Brrr! Is it winter already??
Chapter 16 of the Schein text talks about transformative organizational change, which made me think about my own organization. Schein writes about visionary leadership, which provides psychological safety for the members of the organization, so they may move forward. It all starts with the individual’s dissatisfaction with their present state of perception and thought. Relating this to my organization, I think of how we got started. Each teacher in the school had been somewhere else two years ago. Some were teaching in other schools, some were at home with kids, some had just finished student teaching and were entering the field for the first time. Wherever we were, we all felt some sense of dissatisfaction with our current states. We all needed some change, and we had to take that risk of unlearning our present situations in order to learn something new. In our case, we unlearned one culture and relearned a completely different one. We created a new culture together, and it was based on the visions of our leader.
Yesterday I met with my principal to ask him questions for my cultural analysis. I was most interested in the fact that he was in a position to create the culture from scratch, and I asked him if he’d had a vision in mind. He had a very clear vision; in fact, he gave me a copy of a PowerPoint presentation detailing exactly what his vision was for the new school. He had to present this before a committee during the hiring of the new principal. When we all started working at the new school, the principal shared this vision with us, so we began our journey together with a specific vision in mind for all of us to work toward. We had an idea of what was expected of us and what we all wanted to develop.
So it’s a little different because we didn’t go through a transformation in our existing organization; instead, it was a transition from many prior situations into one integrated organization under visionary leadership.
I’m feeling pretty good about my assignment at this point. I met with my principal and a friend from work, and they helped generate a lot of ideas on top of all the notes I already had on my own. At this point, I think I have all the notes I need, and I’m ready to sit down and put it all together. Hopefully it will be that simple…
November 19th, 2008 at 8:55 pm
Wow Jess! First, I am so impressed that you are already ready to write your paper. That’s great news. Let’s just say that I myself am not ready to write just quite yet….
Also, what a great example of creating a culture. You’re in a neat position to write about that for your paper, and I bet it was quite interesting hearing your principal’s take on it. Also, thanks for your comments on my blog. Your comparison to your class last year rings very familiar…. and not just because some of the staff act like 2nd graders… 
November 20th, 2008 at 9:55 am
Another interesting thing will be to see how this culture changes in the future. You can almost be certain that there will come a time when members of your school will have to address the need for a change and go through that transformational process! Yet, it seems that you have a strong leader (like my own) who can provide psychological safety through portraying a positive vision. Furthermore, you all can act as positive role models to new additions to your culture…when change is needed and an increase in anxiety shows itself!
Thanks for the congrats, by the way…I can fill you in during class.
December 15th, 2008 at 7:55 am
Jess, you’ve had an outstanding semester in Organizational Learning. Your final cultural analysis paper was one of the best I’ve read — congratulations! I’m really impressed with all you have done with your blog and how you have used it to truly reflect on the meaning of your learning in class.
Looking forward to next semester with you … the end is in sight! tjc