cameron and green making-sense-of-change-management

The underpinning theoryMACHINE METAPHOR?The new organizational structure represents an injection of fresh skills into theMarketing Function.Fred Smart will now head up the implementation of the Marketing Plan,which details specific investment in marketing skills training and IT systems. Weintend to fill the identified skills gaps and to upgrade our customer databasesand market intelligence databank. A focus on following correct marketingprocedures will ensure consistent delivery of well-targeted brochures andadvertising campaigns.MD, Engineering CompanyOrganizations as machinesThe machine metaphor is a well-used metaphor which is worth revisitingto examine its implications for organizational change. Gareth Morgansays, ‘When we think of organizations as machines, we begin to see themas rational enterprises designed andstructured to achieve predeterminedends.’ This picture of an organizationimplies routine operations, welldefinedstructure and job roles, andefficient working inside and betweenthe working parts of the machine (thefunctional areas). Procedures and standardsare clearly defined, and areexpected to be adhered to.Many of the principles behind this mode of organizing are deeplyingrained in our assumptions about how organizations should work. Thislinks closely into behaviourist views of change and learning (see descriptionof behavioural approach to change in Chapter 1).The key beliefs are:• each employee should have only one line manager;• labour should be divided into specific roles;100