Task:
The key theme of this module is change.
What did Charles Handy mean when he commented that change could not be managed? If he was right what can a manager do in the face of change? Explain the responsibilities of a manager to their organisation and its employees during periods of change.
Essay:
Introduction
Inventions, new technologies, abolition of trade barriers, rapidly changing markets - the world is continuously passing from one state into another: The world is changing. But how can organizations survive within the chaos of uncertainty? The following essay will give an insight into the complex world of the management of organizational change with a more detailed view of the ideas of the Irish management thinker Charles Handy.
Organizational culture and change
Charles Handy has written some of the most influential articles and books about management of the past decade and has reached rank 14 in the ACCENTURE'S ranking of significant "business intellectuals" in May 2002.
According to HANDY every organization needs an appropriate structure or culture that is determined by the ownership, size, technology and the history of the organization, its objectives and employees. HANDY distinguishes between four cultures:
- Club or power culture
The club culture depends on a central power source.
- Role culture
It works predictably by logic and rationality with procedures and rules.
- Task culture
It is job orientated and has often only a short life.
- Existential or person culture
The existential culture is based on the idea of the existentialism
To become more flexible, HANDY recommends, splitting up the large organization into "mini-organizations". Each of them has his particular culture but all are held together by the 'transcendent or overarching purpose' (Handy, 1999, p.269) and by overall morals, ethics and values.
Differences between these mini-organizations can cause...