Marvin Weisbord Six-Box Model

Figure 1. Weisbord six-box model for organizational

climate

THEORETICAL DISCUSSION
The six-box model was developed by Marvin Weisbord in 1976. The model
contains six elements which focus on the organizations Strategy, Structure, Rewards,
Internal Relationships, Helpful Mechanism and Leadership. Surrounding the six boxes
is the Environment.
This model provides a systematic analysis of organizational climate. This allows
a thorough evaluation of the formal and informal activities of the six parts such as
purposes, structure, relationships, rewards, leadership and helpful mechanisms. The
environment outside the circle has two parts, external and internal. (Jamshidian, et al.,
1997, p.59).
The six parts of the model are the following:
Structure: Organizational structure determines how the tasks are formally
divided up, grouped, and coordinated (Robbins, 1999, p. 185).
Relationships: Relationship requires something more than using appropriate
information. The information needs to be properly assessed and delivered to the
main decision makers and leads to appropriate actions (Trans, 2004, p.310-311).
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Leadership: Leadership is the ability of influencing a group and shifting it

towards
the given goals. The source of this power or influence is formal,
similar to holding the manager position in an organization (Robbins, 1999, p.
217).
Rewards: It is the financial valuation to achieve results and satisfaction in
fulfilling the tasks. Rewards should be considered as an important element
that affect the employee behaviors (Robbins, 1999, p. 363).
Purposes: There are several types of goals in every organization and particular
work should be done to meet each of these goals. There is difference between
the goals formally set and the operational goals that the organization is to
accomplish them (Daft, 1998, p.82).
Helpful mechanisms: Helpful mechanisms are necessary to coordinate
technologies and forces so as
to institutionalize the thought of doing activities
systematically.
Weisbords six-box diagnostic model centers on the analysis on areas of
dissatisfaction as the starting point. Likewise, it identifies organizational outputs with
which both external customers and internal producers are dissatisfied.
He also identifies as inputs the money, people, ideas, and machinery which are
utilized to fulfill the organizations mission. The outputs are products and services.
Factors which are crucial to understanding the model and which are also not
evident are the two premises, formal and informal systems. The first premise refers to
formal versus informal systems. Formal systems refer to policies and procedures which
the organization claims to do. On the other hand, informal systems refer to behaviors
which actually exist. Whenever the gap between the formal and informal systems within
the organization is big, it is highly expected that the organization will be less effective.
The second premise refers to the fit between the organization and the
environment. This entails the gap between the existing organization and how it should
function in order to meet external demands. External demands or pressures according
to Weisbord are customers, government, and unions.
OWN DISCUSSION
The Weisbords model is a typical description of an organizations process of
diagnosing and identifying organizational outputs whenever external customers and
internal producers are dissatisfied. The model evaluates the formal and informal
activities.The model is simple however it can be viewed as a disadvantage. This
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simplicity lacks enough theoretical foundation to determine the real causes of gaps and
dissatisfaction. In addition, there is no action that will allow the dissatisfaction and gaps
to be remedied.
The diagnostic questions for each box of Weisbord model can be used to identify
the formal and informal activities of a school. Through this model, the school
management would be able to draw gaps and dissatisfaction of each employee. To
apply the model, some of the sample questions for each box are the following:
Purposes: Do organizational members agree with and support the organizations
mission and goals?
This question is relevant for all employees. In school setting, all employees must
be aware and knowledgeable of the vision, mission and goals of the institution.
Everyone is expected to agree and support the VMO. This VMO is reviewed and
evaluated by all the stakeholders most specifically during strategic management
conference and workshop. Significantly, for schools undergoing accreditation, VMO
is one of the areas visited and evaluated by the accreditation team. This VMO must
be visible in all areas of the institution so that all employees will be reminded of their
roles.
Structure: Is there a fit between the purpose and the internal structure of the
organization?
The school and employees are very much aware of how the tasks are formally
divided up, grouped and coordinated. This is evident on the Administrative Manual,
Faculty Manual and Non-teaching Manual. There can never be duplication of tasks
since the manuals clearly illustrate the job description and assignment of each
employee.
Relationships: What type of relations exist between individuals, between
departments, and between individuals and the nature of their jobs? Is their
interdependence? What is the quality of relations? What are the modes of
conflict?
The existing relationship in a school setting must be carefully analyzed and
evaluated whenever decision has to be made by the decision makers. In school
setting, conflicts are properly addressed for the simple reason that each department
and division must coordinate in order to achieve its purpose.
Rewards: What does the organization formally reward, and for what do
organizational members feel they are rewarded and punished? What does the
organization need to do to fit with the environment?

