Tag Archives: figure and ground

You’re Gonna Need a Bigger Boat!

Steven Spielberg’s 1975 movie, Jaws, tells the story of a seaside town whose shores are terrorized by a killer shark. After several fatal attacks, the town sheriff, played by Roy Scheider, sets out to hunt the monster in a dilapidated … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General, Leadership, Strategy | Tagged Adrian Wooldridge, change, complex systems, Dofasco, ecological perspective, figure and ground, Gore-Tex, human condition, humanistic management, Jaws, John Micklethwait, leadership, management theory, Peter Drucker, scientific management, Spotify, tensions, W.L. Gore | Comments Off on You’re Gonna Need a Bigger Boat!

Bad Apples or Bad Barrels? An ecological perspective on ethics in management

In my last two blogs I have suggested that many of our institutions have lost their sense of purpose, as their means to success have steadily become ends-in-themselves. This loss of purpose has been accompanied by a steady increase in … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General | Tagged bad apples, Douglas McGregor, ecological rationality, evildoers, figure and ground, George W. Bush, management ethics, MBA Oath, Mr. Spock, rational model, Theory X | Comments Off on Bad Apples or Bad Barrels? An ecological perspective on ethics in management