Reframing Organizations, 3rd ed.

Chapter 6

People and Organizations

People and Organizations

Human Resource Frame
Human Needs What Needs do People Have?

Theory X and Theory Y

Personality and Organization Human Capacity and the Changing

Employment Contract

People and Organizations (II)

Lean and Mean: More Benefits than Costs?

Investing in People

Human Resource Assumptions

Organizations exist to serve human needs

People and organizations need each other

When the fit between individual and system is

poor, one or both suffer A good fit benefits both

Human Needs

The concept of need is controversial

Economists: peoples willingness to trade dissimilar items disproves usefulness of concept Psychologists: need, or motive is a useful way to talk enduring preferences for some experiences compared to others

Needs are a product of both nature and nurture

Genes determine initial trajectory Experience and learning profoundly influence preferences

Maslows Need Hierarchy

Needs arrayed in a hierarchy

Lower needs are prepotent Higher needs become more important after lower are satisfied Maslows hierarchy: Self-actualization Esteem Belongingness, love Safety Physiological

McGregors Theory X and Theory Y

Theory X

Workers are passive and lazy Prefer to be led Resist change Theory Y Managements basis task is to ensure that workers meet their important needs while they work Either theory can be selffulfilling prophesy

Argyris: Personality and Organization

Traditional management principles produce conflict

between people and organizations

Task specialization produces narrow, boring jobs that require few skills Directive leadership makes workers dependent and treats them like children

Workers adapt to frustration: Withdraw absenteeism or quitting Become passive, apathetic Resist top-down control through deception, featherbedding, or sabotage Climb the hierarchy Form groups (such as labor unions) Train children to believe work is unrewarding

Human Capacity and the Changing Employment Contract

Handy Shamrock form Core group of managers Basic workforce part-time or on shifts to increase organizations flexibility Contractual fringe temps, independent contractors

Lean and mean (win through low costs): downsize,

outsource, hire temps and contractors Invest in people (win with talent): build competent, well-trained work force Shift from production economy to information economy produces skill gap

Conclusion
Organizations need people and people need

organizations, but the trick is to align their needs Dilemma: lean and mean vs. invest in people