77
See also: Leading well 68–69 ■ Effective leadership 78–79 ■ Organizational
culture 104–09 ■ Mintzberg’s management roles 112–13
LIGHTING THE FIRE
state of flux—they adapt and
change in unforeseen, unplanned,
and unpredictable ways.
Accounting for complexity
Organizational complexity is often
measured by the number of
countries a company operates in,
or the number of brands under a
manager’s control. Such
institutional complexity is not
insignificant; it pales though
compared to individual complexity.
For example, something novel that
motivated a member of staff one
year may not motivate them the
next. When a company consists of a
staff of thousands, it is clear that
people, and therefore organizations,
are more complex than the stylistic
Gods of Management suggest.
Handy later wrote of the
Shamrock Organization—a flexible
organization made of core employees,
peripheral outsourced staff, and an
external, flexible work force. Each
category of worker has a different
commitment to the organization, a
different understanding of its vision,
and their own motivations for work.The job of leadership is to align these
differences toward a common,
organizational goal.
Organizational dynamics are
important because people matter.
Typologies only take a leader so far.
Leaders must recognize that each
employee perceives the company
differently, and has unique drivers
(and barriers) to effectiveness. As
US businessman Tom Northup
said, great leaders do not “fall from
heaven,” but God-like omniscience
is a useful—albeit unreachable—
goal to strive for. ■Charles Handy
Professor Charles Handy, born
in 1932, is Britain’s best-
known management guru.
After graduating from Oxford
University he joined the
Massachusetts Institute of
Technology in 1965, moving
to the London Business School
(LBS) in 1967 to run the only
Sloan School of Management
program outside the USA.
Handy’s challenging ideas,
articulate style, and use of
provocative imagery—such as
his text The Empty Raincoat,
a critique of the “impersonal
mechanics of business
organizations”—set him apart
from his contemporaries.
Handy sees himself as a social
philosopher rather than
management guru—his
writings, he believes, are
commentaries rather than
manuals for success. His
opinions have influenced
business thinking for decades.Key works1976 Understanding
Organizations
1978 Gods of Management
1994 The Empty RaincoatCharles Handy’s
Gods of
ManagementAthena—
Task Culture
Athena, the goddess of wisdom,
was a problem-solver. Task cultures
thrive where innovation is required,
but struggle with routine.
Advertising agencies and
consultancies often display
task cultures.Zeus—
Club Culture
As the ruler of the Greek gods,
Zeus was at the center of power and
influence. Club cultures are built on
affinity; proximity to the center of
the club reflects an individual’s
standing within it. Investment
banks often have dominant
club cultures.Dionysus—
Person Culture
Dionysus, the god of wine, stood
for individual freedom. In person
cultures, professional opinion is
privileged and management is seen
as an unnecessary burden.
Professional service companies,
such as legal firms, mirror
Dionysian cultures.Apollo—
Role Culture
Apollo was the god of order and
rules. Successful in times of stability,
role cultures tend to flounder when
rapid change is required. Insurance
companies are among those
typically led along Apollonian
principles.