Organizations as Political Systems

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Organizations as Political Systems

• Gareth Morgan

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Envisioning the Political

• If you were to look at Nipissing University as a
  political institution, what aspects would you say
  are authoritative? What aspects would you say
  are democratic?
• Do you think Nipissing University Administrators
  and Faculty would share your views?

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What is an Autocracy?

• Absolute government where power is held by an
  individual or small group and supported by
  control of critical resources, property, or
  ownership rights, tradition, charisma, and other
  claims to personal privilege.
• Can you give an example of a situation where you
  have seen/could see this form of rule?

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What is Bureaucracy?

• Rule exercised through use of the written word,
  which provides the basis for a rational-legal
  type of authority, or rule of law
• Can you give an example of a situation where you
  have seen/could see this form of rule?

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What is a Technocracy?

• Rule exercised through the use of knowledge,
  expert power, and the ability to solve relevant
  problems
• Can you give an example of a situation where you
  have seen/could see this form of rule?

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What is Codetermination?

• The form of rule where opposing parties combine
  in the joint management of mutual interests, as
  in a coalition government or corporatism, each
  party drawing on a specific power base.
• Can you give an example of a situation where you
  have seen/could see this form of rule?

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What is a Representative Democracy?

• Rule exercised through the election of officers
  mandated to act on behalf of the electorate and
  who hold office for a specified time period or so
  long as they command the support of the
  electorate
• Can you give an example of a situation where you
  have seen/could see this form of rule?

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What is a Direct Democracy?

• The system where everyone has an equal right to
  rule and is involved in all decision making...It
  encourages self-organizing as a key mode of
  organizing.
• Can you give an example of a situation where you
  have seen/could see this form of rule?

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Analyzing Political Systems

• What are the three intersecting relations Morgan
  states we are to focus on in order to analyze a
  particular organizations politics?
• Hint Morgan states Organizational politics
  arise when people think differently and want to
  act differently. This diversity creates a tension
  that must be resolved through political means.
• Answer Morgan states we can analyze
  organizational politics by focusing on relations
  between interests, conflict and power.

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Relations of Interest and Conflict

• How do different interests play a part in
  organizational politics?
• What are some ways in which conflict may arise?
  Is conflict always negative?

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What does Morgan Identify as the 14 most
important sources of power? Explain Each

• Formal authority
• Control of scarce resources
• Use of organizational structure, rules, and
  regulations
• Control of decision processes
• Control of knowledge and information
• Control of boundaries
• Ability to cope with uncertainty

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Sources of power contd

• Control of technology
• Interpersonal alliances, networks, and control of
  informal organization
• Control of counterorganizations
• Symbolism and the management of meaning
• Gender and the management of gender relations
• Structural factors that define the stage of
  action
• The power one already has

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Managing Organizations

• What does Morgan define as pluralist, unitary,
  and radical organizations? How are interests,
  conflict and power relations different in each?
• What suggestions does he put forth for managing
  pluralist organizations?

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What are the 5 Pluralist Management Styles?

• Avoiding
• Ignoring conflict and hoping theyll go away
• Invoking slow procedures to stifle the conflict
• Appealing to bureaucratic rules as a course of
  conflict resolution
• In what situation would this style be useful?
• Compromise
• Negotiating
• Looking for deals or trade-offs
• Finding satisfactory or acceptable solutions
• In what situation would this style be useful?

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Contd...

• Competition
• Creating win-lose situations
• Using rivalry
• Forcing submission
• In what situation would this style be useful?
• Accommodation
• Giving way
• Submitting and complying
• In what situation would this style be useful?

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Contd...

• Collaboration
• Problem-solving stance
• Searching for integrative solutions
• Seeing problems and conflicts as challenging
• In what situation would this style be useful?

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Critical Thinking

• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the
  political metaphor?