MICHAEL DEMPSEY - Cranfield University

Managing action - leadership
greatest asset isn't just something on a mission statement on
the wall. You have to put that into practice. (Interviewee A)
Innovation was mentioned in other contexts:-
Almost everyone in the building has a PC, almost everyone has
got a laptop who needs one so why can't we be an E- union?
It's much more difficult in the Post Office because you are
basically saying to the members "we are going to be an E- union
so stop sending letters." That's a real problem. But we will have
to deal with it. (Interviewee N)
The strategic nature of the role was problematic in the CWU at the time
most of this research was done:-
I do share with them, although it's not written down, the vision
that I have and how you fit in to the organisation. To formalise it
is to make sure that senior managers are telling me what their
vision is - and I'm not sure it's the same. I could be working
against it- I don't think I am but I could be working against their
vision (Interviewee J)
A view which is corroborated in the Equality and Diversity report:-
There appeared in general to be no particular corporate
approach, style or even message that was developed across in
the organisation in its day-to-day management. (Delivering on
Equality 2000)
But, as we have seen, strategic planning is now a reality in the union:-
The plan is designed to ensure that everyone who works for the
union is focussed on the union’s priorities and takes practical
steps to meet the union’s aspirations. (CWU Strategic Plan
2002)
Individuals within the CWU clearly think deeply about the nature of their
roles and their different characters in an organisation where there is
arguably more difficulty in defining the boundaries between action and
strategy – between ‘doing’ internally and externally – than in many
other organisations. But the data does not support any significant
conclusions in this area, other than that the distinction between
leadership and management, as in other organisations, is often not
clear. The strategic planning process, however, is one which requires
clarity and the Plan itself provides that. It would be interesting to re-visit
the union to examine how this has affected these issues.
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