Session 1:

Organizations--- Metaphors
If we think of organizations as machines then we manage and design them as
machines made up of interlocking parts such that each part plays a clearly
defined role in the functioning of the whole. This is a very dominant metaphor in
modern organizations, particularly large ones.

Organizations are machines and employees complement the machine

Bureaucracies standardize/ routinize organizational work

machines require standardized inputs for standardized outputs

Control systems in organizations (top-down) parallel the logic of controls in

machines

Like machines, these organization do not respond too well to unpredictable

situations

just

like

If we think of organizations as living organisms, then there is a greater focus on

dependence on the environment, interrelation among subsystems, and the
establishment of congruencies between systems and subsystems. humanistic
aspects of organizations

Emphasis on resource and human relationship within and outside

organization
Better at responding to the needs to employees/people
May hurt productivity/efficiency orientation

When organizations are viewed as brains, importance is given to information

processing, learning, and intelligence, which are particularly relevant in the era
of the knowledge industry. metaphor in the IT industry
Organizations are seen to reside in the ideas, values, norms, rituals, and beliefs
that sustain organizations as socially constructed realities. This metaphor can be
of great help during mergers and acquisitions.

non-tangible aspects of organization behavior

of cross-cultural differences
establishing ethical organizations

The political metaphor focuses on the different sets of interests, conflicts, and
power plays that shape organizational activities. This metaphor provides useful
insights during periods of change.

Organizations are arenas in which people become trapped by their own

thoughts, ideas, and beliefs, or by preoccupations originating in the unconscious
mind.
This metaphor helps us explain/ understand irrational behavior (e.g. Selfdefeating Organizations, Paranoid organizations.

Session 2
Purpose is about common good: Purpose provides an overarching
framework to substantiate the need for businesses in society, and to
amplify the positive impact they generate in the communities where they
operate.
Purpose of business is to create shared value: Businesses must reconnect
company success with social progress
Session 3
Nooyi defined performance as the companys commitment to investors to
deliver superior, sustainable financial performance and purpose as a
commitment to human sustainability, referring to the companys portfolio of
foods and beverages; environmental sustainability, or responsible management
of natural resources; and talent sustainability, encompassing employee
empowerment, workplace safety and investment in local communities where the
company operated