Organizational Traps Leadership, Culture, Organizational Design

by Argyris, Chris

• ISBN13: 9780199586165
• ISBN10: 0199586160
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-06-22
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Anyone who has spent time in an organization knows that dysfunctional behavior abounds. Conflict is frequently avoided or pushed underground rather than dealt with openly. At the same time, the same arguments often burst out again and again, almost verbatim. Turf battles continue for extended periods without resolution. People nod their heads in agreement in meetings, and then rush out of the room to voice complaints to sympathetic ears in private. Worst of all, when people are asked if things will ever change, they throw up their hands in despair. They feel like victims trapped in an asylum. And people often are trapped. But they are not trapped by some oppressive regime or organizational structure that has been imposed on them. They are not victims. In fact, people themselves are responsible for making the status quo so resistant to change. We are trapped by our own behavior. Researchers and practitioners have often reflected on these things, but there is a puzzle. On the one hand, there is substantial agreement that these traps are counterproductive to effective performance. On the other hand, there is almost no focus on how organizational traps can be prevented or reduced. This book argues that whatever theory is used to describe and understand such organizational traps should be used to design and implement interventions that reduce and prevent them. Argyris is one of the world's leading management scholars whose work has consistently shed light on orgainzational problems. This book is essential reading for MBAs, managers, and consultants.

Author Biography

Chris Argyris is the James Conant Professor of Education and Organizational Behavior Emeritus at Harvard University. He has consulted to numerous private and governmental organizations. He has received many awards including thirteen honorary degrees and Lifetime's Contributions Awards from the Academy of Management, American Psychological Association, and American Society of Training Directors. His most recent books are, Flawed Advice and the Management Trap (OUP, 1999), and Reasons and Rationalizations (OUP, 2004). A chair professorship was established in 1994 at Yale University. He is a Director Emeritus of Monitor Group.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. 1
What do Traps and their Consequences Look Like?	p. 1
Traps Can Lead to Disaster	p. 3
The Organization of This Book	p. 4
Why We Act Against Our Own Stated Interests
How We Deal with Difficult Situations	p. 11
The Department of State and Secretary Rusk	p. 12
Traps are Universal	p. 16
Intel Corporation	p. 18
Effects of Unilateral Leadership	p. 20
The Perniciousness of Traps	p. 22
Actions that Trap us	p. 25
The Left-Hand-Right-Hand Case Method	p. 26
Directions for Completing the Left-Hand-Right-Hand Case	p. 27
A Preliminary View of the Cases	p. 28
Submerging the Primary Issue	p. 30
Closed to Learning	p. 34
Competing Models	p. 37
Easing In	p. 44
The CIO and the IT Group	p. 48
Advanced MBAs	p. 54
Conclusion	p. 57
Causes of Traps	p. 58
A Theory of Action	p. 61
How We Create Traps	p. 65
How Model I Theory-in-Use and Defensive Reasoning Lead to Traps	p. 74
Conclusion	p. 78
How Conventional Approaches Bypass Traps-and What to Do About it
Introduction	p. 83
Leadership and Traps	p. 88
The Quantitative Approach	p. 90
Leadership: A Historiometric Approach	p. 94
Leadership: Qualitative Approaches	p. 96
Becoming a Conflict Competent Leader	p. 102
Narcissistic Leaders and Other Personality Types	p. 104
Appreciative Inquiry	p. 107
Competing Commitments	p. 111
Inadequacies of Current Management Research	p. 114
Conclusions	p. 116
Culture, Leadership, and Traps (co-author Ian Smith)	p. 118
Productive and Counterproductive Cultures	p. 119
The Andy Case	p. 121
The Royal/Dutch Shell Case	p. 125
Reflecting on Cultures and Traps	p. 145
Strengthening New Approaches	p. 151
Seeking Help from Outside Consultants	p. 154
The Collaborative Community	p. 165
Structural Approaches	p. 175
The Ambidextrous Organization	p. 179
Human Potential	p. 182
Conclusion	p. 186
Conclusion: Traps and the Human Predicament	p. 188
The Attempt to Find New Ways Forward	p. 191
Helping Moon Shots to Succeed	p. 195
The Human Predicament	p. 197
Bibliography	p. 201
Index	p. 207
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