How Storytelling Research Can Inform Your Understanding of Managerial Sense-Making - Literature review Example

Using a practical study working with a variety of narratives, demonstrate how storytelling research can inform your understanding of managerial sense-making and responsible management. Name Institution Course Date Contemporary Issues in Management is a field that develops learners to think critically and appreciate the challenges that are faced by an organisation’s management professionals. In this context, contemporary management issues expose learners to the ever dynamic business world that is characterised by a lot of controversies and dilemmas (Bukowitz & Williams, 1999). The field also provides a cutting edge in conceptual discussion in order to develop good analytical, diagnostic and communication skills for effective decision-making (Argrys & Schon, 1996). In reference to Brown & Dugrid (1998), ethics refers to a unit of principles that are considered morally upright. Ethics are rules that control the conduct of workers hence boosting their ability to perform services in a suitable manner. According to Bali, Wickramasinnghe & Lehaney (2009), Organisational storytelling is a new discipline that has emerged in strategic planning, management, and organisational practice. It is arisingsubject in the study of management, strategy,in addition to,business studies. Business managers also refer leadership storytelling, as it as a focused tool useful in order to inform the staff on the key components and functioning of an organisation. Mastering the art of delivering a story in an effective way together with the knowledge of the right story to narrate is a dominant tool that can impact the communication skills for proper management. Proper use of this new trend connects workers in an organisation by the provision of ultimate employee motivation (Sole & Wilson, 2002). In reference to Liebowitz (2009), the trend of telling stories has a special impact on the performance of employees since it can make the workers feel at ease to share their experiences in their job. Such information is crucial in order for the management to fulfil the interests and needs of its workers by providing a positive working environment. According to Boje (2011),the art of storytelling has changed to a diversity of voices. The quantum theory of storytelling introduced the term antenarrative. The term refers to a future pattern that plays an important role as a hypothesis of the imagination in the story told. The antenarrative is key in order to avoid the unforeseen future in an organisation. The author suggests that storytelling in an organisation should improve how the audience view what the future presents. Quantum storytelling gives new methods on how to collect key data from new workers in interviews and develop future narrative ideas depending on the aspects of the past that might recur in the future. Lido Lee Anthony Lacocca, the son of two Italian immigrants, was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania on October 15, 1924. During his early days, his father gave him many wise words and teachings. These included the knowledge of writing ledger accounts and avoiding any forms of loans. Lee Lacocca enrolled for an industrial engineering degree in the University of Lehigh in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He also enrolled for a Masters degree in engineering in Princeton. He started his bright career in the automotive business in 1946, as an engineering trainee at Ford. He later became the president of Ford. He got married to his wife Mary, with whom they had two lovely daughters Kathryn and Lia (Hester, 2011). Career at Chrysler In 1979, Lee Lacocca was fired from his position as the president of Ford only to receive a phone call a while later. John Riccardo, the then board of directors’ chairman, was calling him offering him a more lucrative deal upon his acceptance to join the Chrysler Corporation. When the board chairman and Dick Dilworth met with Lee Lacocca to the pending deal, Lacocca agreed to work with the team as president of Chrysler. The contract had outlined a plan where the progression would be subtle from his initial position of a CEO to that of Chrysler chairman within a year. However, Riccardo retired from his position earlier than expected, and Lee Lacocca became the company’s boss in September. Funny enough, he joined the company not knowing enough about the origin and history of the company (Hester, 2011). Lacocca made it clear that Chrysler Corporation would only embark on production upon receiving dealer orders. His first achievement occurred when Lacocca wrote off used-car losses worth 88 million dollars. He achieved this by noting that the company’s policy of buying back used cars rather than selling them to rental car companies was greatly influencing the downfall of the company. Lee Lacocca laid off all employees who during his interactions, he had discovered that they did not have much knowledge concerning their fields of specialisation. He emphasised in creating a financial control system thus he hired Gerald Greenwald to look into Chrysler’s warranty costs of $350 million a year (Hester, 2011). In