Theory and business practice seemed to obey two beliefs: markets should be flexible and firms should seek to maximize the individual performance of their employees. These beliefs are based on the idea that, in order to deal with an information which is unevenly distributed, hidden or manipulated, only appropriate individual incentives are needed. On the contrary, creation of knowledge requires the implementation of social networks, between firms and inside the firm, aimed at coordinating competitive as well as complementary investments in a world characterized both by irreversibility and uncertainty.