Greenleaf on the flaws of 'one-person-in-control'
Yesterday I spoke of Greenleaf's views on the tradition behind how organizations are shaped. As we head into the weekend I thought I would leave you with five (among many that Greenleaf mentions) of the limitations of the hierarchical structure that Greenleaf wrote about in his essay The Institution as Servant, which can be found in this book:
1) To be a lone chief atop a pyramid is abnormal and corrupting. None of us is perfect by ourselves and all of us need the help and correcting influence of close colleagues. When someone is moved atop a pyramid, that person no longer has colleagues, only subordinates.
2) Those persons who are atop the pyramids often suffer from a very real loneliness. They cannot be sure enough of the motives of those with whom they must deal, and they are not on the "grapvine." Most of what they know is what other people choose to tell them. They often do not know what everybody else knows, informally.
3) The typical chief who rests uneasily atop the pyramid of any large institution is grossly overburdened. The job destroys too many of them - which is reason enough to abandon the idea. But for the institution there is also damage. For in too many cases the demands of the office destroy these persons' creativity long before they leave the office.
4) Being in the top position prevents leadership by persuasion because the single chief holds too much power. Chiefs often cannot say persuasively what they would like to say because it will be taken as an order. No one else can effectively speak for the chief because the listeners rightly want to know what the chief thinks.
5) Finally, the prevalence of the lone chief places a burden on the whole society because it gives control priority over leadership. It sets before the young the spectacle of an unwholesome struggle to get to the top. It nourishes the notion among able people that one must be boss to be effective. And it sanctions, in a conspicuous way, a pernicious and petty status striving that corrupts everyone.
What do you think of Greenleaf's views on the topic? Have you seen any of these at work in the organizations with whom you are associated?
1) To be a lone chief atop a pyramid is abnormal and corrupting. None of us is perfect by ourselves and all of us need the help and correcting influence of close colleagues. When someone is moved atop a pyramid, that person no longer has colleagues, only subordinates.
2) Those persons who are atop the pyramids often suffer from a very real loneliness. They cannot be sure enough of the motives of those with whom they must deal, and they are not on the "grapvine." Most of what they know is what other people choose to tell them. They often do not know what everybody else knows, informally.
3) The typical chief who rests uneasily atop the pyramid of any large institution is grossly overburdened. The job destroys too many of them - which is reason enough to abandon the idea. But for the institution there is also damage. For in too many cases the demands of the office destroy these persons' creativity long before they leave the office.
4) Being in the top position prevents leadership by persuasion because the single chief holds too much power. Chiefs often cannot say persuasively what they would like to say because it will be taken as an order. No one else can effectively speak for the chief because the listeners rightly want to know what the chief thinks.
5) Finally, the prevalence of the lone chief places a burden on the whole society because it gives control priority over leadership. It sets before the young the spectacle of an unwholesome struggle to get to the top. It nourishes the notion among able people that one must be boss to be effective. And it sanctions, in a conspicuous way, a pernicious and petty status striving that corrupts everyone.
What do you think of Greenleaf's views on the topic? Have you seen any of these at work in the organizations with whom you are associated?
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