Ho Rol --
It has taken me some time to respond... sorry.
>You ask if it is possible to have learning organizations when the
>organization manages by fear or bullying or power methods. you cited some
>scary scenarios from your consulting experience. The answer is no, it is
>not possible. in my experience it is not even worth the effort unless you
>enjoy self-punishment.
Actually -- I encourage middle managers who I work with to create their
own culture within their department. I warn them of the difficulty of
the task and tell them that they have to provide a very good buffer
against the rest of the organization. Some succeed in doing this -- so
it is not impossible.
>On the other hand, there a lot of situations where _individuals_ practice
>abuse of employees, but this is not condoned or encouraged by the company.
>In those places, there may be hope. In those places, bringing those
>characteristics to the surface is often very edifying. If the reaction is
>apathy, then there is again, no hope. If the reaction is horror, or at
>least disgust, then there really is hope.
Not condoned nor encouraged -- nor in many cases dealt with and stopped.
But there is some hope.
>Also, while I know your experience is not rare, there are a fair number of
>very good companies out there. Those can benefit from the LO perspective.
Boy -- I wish I could say I agree but honestly -- I think they are few
and far between. I just worked with an old appliance company -- been
around for years. Used to have a very paternal culture -- was making
money too. Brought in one of the big 6 ( are there still 6?) and changed
the whole culture. The internal competition is insane now because of a
measurement system which pits individual against individual and
department against department. They now have an internal zero sum game.
And they are not making as much money -- which could have many
explanations....
I will put in a positive example though and I will name the company! I
just had the pleasure of working with a woman who works at Iams -- which
is a privately owned company. When she first started working for the
company 12 years ago-- in her first week -- the owner sat down and talked
with her for 45 minutes. She was hired in as a secretary. He keeps a
book with updated pictures and information on every employeee. When he
has a meeting -- he pulls the book out and reviews information about all
meeting participants. Knows everyone's name. They had a young man who
worked in one of their manufacturing facilities whose wife died. They
had a young son. One year later the man's arm was torn off in a
workplace accident. Several months later he committed suicide. The
company has a trust fund set aside for the orphaned boy's education.
When the manufacturing sites go for a certain period of time without any
accidents, the executive staff of the company cooks steak dinners for all
three shifts at all manufacturing plants. They are growing and they are
profitable!
Iams is the first example of positive culture stories I have heard in a
very long time. Maybe my job is to see the worst side of corporate
America... I don't know Rol -- what I do know is that there are a lot of
unhappy people working away in abusive atmospheres. Unfortuately -- I
know it too well.....
Sherri
sherri@maloufinc.com Tel:603-672-0355
LMA, Inc Fax:603-673-7120
--Sherri Malouf <sherri@maloufinc.com>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>