Draft and Lengel on Fusion Leadership

NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.

NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Fission and leadership
The subtle forces
Conclusion
References

Introduction

Fission is a metaphor which can be used to describe the style of management which has evolved over the last century. Mass production and scientific management have been based on division of labor, individual accountability, and formal authority and control.

Organizations maintain rigid boundaries between individuals and departments, which compete with one another for resources, promotions and salary or budget increases. Layers of hierarchy and authority are used for control.

The work of a fission-based organization is efficient and controlled because it harnesses strong organizational forces. In this type of structure, managers and staff experience pressure from those above them in the hierarchy, from bottom-line goals, and from control systems that direct individual behavior to meet the needs of the organization.

They are motivated by self interest to accept such control. An individual gains by maximizing what he takes from the organization and minimizing what he gives. The organization obtains predictable behavior in return for resource incentives. The machine like organization runs with little emotion, capitalizing on rational analysis and self interest.

This is a powerful; system, which efficiently directs people into desired roles, jobs, and behaviors. Two draw backs to this approach are the limitations it places on ingenuity and creativity, and organizational inertia with respect to rapid change. These are serious deficiencies in today’s turbulent world, but they can be addressed by recourse to the concept of fusion.

Fission and leadership

When leaders choose fission or a fusion management philosophy, they also choose whether to use organizational strong forces or personal subtle forces to achieve desired outcomes. What we call organizational strong forces are those elements in organizations that act as strong pressures on people’s attention.

A demanding boss can be a dominant influence on behavior, whether that behavior is designed to please him or to avoid him. A strong force commands attention because of individuals’ needs, fears, or desire for acceptance and success.

Strong forces in companies include financial results, operating goals, budgets, engineering efficiency, performance evaluations, close supervision, and pay increments. Such forces typically involve control and often reflect a watchdog mentality.

They direct people toward making a positive impact on the company’s bottom line. Strong forces typically favor the organization’s needs over the needs of individuals.

The subtle forces

The subtle forces is what we call personal; subtle forces are less obvious and less tangible; they are harder to see, define, and influence. They include passion, ingenuity, vision, enthusiasm, morale, values, and corporate culture. Subtle forces can be suppressed by the directive and heavy handed organizational strong forces. Subtle forces seem delicate and fragile, but they provide extraordinarily strong motivation and influence when unlocked.

Subtle forces are typically invisible and beneath the surface. For example, listening for unexpressed employee or customer issues is a subtle force. So is a vision that binds people together, or courage to stand alone and take independent action. Subtle forces include independent thinking, attention to the big picture, and creativity.

Affirming subtle forces encourages people to act from their personal courage to serve the organization rather than take from it, to believe in the potential of human beings, and to act in terms of destiny and life purpose. Subtle forces include love of what one does and love of other people.

The motivating power of personal Subtle forces is that people yearn to use them, free to express more of their personal creativity, purpose, risk taking instincts, and enthusiasm.

Subtle forces are like water contained in a reservoir that is pulled toward the ocean when the dam breaks, or like the oil waiting to escape in a gusher when the drill bit reaches deep enough. Fusion leaders look beyond the easy to see physical and material world of rules, procedures, measurements, and directs supervision and appreciate people’s yearning to express their essence as human beings.

This paper focuses on six forces which are subtle in nature. These forces embrace the value of human potential and creativity. There are several avenues which as avenues for some of these subtle forces. For instance, emotions are revealed through the heart and the process of communication.

Mindfulness includes independent thinking, personal creativity, an open mind that welcomes novel and unusual ideas, and thinking outside the box. Attempts to increase mindfulness in an organizational context are complicated, because organizations are established, held together, and made effective largely by means of concepts.

However, it is worth noting the fact that organizations are made of people who largely depend on their mental strength to thrive. Although ultimately people, selves, and organizations do not exist, conventionally, they not only exist but they are also necessary for day to day individual and organizational functioning, and mindfulness can bring the added benefits of insight and wisdom with regard to organizational progress.

The significance of concentration and mindfulness being paired is that one can only go so far in one without advancing in the other. Making one stronger induces or makes the potential for advancing in the other pair goes up dramatically. This forms the basis for organizational progress which enhances creativity and augurs well with progress.

Vision is the higher purpose toward which people work that provides meaning and inspiration for their collaborative efforts. A vision is a view of a possible future. It is an important aspect of any organization because it informs the direction which the organization ought to take and it outlines the objectives which need to be realized .

A vision outlines the milestones to be achieved in futuristic terms. When the vision of an organization is clear, then the proper steps and strategies are put in place to ensure that the organization grows in the desired direction.

Essentially, the heart represents caring and compassion, the positive feelings and emotions that underlie connections and relationships in the work place. Courage is the motivation to step outside the traditional boundary and comfort zone to take risks, to take the lead, to be a nonconformist, to stand up for something, and to be willing to make mistakes as a way to learn and grow.

Communication is the act of symbolically influencing others with respect to vision, values, and emotions. Subtle communication also involves listening and discernment. Communication is an important element when it comes to organizational progress. Communication is a process that informs the vision and informs the stakeholders the position of the organization with regard to the prevailing circumstances.

In addition to courage, it is a very important aspect in the success of any venture. This is because it enables the leader or even the stakeholder to be in a position of going forth and putting into use the existing strategies to produce results. Integrity enhances honesty which builds confidence in the people who one is working with.

Essentially, each of these subtle forces can be released to provide powerful motivation for leadership and change. These forces can transform organizations and fusion is the process through which they are unlocked.

Empathy and collaboration are enormous strengths and qualities of a leader who exhibits qualities of transformational leadership. Leaders who lack these strengths tend to react to change defensively and ineffectively. Defensiveness can block a team’s effectiveness, and it must be identified and worked out.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Draft and Lengel define three aspects of fusion leadership . The first aspect can be defined as recognizing one’s own subtle leadership gifts, potentials, and passions and acting from them to lead organizational change and improvement. The second aspect shows how appreciation for the potential subtle forces in other people and creates fusion processes to help people develop and act on their gifts and potentials.

Leaders develop others by showing the way to vision, courage, heart, communication, mindfulness, and integrity. Finally, the third aspect is facilitating organizational change by understanding and using the integration of organizational needs and individual Subtle forces through organization fusion.

Considering these three aspects, this style of leadership can be summarized as follows: fusion leadership looks deeply into self and others, seeking to release the vital inner being.

References

Anderson, D. (2011). Organization Development:The Process of Leading Organizational Change. London: SAGE.

Daft, R., & Lane, P. G. (2007). The leadership experience. California: Cengage Learning.

Daft, R., & Lengel, R. (1998). Fusion leadership:unlocking the subtle forces that change people and organizations. California: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Gill, R. (2006). Theory and practice of leadership. New York: SAGE.

Northouse, P. (2009). Leadership:Theory and Practice. New York: SAGE.

Oshry, B. (1999). Leading Systems:Lessons from the Power Lab. California: Berrett-Koehler Publishers .

Patten, G. (2007). Strategic Organization Development. Bloomington,IN: AuthorHouse.

Sadler, P. (2003). Leadership. London: Kogan Page Publishers.

Weick, E. (2005). Making sense of the organization. New York: John Wiley and Sons.

Wheaton, C. (2009). At Your Service: Lessons in Leadership. Pennsylvania: Dorrance Publishing.

Click Here To Order Now!