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Higher Educational Institutions provide rewards for those achievers. Rewards

and benefits are given based on performance. Performance appraisal is conducted
every semester based on student evaluation, classroom observation, peerevaluation and others. Also,part of the performance evaluation is the attendance
and research outputs. Professional development is very much part of performance
evaluation. Salary increases are sometimes based on the output. On the other
hand, punishments are also given for those who do not perform well, no
performance bonus. HEIs are very meticulous and cognizant when it comes to
rewards and benefits.
Leadership: Do leaders define purposes? Do they embody purposes in their
programs? What is the normative style of leadership?
The leadership roles in every catholic educational institutions like ours is welldefined and conservative. Very few dare to reform the system for the reason that it
is run by religious orders. Our institution is run by nuns and rarely do they give the
important positions to laymen. This is where the problem arises. Because of the
limited number of nuns who have the skills and knowledge in school administration,
sometimes the school is left with no choice but to settle with whoever will be
assigned regardless if she is competent or not.
Helpful Mechanisms: Do these mechanisms help or hinder the accomplishment
of organizational objectives?
The school is very well adapted to technologies and updates. In fact, most of the
offices and departments have systems. These mechanisms help the school
manage the activities and flow of work of each department and employee.
However, the use of this model has advantages and disadvantages. Allow me to
enumerate them.
Advantages
1. The model is simple and easy to understand by stakeholders. Essential
activities and key variables can be easily identified in the organizations. It has
been successfully implemented in many organizations and therefore popular
among decision makers.
2. Conflict being a part of any organization makes it realistic. Change can be easily
implemented that is if such can be realized as early as possible.
3. Nadler and Tushman, Burke and Litwin are followers of this model. They even
developed their own approaches anchored on this model.
4. The model was anchored on a number of management theory schools.

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Disadvantages
1. The model lacks financial validation after the required interventions are
implemented. Thus, making it a superficial strategy in terms of financial analysis.
2. The model being based on logic has failed to validate Weisbords classification of
organization of components.
3. The model has not taken into consideration he organizations structure which
might limit the range of objectives that the organization might pursue.
4. The model requires agreement on goals and objectives between employers and
employees in order to achieve effectiveness and desired performance.
To summarize, the model centers on the issues within the organization. The
diagnostic questions guide the management or decision makers to view and understand
what is the organization doing and what should be the direction.
RECOMMENDATION
Justo (2009) in his article highly recommends the use of Weisbord model as a
means to see and analyze the organizational gaps, strengths and weaknesses. In
addition, Harrison and Shirom (1998) viewed the model as helpful for clients to increase
their understanding of the organizational gaps that require attention. This way, better
interventions can be planned to mitigate impact of the organizational gaps.
Furthermore, the model is a good process to analyze the organizations variables and
effectiveness thus resulting to a better evaluation and decision making.

References
Weisbord, M. (1978). Organizational diagnosis: A workbook of Theory and
Practice. Addison-Wesley, USA.
Jamshidian, M., Khoshakhlagh, R., & Ghiasian, M. (1997). Employing six-box
model in evaluating organizational climate. Management Knowledge, 35& 36, 50-55.
Robbins, S.P. (1999). Organization theory. S.M. Alvani & H. Danaifard (Trans.).
Tehran: Saffar Publication.
Robbins, S. P, & Coulter, M. (1999). Management, Prentice Hall International,
Inc. London, UK.

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Daft, R. L. (2005). Organization theory and design. A. Parsaian & M. Arabi

(Trans.). Volume 1 & 2. Tehran: Cultural Research Bureau.
Trans, R. M. (2004). People in organizations, filed of organizational behavior. H.
Shokrkon (trans.). Tehran: Roshd Pres.
Justo, A. (2009). Organizational Diagnostic Models. Retrieved on January 18,
2017 from http://armandojusto.blogspot.com/2009/04/competency-profiling.html.
Harrison, M.I. & Shirom, A. (1998) Organizational Diagnosis and Assessment :
Bridging Theory and Practice, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

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MCKINSEY 7S MODEL

Figure 2. McKinsey 7S Model

THEORETICAL DISCUSSION
McKinsey 7s model was developed by Tom Peters, Robert Waterman and julien
Philips in 1980s. The model was named McKinsey because the 3 were working as
consultants in McKinsey Consultants (Jurivicius, 2013). The model is widely used by
academics and practitioners and is until now a popular tool used in strategic planning.
It analyzes firms organizational design by looking at the 7 key internal elements such
as: strategy, structure, systems, shared values, style, staff and skills. These elements
will allow the organization to identify if they are effectively aligned to be able to achieve
its objectives.
The model has seven areas and divided into Soft Ss and Hard Ss. Its shape
emphasizes interconnection of the elements. The model is applicable in many
situations and can be a valuable tool for organizational design. It is commonly used in
the following situations:
Organizational change;
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 Implementation of new strategy;

