I was interested in Gene's message and the replies of Doc and Gary.
It seems to me that this is one of the many areas of organisational
thought and debate when any comment can be taken in very black and white
terms or seen as shades of grey.
I identified strongly with Gene (and this is not necessarily what he meant
- shades of the communication/listening thread...) that I am more
interested in how I can help people behaviour in ways that satisfy their
various needs than in whether their motivation is intrinsic or extrinsic.
I took Gene's comments to mean that managers were seeking to help people
not simply be so skillful that they directed them accurately.
I agree with Gary that many managers have been poor at this and we keep
trying. Helping people (and that is how I see leadership and management is
difficult at the best of times because of differing beliefs, values,
desires and all sorts of other things.
Like Doc I think it is great when teams get to a position when they can
manage themselves. This is rare in any organisation over 6-8 people in my
experience. Not impossible just unusual (probably because we find it
difficult to let go enough)
I was at a workshop recently when we discussed the proposition that
greatest freedom and ingenuity came within systems of tight control. We
had an interesting debate about the conditions necessary for greatest
creativity, innovation and ingenuity. In my own experience I have a
particular kind of freedom when I am clear about where I am going. I feel
immobilised without this kind of clarity. I raise this topic to
illustrate how difficult it is be definitive about these kinds of subject
as we have so many views.
As always, this list provides many stimulating thoughts.
Ian Saunders
Transition Partnerships - Harnessing change for business advantage
tpians@cix.compulink.co.uk
--tpians@cix.compulink.co.uk (Ian Saunders)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>