Spontaneity LO10875

rdplautz@amoco.com
Wed, 6 Nov 96 07:31:34 -0600

Replying to LO10851 --

In your post of 11/4/96 you stated:

> The obvious solution is for the environment (society, management) to
> force through work and control the person to accept the
> essentiality. It is also the solution common to the industrial era.
> However, because of the work involved, it becomes a very costly
> solution. Furthermore, in the new information era, this solution is
> not stable enough. Remove the external work + control and the
> person will eventually stop accepting this essentially. There is no
> rejuvenation which had to happen internally! Thus all information
> with respect to becoming can perish.

Your post was very timely in our struggles of understanding our past
and future direction. Over the past several years we have, on the
surface been very successful in achieving our cost savings reductions
through reengineering processes. Yet below the surface, we have not
been able to accomplish near what is possible. Now as we face more of
the same crisis we seem to be clearly changing back to the old ways.
Conversations have taken us well beyond what we see as the
organizations mental models. We are currently, trying to come to
grips with what is the organization's world view, what do they see as
their environment, and what do they truly believe about processes,
events, and how results come to be.

Therefore, could you expand on your thinking in regard to the
following statement: ...in the new information era, this solution is
not stable enough. Why is it not stable enough? Have you developed
or had success with "mass" programs where clearly "rejuvenation
internally" had to take place for success? Have you had success where
the issue is not just the organization's surface mental models, but
their belief systems that appear to them invisible in their
consciousness? I believe that I have had success in these areas, but
in very small teams not in the organization as a whole. Even the
people who have changed are so overwhelmed by the organization that
most have taken refuge by quitting.

In short, if you could continue this thread and take your thoughts
deeper it would be very beneficial.

Bob Plautz
rdplautz@amoco.com

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rdplautz@amoco.com

Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>