What the Best Organizational Researchers and Experts Would Do as Consultants Chris Argyis Readers interested in this section are expected to have become familiar with the concepts and ideas of this remarkable student of organizations, who is Chris Argyris.
From very early on Argyris ("Personality and Organization: the conflict between system and the individual"; New York: Harper & Row - 1957) considers that there is no proper match between the individual and the organization in which he operates, since the Individual needs contrast with the formal requirements of the organization. Organizations are not the ideal place for people interested in their individual health.
Many other experts at the same time used to observe that the informal organization had a dysfunctional type for the company.
However, the particular perspective of this remarkable scholar differs substantially.
For Argyris, it is the informal organization itself that really allows the organizational members to maintain a "minimum acceptable level of health."
Without the presence of the informal organization, people interested in comprehensive individual health could collapse.
In this treatise Chris Argyris includes among its contents:
1. The different basic assumptions
2. The characteristics of human personality
3. Key aspects of formal organization
4. The adaptation processes of individuals and also of groups
5. The reactions and responses of "managers" and their impact on subordinates
6. The front line supervisor (in the trench)
7. What can be done to reduce inconsistency between people and the formal organization
8. How you can develop effective behavior in managers
Finally, it includes a section where he summarizes his ideas and shares some main conclusions.
In a later work Chris Argyris (“Interpersonal competence and organizational effectiveness”; Homewood, Illinois: Irwin - 1962), highlights the importance of developing interpersonal skills for more effective leadership, leadership and management, also making it known that increasing interpersonal skills they are necessary although they are not sufficient. It is also necessary to modify the values so that they can in turn assist in modifying the organizational, technological, and interpersonal aspects.
In order to delve further into this topic, and to explore what a Consultant can do to increase organizational efficiency, Chris Argyris explores the possibilities offered by T-Groups.
In his work (“T-Groups for organizational effectiveness”;
Harvard Business Review - 1964, volume 42) highlights how this method allows us to provide a situation where there is support where people are able to experience the inefficiencies of the old / former values and, on the other hand, learn about how to increase their abilities to use of the new values.
At this point, Chris finds more evidence that organizational change cannot be sustained and effective until such time that new values are accepted within the organization as a whole.
In the 60s of the last century, what is known as the cognitive movement within organizations took on importance. And Argyris was no stranger to it.
A couple of years later Chris Argyris explores which are the interpersonal barriers that negatively influence the decision making of superiors (“Interpersonal barriers to decision-making”; Harvard Business Review - 1966, volume 44).
Here Argyris notes that there is an inconsistency between the standards that managers use in decision-making regarding observable behavior.
And it even goes so far as to show that this level of incongruity grows larger as the importance of the issues to be decided, in turn, also increases.
Among the norms and principles of managers and executives we can include that related to the executive decision-making system and that is related to the innovation, risk-taking processes, and the levels of flexibility and confidence that are necessary for operate in the organization.
As an excellent outwardly critical observer, Argyris did not fail to observe himself and his ideas and conceptions critically. A year later ("On the future of laboratory education"; Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 1967, volume 3), Argyris further studies some of the consequences of the laboratory approach.
He notes that the experience of this type of learning is important but that it is constrained to the laboratory situation and perhaps the participant "is not motivated to increase their interpersonal competence in the real world".
In a later work, he deepens the need and importance of "acquiring competences" and makes a distinction between them and therapy ("Conditions for competence acquisition and therapy"; Journal of Applied Behavioral Science - 1968, volume 4). And here as a consultant, Chris Argyris begins to observe with increasing depth how organizations - and their individuals - learn (as well as what their obstacles are to learning).
In this process of focusing on learning processes, Chris Argyris' “observer's eye” stops at what is most important for the Consultant's work, which he defines from the perspective of organizational intervention. In his work "Intervention theory and method" (Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley - 1970) Argyris introduces himself in the mechanics of the consulting process, pointing out that an effective (consulting) intervention requires compliance with three fundamental aspects:
1. That information that is valid is generated;
2. That “free” elections are held based on being properly informed;
3. That there is a degree of internal commitment to the choices made.
And this expert emphasizes those behaviors that lead us to "system competence"; being them:
1. be aware of relevant information;
2. understand the different parts that are important;
3. manipulability;
4. realistic costs;
5. that we have aimed to achieve a solution that can prevent the recurrence of the problem without a deteriorating situation; and
6. Preferably increase and improve problem solving, decision-making, and implementation processes.
In turn, the consultant as an interventionist must be able to develop certain skills and qualities.
