Organizational Development: A Manual for Managers and ... - FPDL

If the possible results are not equally attractive, then one of them may be more desirable than
another (for whatever reason) and the task of the manager appears – to ensure that creods allow
reaching this end and bifurcations on the way are passed properly. Then there is no time to sleep.
Most force field forming factors are continuously changing, often in an unpredictable manner, and
a lot of accidental fluctuation or somebody else’s irrelevant intent can control the choices at the
points of bifurcations. A manager’s course of action must be somehow organized. Would a
strategic plan help in this case? Yes, of course. But the plan will be valid only for a short period of
time – as long as the picture remains essentially the same.
In any case, reality is not a landscape. It does not ‘roll out over time’. It is just a certain force field
at any given moment. The visible landscape changes, as visibility for a driver on a road changes
as the car moves. The driver continuously revises and corrects his ‘plan of action’ based on the
changing view and corresponding prospects, but his actions are determined not only by planned
intentions, but by the actual situation – what is on the road? If it is in accordance with the ‘plan’ –
then the actions follow the ‘plan’. If something is different – then the plan must be immediately
revised – and the actions shall follow this new plan.
A plan is a kind of bridge between the perception of the current situation and an image of a
desirable situation, built on certain assumptions about how things are and in what type of world we
live. In the case of stereotype behaviour, a “plan” exists in the form of a firm program and
integrates stimulus and expected usual results. In the case of emotional behaviour, a plan does not
exist and is not needed (accidental choice). The only zone where conscious planning makes sense
is the zone of rational behaviour -then it is a matter for rational choice and involves a decisionmaking
process.
Decision-making requires criteria. Possible points of designation, even on a virtual map, must have
certain values (parameter B). Where do these criteria come from? How they are arranged? It all
depends on ‘who is paying the piper’. Natural self-organizing systems strive for survival. Nongovernmental
organizations are looking for sponsor contributions or appreciation in a public arena.
Business units may look for profit or for market share at a given stage of development. Public
sports facilities may be needed to keep teenagers busy or to provide entertainment for adults.
One thing is clear – defining these criteria and even making a choice about the desirable end is
rarely a job for a manager at the executive level. Whose interest will he represent? Which map
should he use? His own? ‘Designated gain’ does not exist apart from the person for whom it is a
gain. Let him take a part in decision-making.
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