motivational analysis of organizations

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■ Tell him or her about your plans. Explorers want to know that their employees
have high objectives and expectations.
■ Do not tell him or her what cannot be done or what should have been done. Keep
your level of enthusiasm high, and frame your comments in a positive context.
If Explorers work for you:
■ Remember that they appear to need your approval more than others do, because
they are “out in the wilderness” most of the time. When they come back to the
office, they need your praise; let them have it.
■ When they seem overly optimistic about their own performance, do not shoot
them down. Instead, help them develop more realistic expectations and
projections.
■ When they want you to spend more time in the field with customers than you can
afford, work with them on making the best use of their time.
■ When they do not have the best relations with those whose support they need in
production, help them understand the importance of these members of their team.
Explorers often have difficulty along this line.
5. Synergists do not favor a single leadership style. Instead, they incorporate the
different styles of leadership required to succeed throughout an organization’s life cycle.
Synergists seek social unity, balance, teamwork, and continuous improvement of
products and services (total quality management). To achieve these goals and foster
development of the production process, they emphasize positive behavioral
reinforcement by using symbols, participative decision making, interpersonal skills, and
high levels of technical competence.
If you work for a Synergist:
■ Be sensitive to his or her need to blend and balance the characteristics of
Prophets, Barbarians, Builders, Explorers, and Administrators.
■ Do not expect consistency. Demonstrate flexibility in your own approach to
problems.
■ Demonstrate ability in teamwork, participation, delegation, and constant
improvement of products and services.
■ Appreciate the Synergist’s need for emphasizing both the material and spiritual
aspects of the organization.
If Synergists work for you:
■ Reward them for achieving a balance between the preservation of creativity and
the need for order.
The Pfeiffer Library Volume 19, 2nd Edition. Copyright © 1998 Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer