Movement to the fourth level of human existence
occurs when the have-nots begin to threaten the power and
prerogatives of the haves and movement begins when the haves begin
to perceive that power alone does not please man. Man wants also
to be liked, to feel he is accepted, to belong. Now as the
belonging level of need emerges the sociocratic ethic, the team
concept of work, the organization man idea, the "we must all
think alike and all want the same," system of proper behavior
develops. Within this ethic, the rules created for proper behavior
are the ways prescribed so that groups may function smoothly. When
these rules evolve, incentives stem from others and directiveness
comes from the power of group opinion. Right is to be able to do
the proper thing as the group sees it, to be other directed. Wrong
is to do one’s own thinking, to be different, to be inner
directed. It is an ethic typified by passivity to what others
expect one to do. He is good who can be persuaded to do as the
organization desires and he is good who quietly accepts the
directive that he gets in no trouble with the group and gets the
group in no trouble. He is bad who rocks the boat, - who deigns to
differ. And again the form of managerial control, Participative
Management, is consistent with the ethic.
Participative management fosters the idea that
organizations will prosper when all play a role in the decision
making process, when all have a say. It is a form of management
that gives power to the managed and acceptance to those who run
the organization. This is congruent. It is another example of
dissimilar values between managing and managed making for
organizational viability. But, when an organization has most of
its people both the leader and the led at the fourth level, both
living by the sociocratic ethic, a most serious threat to
organizational viability develops. And if fourth level managers
are coupled in an organization with second level employees an
impossible condition results.
Viability is threatened when both are at the
fourth level because the similar values are incongruent. In his
desire to be liked the leader has lost his sense of energetic
purpose. He must make it appear that his group decides and the
group must not appear to push. Decisions should be made when all
see alike but such violates the variability in men. The leader
strives to entice the led to arrive at the managerially desired
decision and the led strive to avoid a decision they fear others
will not like. The time for decision-making is so slowed that the
organization comes to a state of arrested development. Conferences
are held, committees are constituted and informal meetings abound.
When these fail, these believers in communication as the means to
the organizational goals sharpen their communication techniques.
Group Dynamics, Sensitivity Training, Learning through Listening,
Conference Management Techniques, morale studies feed down, feed
up and feed back procedures are tried but to little avail. After
all the goal of fourth level people is to be liked, not to decide.
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