend to be defence mechanisms which resist change by certain forms of accommodation. Organizations in need of experts to maintain and increase their competitive advantage will, at some stage, be obliged to embrace the external agencies' labour market. The greater an organization's need to do this, the greater the threat to its traditional boundary conditions. In the future it might become difficult for knowledgeintense companies to recruit, retain and develop specific experts within a traditional organizational setting.