Multiple Perspective on Organizational Processes OBJECTIVES TO LEARN THAT THERE ARE MORE WAYS TO SEE HOW ORGANIZATIONS WORK TO UNDERSTAND THREE CLASSIC VIEWS TO LEARN HOW TO APPLY THE MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES IN AN ORGANIZATIONAL DIAGNOSIS (in your organization) TO UNDERSTAND THAT ORGANIZATIONAL PROBLEM SOLVING REQUIRES A RICHER PICTURE OF THE ORGANIZATION (than some managers believe)
Multiple Perspective on Organizational Processes WHY MANAGERS NEED MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES? STEREOTYPES OR PERSONAL "SCHEMAS" ORGANIZATIONAL PROBLEMS ARE NOT SIMPLE BUT USUALLY COMPLEX
IS THIS HELPFUL FOR THE ORGANIZATION (and individuals)? Personal “Schemas” THE WAY HOW INDIVIDUALS LOOK AT THE WORLD (individual model of behavior) SCHEMAS GIVE US AN APPROACH TO REPEATED SITUATIONS AND FREE UP OUR MINDS FOR OTHER MORE COMPLEX ACTIVITIES THIS IS THE ESSENCE OF BECOMING AN EXPERIENCED EMPLOYEE HE OR SHE KNOWS “HOW TO GET THINGS DONE” IS THIS HELPFUL FOR THE ORGANIZATION (and individuals)? YES or NO?
Personal “Schemas” IT SHOULD NOT BECOME A “HARD RULE” REASONS: SCHEMAS BECOME OUTDATED SCHEMAS ARE RESISTANT TO CHANGE SCHEMAS BECOME UNIVERSAL RULES SCHEMAS ARE INCOMPLETE
Classic Perspectives (on Organizations) THE STRATEGIC DESIGN PERSPECTIVE THE POLITICAL PERSPECTIVE THE CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE STRATEGIC POLITICAL CULTURAL THREE “LENSES”
The Strategic Design Perspective MANAGERS WHO TAKE THIS PERSPECTIVE: LOOK AT HOW TASKS ARE DESIGNED HOW PEOPLE ARE SORTED INTO ROLES HOW ROLES ARE RELATED WHAT IS THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY HOW TO GET TO THE GOAL IN ORDER TO ANALYZE AN ORGANIZATION FROM THIS PERSPECTIVE WE NEED TO KNOW ITS ITS STRATEGY (what is it trying to accomplish) ITS DESIGN (how are activities clustered) HOW IT PERCEIVES ITS ENVIRONMENT (what are the key features of its markets, etc.)
The Strategic Design Perspective THE MAIN PROBLEMS IN MOVING TO THE NEW ORGANIZATION, IN THIS PERSPECTIVE INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING: NEW DESIGN PRINCIPLES SHOULD BE IMPLEMENTED WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND HOW THESE PRINCIPLES WILL WORK HOW THESE PRINCIPLES AFFECT AN EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT
The Political Perspective MANAGERS WHO TAKE THIS PERSPECTIVE: HOW POWER AND INFLUENCE ARE DISTRIBUTED HOW STAKEHOLDERS ARE INVOLVED IN DECISIONS HOW CONFLICTS CAN BE RESOLVED IN ORDER TO ANALYZE AN ORGANIZATION FROM THIS PERSPECTIVE WE NEED TO KNOW ITS GOALS AND INTERESTS (individual and group) POWER (who and where are sources of power) NEGOTIATIONS AND PROBLEM SOLVING (who and how they do it) ONGOING RELATIONS (what are relationships among most organizational participants) CONFLICT RESOLUTION SYSTEM DESIGN
The Cultural Perspective MANAGERS WHO TAKE THIS PERSPECTIVE: HOW HISTORY HAS SHAPED VALUES OF PEOPLE WHAT HAS A SPECIAL MEANING FOR PEOPLE (how they feel for example about overtime work, what they think about the quality of their work, what can motivate them, etc.) WHAT IS AN ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE IN ORDER TO ANALYZE AN ORGANIZATION FROM THIS PERSPECTIVE WE NEED TO KNOW ITS A FOCUS ON SYMBOLS AND MEANINGS IDENTIFICATION OF FORMS OF SOCIAL CONTROL (to avoid managerial practices that are in a contradiction with their social norms) RECOGNIZING SUBCULTURES LOOKING ACROSS CULTURES
WHAT PERSPECITVE DO YOU FAVOR?