order to keep the Chrysler Corporation alive, Lacocca reduced the costs incurred by the company by closing down the trim plant in Lyons, Dodge Main, Michigan, and the ancient plant in Detroit. He also formulated an inventory system dubbed “just in time” with Chrysler’s raw material suppliers. The new system would be enforced to ensure that raw materials would continue to flow in even when the corporation could not afford them. Lee Lacocca also reduced the cost of delivering raw materials and supplying the customers through the embracement of trains instead of using tracks that were much slower and more expensive. Lee Lacocca enabled the company to raise enough capital for its operations. He achieved this by selling the company’s real estate that raised a figure close to $90 million. The real estate was re-acquired at half the price. The company also sold the Chrysler Defense division at $348 million to General Dynamics. Lee Lacocca ensured that the Chrysler Corporation saved $200 million a year through laying 7,000 white-collar workers. In conclusion, he sold Chrysler Europe and purchased Simca in France, which was highly profitable. In 1983, the ambitious manager led the Chrysler Corporation to earning its best profit in its history. $925 million was not a minute figure at all. It was a real success where all the plants were upgraded to the modern standards for optimal productivity. In addition, Lee Lacocca ensured that the number of employees was controlled for half a million workers. His dreams of once becoming one of the top managers in history became a reality, and that is why even after his retirement in 1992, he is still recognised by many (Hester, 2011). Storytelling is a very old but unique technique that dates back to the earlier days of human history. The practice is deeply rooted in our culture since it was the initial form of entertainment before the television discovery. The art to narrate a story such as above is mastered by politicians, journalists, and it remains the effective way to reach people and deliver a touching message. In reference to Boje (2011), a story such as Lee Lacocca has to clearly show the message and theme. In Lee Lacocca’s antenarrative, the workers have to identify the present conditions in the business field that need tactical knowledge as the challenge might reoccur in the future. Lee Lacocca was able to save Chrysler Corporation from bankruptcy through applying his technical know-how and management skills. According to Kumari (2009), the story has to develop trust and commitment. Lee Lacocca’s story proves that for a company to be successful, the employees have to work in unity. The character in the narrative fired most of the employees who he noted that they did not cooperate properly with their comrades. In reference to Bali et al. (2009), a good narrative has to share norms and good values. A story such as given above acts as a channel for passing values and creating a good vision in order for the employees to understand challenges that are predicted to occur again. Boje (2011), states that the research for proper story telling should ensure that the story of choice facilitates imaginative learning. A lot more than mere arguments is needed to provide a clear picture of the future, something that antenarratives provide. In reference to Hester (2011), the inspirational narrative of Steve Jobs who was the co-founder of Apple is another good example that can be used in understanding management sense-making. After a period of malignant struggle with the board of directors, he made his comeback as an interim CEO when Apple was hit by fluctuating stock prices. He reduced the enormous projects that the company had put in place from 350 to 10. Steve Jobs was motivated by the creation of a conspicuous product that would shock the world. A sharp increase in demand would then result in more sales. He invented the iPod, iPhone, iTunes and imac that restored the company’s image in the electronic market. Steve Jobs led the Apple stock to rise to over 9,000 percent. However, the manager resigned from the company as a result of poor health conditions in August 2011. Two months later, he died from pancreatic cancer. In reference to Bali et al. (2009), the story of choice has to be analysed in order to generate an emotional connection with the audience. Due to the ability of human beings to connect with an emotional story, therefore, there is the ability to recall the moral of the story in the future. Steve jobs regardless of his rich background on successful business activities was unfairly exposed to major conflicts with his partners in the management. Despite the ill-treatment, he returned to the company and steered its recovery.All employees with greater dreams of success should embrace the virtue from the story. In reference to Danning (2000), an appropriate narrative should have several other characteristics that need to be included in order to achieve its set objectives. To start with, the narrative must focus on a happy ending that acts as a form of positivity. A hero should be included in every story that is aimed at ensuring employee motivation. The story should be narrated in a manner that shows a perspective