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Why Did You Decide to Write Discovering Competence?
I have worked for and with a number of organizations over
the past 30 years. During that time I've observed some common problems
that related, in one way or another, to the way they interacted
with human beings.
A common set of questions emerged from my observations like: "Why
are people in management who don't belong there? Why is politics
so pervasive in organizations? What is the basis for promotion,
recognition and rewards?
Because I'm a human being, I take these things personally. I have
a very difficult time accepting the negative impact of politics
and culture in organizations. This book occurred over a period of
about a decade. I felt somebody should come up with commentary about
these problems since they just seem to be getting worse. It is time
for someone to speak up for the worker. Like the fairy tale of "The
Emperor's New Clothes," I saw something that nobody was willing
to admit. Discovering Competence
offers intelligent solutions to these problems.
In the book, I present the "Professional Development Modelâ,"
an approach designed to help organizations refocus on individual
productivity and organizational performance based on competence.
It requires honest self-appraisal, a dedication to competence, and
a return to recognizing the value of human endeavor.
Could You Explain "Corporatism,"
the Term You Coined in the Book?
Corporatism is the practice of allowing organizational culture
and politics to diminish the contribution of competent workers.
Competency is no longer the primary consideration for promotion,
recognition or rewards in organizations. They are much more concerned
with employees "fitting in," a practice which destroys
individual initiative and has created an era of survival rather
than achievement for today's knowledge worker. The new glass ceiling
is the organization's "culture". These are symptoms of
corporatism.
Just How Rampant is Corporatism?
I would say that the symptoms of corporatism exist in most organizations
today to some degree. Human beings respond to their desire for power
and authority. For those who crave it, it's an all consuming pursuit.
They are more interested in the acquisition and maintenance, rather
than its useful purposes. The way to prevent the quest for personal
power from corrupting organizations is to make sure that those who
have power use it responsibly. I don't think most organizations
do a very good job of this.
Why Do You Think People Will
be Interested in What You Have to Say?
Anyone, who is sincere about resolving the kinds of problems resulting
from corporatism in the work place, whether it is over emphasis
on organizational culture or the lack of competence resulting from
it would be interested in reading this book. Anyone should be willing
to do something about these problems, whether they are a worker
or a leader. For some people, this book can be a kind of therapy,
knowing that others recognize these common problems. For others,
it can be a blueprint for solving them.
Why Do You Think the Time is Right
for Your Book?
Now is a good time because people are looking at the beginning of
the new century as a time of renewal. With widespread advances in
technology, especially in the professional arena, we are almost
subconsciously drifting away from recognizing the inherent value
of humans. It is the human beings ability to conceptualize ideas,
use technology and develop strategies that makes organizations possible
and productive. Human beings are the source of all original thinking.
Lest we forget, organizations are nothing more than social groups
formed for a common purpose, whether a club or company. It's time
to reflect on that and remember how we interact with and treat others
in these groups. The value of human beings would be an easy thing
to loose sight of in this age of high technology. We need to realize
the marvel of human beings to think, act and do wonderful things.
What Do You Think Will Have to
Change in Corporate America to Implement the Ideas You've Suggested?
Organizational America needs to
look at themselves, stop focusing only on the things they are doing
well, and start learning to focus attention, time and resources
fixing the things they are not doing well. There's a great tendency
in organizations to adopt the attitude of ignoring problems because
they want to focus only on the positive. The attitude that, "Yeah,
we've made some mistakes, but look at all we're doing right",
at the expense of ever fixing what's wrong is destroying organizations.
Organizations end up ignoring their weaknesses and it becomes their
downfall. They think a slight increase in the dissatisfaction of
a few employees doesn't matter…but it does.
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