"If it ain't broke, fix it anyway'
"I lowered managers' spending limits," explained a CEO, "because our
market share and profits are declining."
Ironically, increased control is a sign of organizational decline, so
say researchers Kim Cameon, David Whetten and Myung Kim, writing in the
"Academy of Management Journal." Other signs of decline:
- [] Centralization. Intuitively, "take over" seems the right thing to do when sales and profits dip. Top leaders, because they are
dissatisfied, reclaim decisions that subordinates were making. Employees, however, quit participating and looking for innovative solutions, and productivity and morale sink further.
- [] Leaders leave. Tradition says that the captain is the last to leave a sinking ship. (Rats are first.) But good leaders are the first to leave an organization that starts to "go South." Because they are perceptive, leaders read the signs of decay and bail out.
- [] Resistance to change. When things are broken and need changing the most, attitudes toward change harden like frozen butter. Why? People feel insecure; they want to protect their turf. Proposals to change suggest that people are failing.
- [] Increased conflict. Decline yields more conflict than growth. In growth, some divisions may get more of the pie than others, but all probably get some. In decline, however, some of the pie is likely taken away. Take-aways cause hostilities.
- [] Non-prioritized cuts. Some managers try to lessen the pain of decline with across-the-board cuts -- a failed strategy. This cancels any efforts to reward productivity. All people feel cheated.
To come out of a decline, consider counter-intuitive strategies --
increase research and development, training, financial incentives,
promotion and decentralization.
Better still, avoid the decline. Change and improve while growing. To
paraphrase an old saying, "If it ain't broke, fix it (improve it)
anyway."
Management quiz
Check all of the following that apply to your organization. During
recent
months, there have been increases in . . .
- 1. Top management control.
- 2. Employee frustration.
- 3. Intra- and interdepartment conflict.
- 4. Centralization of authority.
- 5. Short-term crises.
- 6. Criticism of top management.
- 7. Turnover among good producers.
- 8. Resistance to change.
- 9. Across-the-board cuts.
- 10. Cliques and organization politics.
Seven or more checks may suggest symptoms of a declining
organization.
Source:The Tampa Tribune - October 23, 1995 - GERALD GRAHAM of Knight-Ridder Newspapers
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