of the hero. The narrative must also incorporate an unusual plot. The plot should bring forth something that can capture the attention of the target audience. The story of Ed Whitacre who retired as the CEO of AT&T in 2007 is a good example of a narrative that incorporates the above characteristics for proper organisational management understanding. Ed Whitacre resigned from the post of AT&T CEO in 2007. However, GM managed to lure him back into a management post in order to prevent the company from going back into bankruptcy especially after the company was bailed out by the government following the global economic crisis of 2008. Ed Whitacre made sure that all the company’s holdings were streamlined through the sale of Saab and cancelling unfruitful projects such as the creation of another model of the Chevrolet Volt. Sixteen months after GM hired him, the company announced the biggest IPO in its history. The figure was an overwhelming $23.1 billion. In accordance with his promise of stepping down after making a success, he resigned from his post in September 2010. Isaac Perlmutter is widely recognised as one of the most successful managers in the business world. He was part of the board of directors when Marvel Comics was declared bankrupt in. 1996. In reference to Kumari (2009), he masterminded the formation of a merger between his company, Toy Biz, Inc., and Marvel Comics. The merger would ensure that the affected company is bailed out of bankruptcy by 1998. When Isaac Perlmutter was made the CEO of Marvel Comics, he narrowed down the functions of the company to licensing for media and products. As a result, the company increased its flow of cash that consequently raised its stock price. He is respected by many of his characteristics that put an emphasis on the need to be cost-conscious and maintain a low or considerable number of employees. Although the company was acquired by Walt Disney for $6 billion, Isaac Perlmutter still serves as the head of a company that has a value of $4.2 billion. In reference to Brown & Dugrid (1998), a narrative such as above should act as a viral disease. The need to include other institutions in order to enhance better productivity should be emphasised throughout the story. Isaac Perlmutter encouraged the formation of a merger between his company and Marvel Comics in order to bail it out of bankruptcy. A good story research should come up with the best story that includes the ability to take excessive risks such as in the case above to boost productivity and achieve business continuity. In reference to Hester (2011), Dan Hesse filled in the role of a CEO in Sprint in 2007. At the moment, the company was on its way to failure as it reported huge losses of $29.6 billion when it formed a merger with Nextel Communications. Dan Hesse formulated a new framework that would encourage more sales through carrying out surveys on customer satisfaction in 2008. The following year saw Sprint acquire Virgin Mobile USA. The acquisition enabled the company to make a more confident move into the prepaid market. Dan Hesse enabled Sprint to return to its positive subscriber growth despite the efforts applied by former managers. Dan Hesse is still occupying his position of a CEO in a company he helped rebuild. In 2012, Sprint reported a revenue of 35.3 billion dollars that was more than its revenue in 2011. In reference to Bali, Wickramasinnghe & Lehaney (2009), good narrative research for managerial sense-making should consider the elements of the agony of defeat and thrill of victory. In reference to Dan Hesse’s story, the narrative gives a performance criterion. Through the use of surveys to measure the state of customer satisfaction is key to the recovery of the case company. According to Kumari (2009), narratives should work as a credible story. The example above is a real life situation where a narrative approach can be used for the evaluation of business policies in order to enhance business success. A good narrative that incorporates good topic research can act as an important tool in enhancing responsible management. References Argrys C. &Schon D., 1996. Organisational Learning 2- Theory, Method and Practice. s.l.:Addison Wesley. Bali R., Wickramasinnghe N. &Lehaney B., 2009. Knowledge Management Primer. London: Routledge. Boje, D. M. (2011). The Future of Storytelling and Organizations: An Antenarrative Handbook. NY/London: Routledge. Brown J.S. &Dugrid P., 1998. Organizing Knowledge. California Management Review, 40(3). Bukowitz W. &WilliamsR., 1999. The Knowledge Management Fieldbook. Financial Times/ Prentice hall. Cutterbuck, D., 2001. Sharing Wisdom. Inside Knowledge, 1 June. Danning, S., 2000. How Story Telling Ignites Action in Knowledge. s.l.:Butterworth-Heineman. Hester J., 2011. Successful KM Storytelling. Knowledge Management, 1 February. Kumari S., 2009. Seven Sister at Storytelling. Mid-day, 13 October. Liebowitz J., 2009. Knowledge Retention: Strategies and Solutions. New York: Auerbach Publishing/ Taylor & Francis. Sole D. & Wilson D.G., 2002. Storytelling in Organisations: The Power and Traps of Using Stories to Share Knowledge in Organisations. LILA: Havard Graduate School of Education. Read More