Analyzing TM Berhad using Bolman and Deal’s Four Frames

Bolman & Deal’s Four Frames: Case Report

1.0 Introduction

The purpose of this paper is to analyse TM Berhad using Bolman and Deal’s four frames, as per figure 1 below. Bolman & Deal suggests that ‘Leaders like everyone else, view their experiences through a set of preconditioned lenses and filters’ (Bolman and Deal, 1991, p 510)

(Adapted from Bolman & Deal, 1997)

In this paper, we have examined our company of choice, TM Berhad, utilizing each of these four frames as a “spectacle” to determine the leadership approach of its management, and then detailing the more prominent of the frames used.

TM Berhad was chosen for our case analysis, due to availability of data from significant coverage on the company awarded by the media.

2.0 Telekom Berhad (“TM”)- Profile

TM is a government-linked corporation, through its substantial shareholder Khazanah Malaysia (Khazanah), the Malaysian Government’s main investment vehicle. It is a major component of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange Berhad Composite Index. In 2004, a new Group Chief Executive Officer, Dato Abdul Wahid bin Omar was appointed by Khazanah under a general revamp exercise of the GLCs.

TM is the main nationwide provider of telecommunication services. It has x no of subsidiaries and operates in three core operating areas of:

• Telco- Its core telecommunication business

• Telekom Multimedia- Develops new media businesses

• ServiceCo- Oversees operational activities such as fleet and property management.

The fixed line business and residential telephone services remain the core business of TM.

TM’s organization chart is depicted in figure 2 below:

Figure 2

3.0 Four –Frame Analysis

Our four-frame analysis (Figure 3 above) reveals that TM, like any other modern large corporation, places heavy emphasis on the structural frame. Other frame elements are also present, for example, career development and training programmes are evidence of HR frame use, as well as deployment of a re-branding exercise and other symbolic rituals to provide symbolic frame elements. We may also make inferences that the political frame is also in play from agenda-setting, ambiguity and uncertainty caused by the rationalization and reorganization leading to scarcity of resources and internal conflict, and signing of a collective agreement to denote bargaining and negotiation.

We have chosen to focus our detailed analysis on the more prominent structural frame.

4.0 Structural Frame Analysis

Bolman & Deal list six assumptions behind the Structural Frame. 1) Organizations exist to achieve established goals and objectives. 2) Organizations work best when rationality prevails over personal preferences and external pressures. 3) Structures must be designed to fit organizational circumstances.