Hi all
First a very brief intro: I am doing a Masters in IT Mgt and Organization
& Mgt Studies at the Uni of NSW, in Sydney. I have had a few years
experience in project mgt, in finance-IT.
I've read a number of the responses on this post, and found them most
interesting and informed. I've had a few thoughts bouncing around in my
mind over the past few days, gradually raising their demands for release,
so thought I had best share them with you all. I hope that I can add a
little of value.
First this case presents us with a no of questions (from the
organization to group level):
* Why did the director and manager call in an external consultant ?
* Is this agency seriously attempting to implement a learning
organization, or mearly fad surfing ?
* What is the history, purpose, vision and culture of this org ?
* Do the director and manager have any understanding of the concepts
underlying systems thinking and the learing org. ?
* Could the "participatory nature" of this org. be better described as
'selective participation' ?
* Why is the director attempting to control the local structure ?
* Why is the consultant focusing on the local group rather than the
agency level (where the challenge originates) ?
* Why did the previous manager's departure create such 'grief' ?
* Why have most of these people been working together for so long ?
* Why does the group need a manager ?
* If a manager can add value why can't the group select one, or even
rotate ?
* Who can say that Bill will not be able to handle the role, until he
is given a go ?
* Given the situation,why didn't the ex-manager facilitate the
transfer?
* How can the consultant shift focus from behaviours and effects to
delving into the underlying causes ?
* Why does this appear to be such a 'homogeneous' group ? Why no women ?
* Does the group in general have a challenge with females ? If so, why a
female facilitator ?
* Is it not obvious that this challenge is wider than this one group,
if other org members are communicating with the group through Bill
* If the group is clearly dominated by one individual, was it not poorly
created, and not meeting it's potential for performance and member
development for some time prior to the manager change ?
* What is the specialized nature of this group's work ? Why is the work
not being handled on a process rather than function basis ?
* If a facilitated session is going poorly is it better to call it off,
rather than to battle on ?
* How is compensation for the group members and all org. members related
to org., group, and individual performance, and personal development ?
Apologies for all these questions, and for any important ones mentioned by
others that I've missed, but I thought this a good 'text-book' case for
bringing out implementation issues for systems thinking and learning
org.s.
On the surface level, without having access to the org. history, it
appears that this agency is attempting to implement aspects of the
learning org. (can I say ?) methodology, from a classical perspective.
That is to say, from an organizational framework emphasising 'scientific
management,' based on a 'Newtonian-Darwinistic' worldview.
Through the post (and in some of the replies) we find some emphasis on
terms, directly and indirectly, such as objectivity, control, power,
supervision, hierarchy, manipulation, external direction, info-hoarding,
them/us attitudes, lack of change and diversity, and (a focus on)
behaviour and structures.
Systems thinking, living/ learning/ virtual organization concepts,
work-teams, and process structures are based on a different worldview, a
new, gradually emerging understanding of our reality, which I (for want of
a better expression) call a 'quantum - systems' paradigm.
Terms emphasised in this worldview include personal and organization
identity, relationships, interdependence, cooperation, autonomy, openness,
freely flowing info, learning, diversity, disequilibrium, and life as
exploration of creative potential.
Given the situation, what can be done ?
First, to start from the systems level, should we re-establish the vision,
purpose, and values of the agency, via wide representation of all org
member ? One methodology that could be used here is the Search Conference.
The results of this conference would provide the foundation for future
agency vision, values, processes and structure. This of course requires
that the director and senior management are serious about improvement, and
understand the concepts, as a major effort could be required to overcome
inbuilt cynicism.
Are there other ways for us to look at the organizational dynamics, the
energy from which the org. form emerges, to provoke change ?
At the individual and group level, compensation and development
opportunities should be based on the agreed org./ group/ and individual
criteria. The 'reluctant group' if it somehow remains intact would elect
who it wants as it's manager, if it still requires one. Assuming this is
Bill, as with other 'managers' or facilitators, his performance criteria
and time-frames would be agreed upon. Thus the ball would be in his court,
.. so to speak. The current manager could move into a group facilitator
role ?
We assume here that people are internally motivated. As Margaret Wheatley
(and Myron Kellner-Rogers, A Simpler Way, p3) noted:
"People are intelligent, creative, adaptive, self-organizing, and
meaning-seeking."
What if individuals or groups will still not participate. I don't know ..
give up ?? Must we revert to old ways, and simply inform them that they
may be better off elsewhere. Tighten up our hiring policies. If, as some
say the level of cynicism is rising, will dealing with cynicism and apathy
become a major issue. Is we let these people go, for being unable to
connect with them, where do they end up ? Are we all worse off for all
this lost potential ?
Wow, I'd best end here. I'd be most interested in hearing your thoughts,
suggestions, comments, .. and any corrections of my generalizations.
Have fun
Gregg Amos
Sydney
ps.
A friend forwarded me a quote of Senge's:
"someone once said the only time paradigm changes occur are at
funerals".
--Gregg Amos <gamos@loom.net.au>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>