Identification of areas that may be changed;
Merger of organizations.
Bryan (2008) enumerated the seven S factors:
1. Strategy refers to a plan developed by a firm which aims to achieve sustained
competitive advantage and successfully compete in the market.
2. Structure indicates the way business divisions and units are organized and also
includes the accountable person.
3. Systems pertains to the processes and procedures of the company such as
daily activities and decision making.
4. Style includes the way key managers behave in achieving the organizationals
goals as a whole.
5. Staff concerns with the type and the number of employees in an organization
which are needed and will be recruited.
6. Skills includes the abilities, capabilities and competencies of the organizations
employees.
7. Shared Values refers to norms and standards that guide the employee
behavior and company actions. Noticed too that the shared values is placed in
the center of the diagram because it is critical elements in the development of 7S
model.
OWN DISCUSSION
McKinsey 7S model is a useful framework to better assess the internal strategic
alignment of the organization. Likewise, it analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of
an organization. The usefulness of this model has been exhibited by many companies
and organizations that used it as a tool for strategic management.
In a school setting, this model can be utilized by the Admission Office especially
during marketing and promotions of programs and courses offered. Most of the
universities and colleges have been active in promoting and marketing their schools. In
fact, a few have even launched tv advertisements as a way to reach out to their future
students.
Most common marketing strategies of colleges and universities are career
guidance, brochures and leaflets. Some decided to put up billboard advertisements
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along major highways. Significant to note are those schools located in Metro Manila
and Calabarzon.
However, before going full blown, schools can adapt McKensey 7S model to
determine the directions that it will take and to check the degree of alignment of the
organizations.
Things to consider for a marketing and promotions program are the following:
1. Strategy The school must set a clear strategy in order to penetrate the market.
There should be a clear and logical marketing plan. However, this plan must be
aligned around the vision and direction of the school. The strategy must be
known and understood by all employees and also must be communicated to
everyone.
2. Structure The decision maker must be aware of the hierarchical structure of the
organization. The lines of accountability must be clear. Likewise, efficient
allocations of the resources and skills are structured.
3. Systems the school should identify the computer systems, manual systems and
informal practices. Which of these systems work well in a marketing and
promotions activities? Are they efficient or out of date?
4. Style this refers to the environment of the school or if the people are generally
relaxed, informal and formal. Since this is a marketing and promotions program,
rewards must be included for those who will perform well.
5. Staff there should be a selection, training and alignment of job responsibilities
for the marketing and promotions team.
6. Skills Who among the team members possess the skills needed for the job? If
they dont have it, training must be done to nurture their skills.
7. Shared Values Values must be clearly articulated to the members. In a
marketing and promotions program, values such as teamwork, integrity, or clients
first are some of the examples. These values must also be known to customers
and other external stakeholders.
All colleges and universities, as part of accreditation programs have vision,
mission and goals that provide guidelines for practical decision making. The schools
also conduct strategic planning for future endeavors. The McKinsey 7S model should
be made part of the strategic planning of every HEIs. This will help ensure that
decisions are made based on careful analysis.
RECOMMENDATION
McKinsey 7S model continues to be popular among different types of business of
all sectors and sizes. Others say, it works best in medium and large businesses. What
is good with this framework is that the elements are self-explanatory. It covers all the
capabilities needed to implement strategy successfully. The model can help the
organization improve its performance especially in organizational change.

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REFERENCES

Jurevicius, V. (2013). Mckinsey 7S model framework. Retrieved on January 15,

2017 from
https://www.strategicmanagementinsight.com/tools/mckinsey-7s-modelframework.html.
Bryan, L. (2008). Enduring Ideas: The 7S Framework. Retrieved on January 14,
2017
from
http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/strategy-and-corporatefinance/our-insights/enduring-ideas-the-7-s-framework.
Hanlog, A. (2014). How to use the McKinsey 7S model in marketing. Retrieved
on January 16, 2017 from https://iedunote.com/mckinsey-7s-framework.
Waterman, R.H. et. al. (1980). Structure is not organization. McKinsey Quarterly,
in-house journal. McKinsey & Co., New York.

