First and foremost a political scientist, Mary Parker Follett originally applied her ideas to the field of social work. Follett was deeply interested in the individual, in both the group and society. Her philosophy of smaller more participative government runs counter to management and administration’s focus on centralized power and regulation. This has contributed to the neglect of her work in management literature. She sent one primary message, that relationships matter. Follett’s observations were made before the existence of computers, but her insight into the problems of organizations and society make her relevant still. Her central ideas of individual commitment through direct participation are critical issues in the modern workplace. …show more content…
Instead of ignoring it, Follett believed that we should strive to see conflict as the legitimate expression of differences. It is by learning from these differences, that we develop a larger solution to meet the needs of all people. If approached with the right tools, Follett believed a conflict can become an opportunity for positive or constructive development. Follett identified three ways to respond to conflict: Dominance, Compromise and Integration. Dominance is victory of one side over the other. Compromise means each party having to give up something for the sake of reducing conflict. And integration, the option championed by Follett, means creatively incorporating the parties interests into the solution. How do you find the integrative solution? Begin by detailing all aspects of your demand; treat this as a joint problem and work together to find the solution. Make costless exchanges, what is essential for another party may be unimportant to you. Maintain an open mind, step outside of the problem and be inventive (Follett 1996). The involved parties themselves must find their own …show more content…
She dedicated a lifetime of study and experience in helping shape a more fair and productive society. Follett actively worked on behalf of women’s suffrage, civil education, vocational guidance, and the development of neighborhood centers by cultivating neighborhood support, political support, negotiating conflicts of interest, and advocating for enabling legislation (Tonn, 1999). Her insight into the dynamics of groups and organizations followed widespread appeal. She advocated a “pull” rather than “push” approach to employee motivation, differentiated between “power over” and “power with,” and postulated insightful ideas on negotiation, conflict resolution and power sharing which helped shape modern management theory (Management). After Follett’s death, the popularity of her ideas faded, and her work has been lost and found again and again, only to find popularity once more as we enter the 21st
Hodson, Randy and Sullivan A. Teresa. (2008). The Social Organization of Work, Fourth Edition. Published: United States of America.
One of the most effective reform techniques is to “investigate, educate, legislate, enforce” (Fee/Brown, 2). This straightforward manner of rectification was summarized and utilized by Florence Kelley during the Progressive Era in the United States. During a period where women lacked suffrage, and most didn’t have steady jobs, Kelley was the head of the National Consumer’s League and had a resume that boasted affiliation with various other esteemed organizations (Verba, 1). She epitomized independence and confidence through both her civil activism and in her personal life. Florence Kelley’s resolve, willpower, and determination set a precedent that is still followed today- nearly 90 years after her death. She was truly a trailblazer of the first generation of modern women.
Baker, Ella. A. Developing Leadership among Other People in Civil Rights. The American Women's Movement, 1945-2000. A Brief History with Documents. Comp.
Iversen, Torben and Frances Rosenbluth. Women, Work, and Power: The Political Economy of Gender Inequality. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2010. Kindle E-Book.
Early in American history during colonial times and into the middle of the 19th centry, relations between employers and those whom they employed were many times hostile and adversarial. Sometimes these disagreements between employee and employer would explode into violent confrontations. Workers wether skilled or not would fight with management over improved/safer working conditions, fair pay, long exhausting hours by uniting and form...
Turbulent times of a newly freed democracy bred a longing for civil liberties and birthed what would become equality for all. The United States of America, known for independence, has not always been balanced in its freedom. The labor movement in America was a significant step in developing equal opportunity. In the nation’s infancy, working conditions were abominable. Workers were underpaid, overworked, and abused. Women and children in the workforce were ubiquitous in certain industries, often earning far less than a man would. Countless laborers were injured or killed on the job, and there was no health insurance. If a worker was wounded while working, he or she would simply be replaced. As a result of the deplorable labor environment, unions
The balance of power between management and labor has long been an issue. Historically, employers had the upper hand, and workers were afforded few rights in terms of pay, working conditions, or fair treatment (Fossum, 2012). Individual workers found that they had little influence over their own work situations and were frequently at the mercy of employers. Over time though, some progress was made in drawing attention to the plight of workers. The power of organizing began to give groups of workers some voice in workplace matters. Unfortunately, however, initial attempts at unionization of workers during the nineteenth century were short-lived and often marked by violence (Fossum, 2012). It was not until the twentieth century that major legislation gave unions a sense of legitimacy and workers slowly gained some leverage in the employer-employee relationship.
