We have the answer

American business is undergoing a major structural change. Companies must radically transform themselves in order to become competitive in the global marketplace. In the process, they are discarding millions of workers into a job market that holds very bleak prospects.

In order to survive, even big businesses are becoming more entrepreneurial, with top management using technology to take a more hands-on approach. Advances in computer and communication technology have enabled many companies to cut out several layers of management. More direct links are being created between corporate management and the factory floor or retail store. Businesses once required hundreds or thousands of middle managers, positioned on several layers, to facilitate information flow. Now, well-designed computer networks can often serve the same function with far fewer personnel.

This is bad news indeed for the thousands of educated, motivated and capable professional managers who now find themselves out of work. What are these people to do?

The first thing they do is look for another job. They start out confidently, certain that their experience and qualifications will quickly land them a good position. But they soon find that they are competing with thousands of others like themselves, equally experienced and qualified, for an ever-shrinking number of job opportunities.

When they do find a job it is usually for lower pay, and often they are expected to put in long hours. And with the new structure of corporate America, the opportunity for advancement within a particular company is not what it once was. In the past, loyal employees would be able to move upward through the many layers of management. Now, with the flattening of organization charts, the opportunities are just not there. Vicious competition for what promotions there are can lead to burnout, stress and anxiety among those lucky enough to have management jobs.

Dismayed about job prospects, many displaced managers open their own businesses. Some succeed, but more often than not they run into problems. Accustomed to working with the support of a large corporation, many get bogged down when they are forced to attend to every detail of their business. Others use up all their savings and then simply run out of capital. The prospects are not good. Ninety percent of businesses fail within five years.

Some out of work managers turn to franchising, if they have the money to invest. The average franchise costs $85,000 to get started, and many are much more than that. And what does all that money buy them? The opportunity to work 12-14 hour days, 7 days a week, supervising unreliable minimum wage employees. If the franchisees can keep this up, and if they can find a way to open multiple locations, they might become profitable after three to five years. But the odds are against it. Two thirds of all franchisees either fail or just break even.

So what are people to do if they cannot find a decent job and are not able to risk the likelihood of failure in opening a business? It is a frustrating situation for more and more people every day. They don't understand why, if the economy is doing so well, they can't get a piece of the pie. They're willing to work hard but it seems that no one will give them an opportunity. Is there any hope, or is the American Dream truly dead?

Fortunately, many professionals and other displaced workers are discovering another alternative. It is in a relatively new form of business. Like other businesses, this one has been transformed in recent years by all the advances in computer and communication technology. In fact, this business would not be viable without powerful computers and modern telecommunication methods. But, unlike other businesses, this business utilizes technology to SUPPORT people, rather than replace them.

This unique form of business has enabled thousands of people to work their way to financial independence without the risk involved in starting a conventional small business. It is a business that anyone can easily get started in, and with hard work and dedication, succeed.

Currently accounting for more than $40 billion worth of the U.S. economy, this innovative type of business is growing dramatically, both in the U.S. and internationally.

It is a business called network marketing. Once widely regarded as a haven for scam artists and bored housewives, network marketing has gained considerable respect in recent years as a legitimate, highly efficient marketing and distribution method. AT&T, MCI and Sprint are all using network marketing to attract new long distance customers. Colgate-Palmolive and The Gillette Company both have network marketing subsidiaries. Network marketing companies provide some of the most innovative and cost-effective products and services available to consumers.

Simply put, network marketing companies sell their products through a network of independent distributors. Independent distributors buy directly from the company and sell directly to the consumer. This eliminates several layers of middlemen, reducing marketing and distribution costs. In addition to selling products, independent distributors build their business by sponsoring other distributors and getting a commission on the products these people sell. By sponsoring distributors under them, and by teaching those distributors to sponsor their own distributors, and so on, network marketers can build large sales organizations that grow geometrically.

Contrary to popular belief, success in network marketing does not require exceptional sales skills or extensive personal contacts. For example, if the independent distributor can personally sponsor just one person a month, and can get all the people under him to do the same thing, in just 12 months he will have created an organization of 4,096 independent distributors.

There are two major reasons why network marketing has become a much more viable distribution method in recent years.

First, the consumer market has become increasingly fragmented and difficult to reach. With VCRs, remote control and dozens of cable channels, most people don't watch commercials anymore. Furthermore, consumers have become so jaded that they usually don't believe the advertisements they do see. Traditional mass marketing methods are quickly losing their effectiveness. This is evidenced by the current wave of consolidation in the advertising industry.

But people do listen to and believe the people they know. Usually the books people read, the movies they see, and the restaurants where they eat are determined by recommendations from friends. Network marketing companies rely on this powerful concept -- word of mouth advertising -- to efficiently market quality products to millions of consumers.

Second, advances in information technology have helped to make network marketing an increasingly viable distribution method. Network marketing companies utilize powerful computers to keep track of the millions of details involved in dealing with their large distributor networks. In effect, computer technology has been used to replace the middlemen -- jobbers, wholesalers, brokers, regional warehouses and retail store personnel -- who are responsible for all the details in the traditional distribution process.

Voice mail, fax machines, electronic mail, international long distance, videotapes, satellite links and conference calling also help network marketing companies and their large distributor forces communicate with each other, quickly and efficiently. Technologies such as these have greatly improved the flow of information and the competitiveness of network marketing companies. Ironically, these are the very same technologies that have allowed large corporations to effectively cut out layers of middle management.

So, what goes around comes around. The same technology that has resulted in the loss of millions of jobs also makes possible an innovative marketing concept that is offering hope and opportunity to people from every walk of life.