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THEORETICAL DISCUSSION
This model was conceptualized by Fred Fiedler in 1960s when he carried out a
research on the relationship (contingency) between the effectiveness of the leadership
style and the situation. (Mulder, 2013) This model postulates effective
According to Fred Fiedler (1987), a number of factors like situations and personal
characteristics of the leaders characterized effectiveness and leadership. He also
distinguished the following three factors:
1. Leadership Styles leadership style depends on two dimensions, task-oriented
and human-relations oriented. Further, he added that the task-oriented leader is
primarily concerned with the task performance and the accomplishment of task
goals. He gets satisfied with the accomplishment of task performance. While, the
manager concerned with human relations lay more emphasis on developing the
interpersonal relationship with his subordinates.In order to understand the
attitude of a leader, Fiedler developed a Least Preferred Co-worker Scale
(LPC), wherein the leaders are asked to rate a person on a scale ranging from
lowest (1) to highest (8) on several parameters to identify the worker with whom
they least like to work. Certain parameters on the LPC scale are:
pleasant/unpleasant, friendly/unfriendly, tense/relaxed, supportive/hostile,
cooperative/uncooperative, quarrelsome/harmonious, etc. The leaders with high
LPC scores are said to be relationship-oriented whereas the ones with the low
LPC scores are considered as task-oriented. (Fiedler, 1971)

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2. Situational Variables: It has been observed that, several situational factors

influence the effectiveness of the leadership styles, but however, Fiedler has
talked about three critical dimensions: Leaders Position Power: This element is
concerned with the power or authority a leader derives from the position held by
him in the organization. It has been observed, that a manager with absolute
power influences the behavior of others more than the ones without power.Task
Structure: The task structure means the extent to which the task requirements
are clearly defined in terms of the task goals, processes and relationship with
other tasks. It has been observed, that with the clear definition of task structure
the actions of the subordinates can be well directed and their performances can
be well controlled, which may not be possible in case of unclear task structure.
(Fiedler, 1964)
3. Relation Between Styles and Situations: This is the last element of Fiedlers
contingency model, wherein he talks about the relationship between the situation
and the appropriateness of leadership style. According to him, the leadership
effectiveness depends on the situation, as one style favoring one situation may
not necessarily be appropriate in any other situation. Thus, it is the situation that
gives an opportunity to the leader to influence his subordinates through the right
kind of leadership style. (Fiedler, 1981)
Thus, Fiedlers contingency model posits that the situation decides the style of
leadership and influences the behavior of a manager.
OWN DISCUSSION
This model matches the leader to the situations by utilizing the Least Preferred
Co-Worker (LPC). A leader can be effective in some situations based on the three
variables. This model can be used to determine the best candidate for promotion by
measuring his LPC.
The strengths of this model is grounded on the many research works conducted
and tested by different researchers which makes it a valid a reliable approach in
determining how effective leaders can be determined. In addition, it identifies the
individual roles of leaders based on their style. Further, this model predicts power and
understands the context of the workplace situation. Furthermore, it considers how the
situations will impact on leaders and on their relationship.
This model can be utilized in many ways such as in assessing the effectiveness
or ineffectiveness of an individual. Also, it predicts whether a person can be equally
effective in another position when comparison is made with the existing position. Lastly,
it helps during the implementation of changes especially in terms of roles and
responsibilities.
In school setting, this model can be applicable when we look at teachers role as
a leader in the classroom. When a classroom teacher exhibits different classroom
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behavior, through this, the model will be able to determine whether he is a task-oriented
or human-relations oriented specifically when it concerns motivation.
Despite its uses, there are also some criticisms like lack of flexibility. Fiedler
didnt allow flexibility in leaders because he believed that natural leadership style is
fixed. By this, changing the leader is the most effective way to handle situations.
(MIndtools, N.D.)
RECOMMENDATIONS
Leaders utilizing the principles of Fiedlers Contingency model must identify one
or two influences on an issue. They also must learn to evaluate different inputs which
maybe contributory to the problem. To come up with effective decisions and problem
solving, leaders should learn to integrate as a whole all the necessary factors.

REFERENCES
Mulder, P. (2013). Fiedler Contingency Model. Retrieved on January 12, 2017
from http://www.toolshero.com/leadership/fiedler-contingency-model/.
Fiedler, F. (1987). New Approaches to Leadership, Cognitive Resources and
Organizational Performance. John Wiley and Sons.
Fiedler, F. (1971). Reviews studies of the contingency model of leadership
effectiveness. Journal: Psychological Bulletin, vol. 76, no. 2, pp. 128-148.
Fiedler, F. (1964). A contingency model of leadership effectiveness. Advances in
experimental social psychology, 1, 149-190.
Mindtools, (n.d.). Fiedlers Contingency Model. Matching Leadership Style to a
Situation. Retrieved on January 10, 2017 from https://www.mindtools.com/pages/
article/fiedler.htm.

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