Abigail, R. A., & Cahn, D. D. (2011). Managing conflict through communication. 4th Ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Conflict is a difference in opinion. The leader must devise ways of dealing with conflict in the team. The focus is to promote a healthy discussion that does not lead to division in the team . The team members come from different department and thus may have differing opinion on tackling the problem. The leader should be able to reconcile the different opinions into one strategy. In such cases, the negotiation skill becomes vital (Harrison, 1971). The leader must negotiate with the team member to strike a balance on the decision. Furthermore, the decision made by the team must be presented to the management and approved. The leader must convince the management that the proposal is viable, and its implementation will be beneficial to the organisation. The ability of the leader to negotiate for resources will enhance the success of the
For several decades, most American women occupied a supportive, home oriented role within society, outside of the workplace. However, as the mid-twentieth century approached a gender role paradigm occurred. The sequence of the departure of men for war, the need to fill employment for a growing economy, a handful of critical legal cases, the Black Civil Rights movement seen and heard around the nation, all greatly influenced and demanded social change for human and women’s rights. This momentous period began a social movement known as feminism and introduced a coin phrase known in and outside of the workplace as the “wage-gap.”
The book Mary Reilly is the sequel to the famous The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, is a stark, ingeniously woven, engaging novel. That tells the disturbing tale of the dual personality of Dr. Jekyll, a physician. A generous and philanthropic man, his is preoccupied with the problems of good and evil and with the possibility of separating them into two distinct personalities. He develops a drug that transforms him into the demonic Mr. Hyde, in whose person he exhausts all the latent evil in his nature. He also creates an antidote that will restore him into his respectable existence as Dr. Jekyll. Gradually, however, the unmitigated evil of his darker self predominates, until finally he performs an atrocious murder. His saner self determines to curtail those alternations of personality, but he discovers that he is losing control over his transformations, that he slips with increasing frequency into the world of evil. Finally, unable to procure one of the ingredients for the mixture of redemption, and on the verge of being discovered, he commits suicide.
This essay is an analysis of contemporary issues associated with gender and power in the workplace; which will specifically include a discussion of gender relations, stereotyping, women’s identity, the structuring of formal and informal power, sources of inequality, and sexual harassment.
She conveys that business administration should avoid troublesome internalization by using an integrative technique. Unfortunately, Follett does not elaborate further on the context of what might this integration method appear to be. She changes the direction of her focus back onto the preparation of giving orders. Now, giving orders is a significant component to management but Follett should have provided additional information revolving the integration of management and the giving of orders. Fairholm suggests, “they misunderstand the evolving nature of authority derived from changing social structures, and because they have missed opportunities to tie in research procedures and focuses from intellectual interests such as psychology, sociology, history, and political science, not just scientific management, Weberian bureaucracy, and the like.” (Fairholm. 2004). Follett provides psychological perspectives, however maybe she misunderstands other perspectives, why further development is needed for her to examine. Follett later admits there is additional psychological, learning about the development of habits and the preventative measures of giving orders greatly surpasses than what she can explain in this article. It would be interesting if, she has examined and considered other theories and philosophies surrounding giving orders and
Conflicts and disputes are one of the major aspects in society that need to be dealt with on a regular basis. When these conflicts and disputes arise in the workforce, at home, in an institute, or/and in public, there needs to be some form of resolution in order to resolve and maintain a peaceful environment. Conflicts are a part of a healthy relationship, however at times, these conflicts need to be resolved using a conflict resolution process. Although there are several processes that can be used to solve conflicts, mediation and advocacy are two of the most common conflict resolution processes that can be utilized to come to a harmonious conclusion or resolution. Even though mediation and advocacy may seem to fall under the same category, these two are individually and specifically used for certain problematic scenarios as they both uniquely utilize distinctive skills and steps.