Power and Virtual Organizations LO30056

From: Vana Prewitt (Vana@PraxisLearning.com)
Date: 04/04/03


Replying to LO30041 --

Philip and Alan both comment on elements that support my own experience
and research. CEO / top management commitment to creating a culture of
trust, mutual respect, and collaboration is truly required to create
anything resembling a "learning organization". While it's possible to make
a difference with a few people or for a brief time in an isolated unit,
I've seen efforts launched lower down the food chain fall apart when the
system shifts and the alignment of support dissolves.

And I would say that IT and decision-makers who are looking for "quick
fixes" in databases are BOTH to blame. It is a little disingenuous to
pretend that the sex worker is to blame for prostitution. He/she would be
out of business if there were no clients. That is why top management has
to understand and be committed to a long-term solution. It takes time; one
has to breathe through the pain of ups and downs in the market for the
benefits; one can't be focused on the next quarter's earnings but on the
sustainability of the organization.

My disappointment with top management over the years has been that they
are in a position and have a moral obligation to assure the viability of
the organization over time, not just long enough to draw a bonus. However,
the compensation (does anyone hear B.F. Skinner calling?) system rewards
top management for making BAD decisions. It doesn't take a brain surgeon
to see why sustainability isn't on the hit parade in major corporations.

All that said, information technologies are WONDERFUL for empowering
virtual teams. A few years back, when instant messengers were new, I used
them to keep a team of isolated workers around the nation connected to
each other for problem solving, mutual support, and teambuilding. It
worked. The problem isn't the technology, but the tendency to believe that
information technology (without using logic, judgment, or strategic
thinking) is the solution.

'nuff said --

Vana Prewitt
Praxis Learning Systems
Chapel Hill, NC

-- 

"Vana Prewitt" <Vana@PraxisLearning.com>

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