MICHAEL DEMPSEY - Cranfield University

Merger management
because they would different practices in the two unions about
how we carry out the work. (Interviewee M)
But there was no less enthusiasm at national level:-
I saw from day one the best way of getting an open approach,
an inclusive approach, was to break down barriers and walls are
the most physical representation of a barrier that there is
(Interviewee C)
And it was suggested that this was a positive policy on the part of many
senior managers:-
It was a conscious decision based on the role of the Senior
National Officer, the importance of making sure the Negotiations
Officers work as a team, and the support staff understanding the
teamworking approach Inevitably it led us into a debate about
open plan and the nature of it. (Interviewee K)
There were discussions about office layout, many of them in the
context of merger, though managers were concerned about perceived
inconsistencies in space allocation. It does seem clear that PCS
managers recognise the strategic role in the allocation and utilisation of
physical space and physical structure in a variety of ways - its role in
building the new organisation and the cultural issues likely to arise.
There seems also to have been a perception of the potential, as they
saw it, for open plan space to bring staff together and to enhance
teamworking.
‘Meaningful managerial actions
Merger Management
6.13. As with all the case study unions, the merger took place some time
before this research commenced. Turmoil, however, continued at the
activist level and rarely showed itself in other than fleeting ways during
the research. One felt rather like the unfortunate Dr. Petworth in
Malcolm Bradbury’s novel ‘Rates of Exchange’ where revolution may or
may not have been taking place in the country of Slaka, to which he
was paying an academic visit. He could only speculate from symptoms,
including changes in language, fables and the fleeting whiff of tear gas
outside his hotel. Apart from that, academic life proceeded normally.
Of course, the research was not about politics or activist dynamics
except insofar as these interfaced with the union’s management, such
as the relative influence of lay members and managers:-
In PTC the lay members on the Executive were lobbying very
hard for an increased role for lay members and that's what
happened. It wasn't and isn't the experience of CPSA and I'm
not sure that we have resolved that culture clash (Interviewee N)
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