Images of an Organization - Essay Example

From an organization perspective, a company comprises critical parts that one would regard as the brain such as upper management and CEOs (Buono & David, 120). Additionally, these individuals are responsible for sending information to all other sections of a company in the same way the brain transmits information. Moreover, this process requires open communication lines to enhance effectiveness since these individuals inform others of the preferred mode of operation to enhance productivity. The brain comprises two sides namely logical and creative (Buono & David, 122). Organizations comprise these sides too. They need to be logical to perform daily operations. Moreover, they need creativity to develop novel products or modernize existing commodities.

If one views the negative components of an organization using the brain metaphor, an organization tends to lose focus. This mainly occurs in companies that have not established a strategic plan. Furthermore, these organizations tend to forget their target goals. It is not appropriate to compare an organization with a brain in this case. The main negative comparison is apparent when the brain does not converse with other parts though this may occur in an organization. Employees fail to converse among themselves causing trouble within the organization.

A prime advantage of this metaphor is that it recognizes the necessity of learning institutions comprehensively. Furthermore, it also recognizes how diverse components need to complement each other. A majority of management writers have performed an excellent job in recognizing the requirements of the learning process that are necessary for making learning a reality. Therefore, the strength of this metaphor is evident in its ability to bring such components together and reveal the best approach to progress (Rhodes, 1).

An organization’s beliefs and rituals identify culture. After investigating Design Inc's culture, one can see how the beliefs of the founder influenced corporate culture. An organization comprises a culture, set by management to function in a definite method and to a particular motto (Pfister, 122). Therefore, Brown developed a culture of perfection in Design Inc. The basis of this culture was Brown’s philosophy that attainment of work satisfaction is through meeting perfection standards as opposed to finical reward. Moreover, this standard of perfection and development within the organization allowed Brown to trade this cultural norm to individuals wishing to join the organization.

He could not provide luxuries and frills offered by different companies but provided perfection and fulfilment (Pfister, 124). Therefore, one can translate that the philosophy in Design Inc is the belief in excellence, founded on Brown’s motto of ‘Perfection or bust’. In this study, one can see the integral role executed by a leader in culture. This determines the values that direct an organization. Brown dreamt of establishing an organization that would be different from other companies. He often said that he does not offer jobs to people but instead provides a distinctive learning experience.

Morgan suggested another metaphor that views an organization as a political system. It is simple to understand how this metaphor relates to diverse organizations. Managers occasionally indicate that authority is the basis of their association with their employees. However, workers protest that their managers do not respond to their grievances. One can compare organizations with the government because they incorporate political systems to maintain order. However, this management varies in other organizations because some employ autocratic governance while others perform operations based on written rules. These organizations are usually denoted as bureaucratic organizations (Jackson, 29).

An organization gains power through expertise in technocratic organizations. Concurrently, Representative democracy occurs in an organization where bureaucrats govern the organization’s operations. Additionally, the type of conflict in every organization depends on the nature of the management. Based on this political metaphor, a conflict may arise in case a clash of interests emerges (Jackson, 31). Several factors within organizations can lead to clashing interests such as conflict over minimal resources reward, and promotion. Vertical conflicts emerge between management and employees while horizontal conflicts arise between competing departments and organization units. Supremacy is a medium with the capacity to manage conflicts and lead to superior results.

Despite the negative connotations associated with this metaphor, one should remember that originally, politics assisted societies in formulating solutions to their contradictory interests (Jackson, 34). It seeks to establish societal order and cohesiveness. Furthermore, conflict plays an integral function in the political metaphor since a planned resistance to the governing authority leads to the formulation of laws.

An organization metaphor is an icon used to describe various organizations. This approach allows members to examine events within an organization because they can interpret and comprehend various occurrences.