Charles Handy’s Gods of Management
In Charles Handy’s 1978 book, Gods of Management, he articulated four organizational cultures or models for how the organization works.
Gods of Management: https://geni.us/bpPeC5
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The Nature of Organizations
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This video is part of course module number 6.1.2
Program 6: Managing within Organizations
Course 1: The Nature of Organizations
Section 2: Organizational Models
Other videos in this section include:
🎬 Edgar Schein’s Two Organizational Cultures – https://youtu.be/9C64CXJw83E
🎬 Henry Mintzberg’s 4 plus 2 Organizational Types – https://youtu.be/JmvYcskjh3E
🎬 Charles Handy’s Shamrock Organization – https://youtu.be/dGGKT0Mr_HA
🎬 Charles Handy’s Federal Organization Model – https://youtu.be/69AYxCvT7m4
🎬 Charles Handy’s Triple-I Company – https://youtu.be/gFRXiMkIg6k
🎬 The Matrix Organization Model – https://youtu.be/hJ9wbFgmtKM
🎬 Peter Senge’s Learning Organization – https://youtu.be/k1k2h1l2VO0
🎬 Adhocracy – https://youtu.be/7QKm0Y3_Hr0
🎬 The Agile Organization – https://youtu.be/67NVUeFQMy4
🎬 Brian Robertson’s Holacracy – https://youtu.be/hz3khhOLT5E
🎬 Virtual Organizations – https://youtu.be/Hsovj2jPNPA
LESSON NOTES
Charles Handy described 4 types of organizational dynamic, according to how formal their structure is, and how centralised power is. He named them from 4 archetypal Olympian gods from ancient Greek mythology.
Power Culture (or Club Culture)
Zeus – impulsive, powerful, absolute ruler of the Greek gods
– A highly centralised ‘Club’ culture, where one dominant executive holds all the reins of power, making all of the important decisions themselves
– They control all the important resources and can have low acceptance of what they perceive as under-performance
– This culture tends to arise under a dominant and successful founder, or with the ascendancy of a charismatic leader
Political parties, start-ups, and crime families often share this culture
Roles Culture
Apollo represents order, stability, and rules
– Mature, bureaucratic organisations adopt a solid, stable, rule-based culture, where everyone has a specific role
– People know what is expected of them and will rarely step beyond those boundaries
– Reporting lines are well-defined and decisions follow set procedures.
– Job positions confer authority to make decisions, and processes can be long-winded and inflexible
– Apollo cultures struggle to adapt to a changing environment
Task Culture
Athena was goddess of wisdom and an able problem-solver
– A meritocracy, where ability to think and get things done is highly valued, and rewarded well
– Talent is well rewarded, and teams are fluid, with people coming together to work on projects and solve problems
– Authority is less important here than knowledge, expertise and the ability to influence and persuade
– Innovative and shun routine
You can see this culture in consultancies, research organisations, and in agile business units of larger, forward thinking businesses that may be stuck with an Apollo or Zeus culture
Person Culture
Dionysus stands for personal freedom and lack of formality.
– All about me, me, me
– It serves the individuals and can lead to both creative freedom and equally internal discord and unproductive competition
– The organisation is little more than an infrastructure: a home and resource pool for a set of self-motivated individuals who often care more about their own position than that of the organisation
Accounting and law firms are good examples, because of the partnership nature of the businesses. So too are pressure groups
RECOMMENDED EXERCISE
1. Consider your current organization. Which of Handy’s 4 Gods of Management best describes it? (2 MC CPD Points)
2. Repeat your assessment for each organization you have worked for. (2 MC CPD Points each)
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Paid resources
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RECOMMENDED READING
– Understanding Organizations https://geni.us/oB774Do
– Images of Organization https://geni.us/hrOemEs
– Inside Organizations: 21 Ideas for Managers https://geni.us/YwwL
– Gods of Management: The Four Cultures of Leadership https://geni.us/bpPeC5
Managers Need a Basic set of kit to do your job well. Here are my top recommendations: https://kit.co/MikeClayton/manager-s-work-kit (the links are affiliated)
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