It is important to highlight that in a field work carried out in 1996, it has been found that many of these competencies and qualities are not always developed in consultants who carry out advisory interventions, since they privilege the focus of "their own specialization" or of the “consulting package” that they are implementing in the Client (Organizational Development Congress;
Eric Gaynor Butterfield; Argentina 1997). Among the qualities necessary for an efficient intervention - which every consultant interested in the exercise of their profession must take into account - details:
- confidence in their own philosophy of intervention; a precise perception of stressful reality; a degree of acceptance regarding "attacks by the Client" and their mistrust; confidence in your own experience of reality; count on having made an investment in stressful contexts regarding enriching experiences.
It is common that within the different Latin American cultures, the consultants are not selected by the consulting firms in these different criteria, which can be sufficient proof of the many failures that have occurred in the proposals for professional advisory services.
Argyris clearly states some key aspects that the behavior of the consultant - interventionist must manifest, which due to their original wealth we reproduce in English:
"one. Owning to, being open toward, and experimenting with ideas and feelings;
2. Helping others to own up, be open, and experiment with ideas and feelings;
3. contributing to the norms of individuality, concern and trust;
4. communicating in observed, directly verifiable categories, with minimal attribution, evaluation,
and internal contradiction ”.
At this point we would like to explore with you as participants what you consider to be Chris Argyris' “basic hypotheses”.
Every experienced consultant who wants to be able to exercise his profession efficiently must not only be able to know the concepts and ideas of the different experts, but must also be able to know the basic assumptions of the expert. A basic assumption by Chris Argyris has been related to the mismatch between the health of individuals as organizational members and the mechanisms under which organizations operate. In order to overcome these inconsistencies, many times within organizations the informal organization develops and grows.
And in order to deal with this situation, it is essential to focus on the learning processes at the individual, group and organizational levels.
For Chris Argyris, it is important that the development of interpersonal competencies is accompanied by a change in the organizational culture that must be supported and sustained by new values. This aspect, which is intimately linked with values and ethics, has been prioritized by the President of The Organization Development Institute, Dr. Donald W. Cole, who has developed a Code of Ethics applicable to the Profession of Organizational Development. Dr. Terry R. Amstrong in the Newsletter of this institution (“Organizations and Change” - February 2006) highlights that in its beginnings “OD as a field was originally driven by values rather than theory or research.
Possibly few experts in organizational change have privileged the "values" aspect.
A basic hypothesis by Chris Argyris suggests that individual members interested in their individual health have a need for self-fulfillment (Abraham Maslow).
Chris Argyris points out that many behaviors of adults in
companies are of the “childish” type, and to deal with this situation, the following transfer aspects must be taken into account: from a passive childhood to active adult behavior; from dependency to relative independence; from limited linear behaviors towards a greater diversity of behaviors, from short-term, changing, narrow and shallow interests to deeper, more far-reaching and stable interests; from a short-term perspective towards a long-term one, from a subordinate social position towards an equality position; from zero self-awareness to self-awareness and self-control.
For Chris Argyris, companies do not facilitate the self-realization of their organizational participants.
The organization - by developing as a structure and privileging it over the processes - tends to establish strict parameters and limits in the behavior expected of its members. Ford's assembly line can be perfectly understood in its conception by taking into account one of the famous phrases of this businessman: "I have only been able to get a couple of hands and a whole person has come to me."
Argyris is known for identifying two learning processes, highlighting that managers usually operate under "Model I" where they seek to have a greater degree of control.
In model I, the problems are not openly discussed and in this situation where attempts are made to give “conformity” to the superior in the hierarchy, the possibilities of greater efficiency are strongly limited.
On the other hand, Model II allows for more information as a result of the communication being open between the parties, which in turn allows actions to be initiated - under freedom options - based on truthful information. Under this degree of trust, one can include within their own team highly competent people in the field of knowledge and experience who must surely make contributions with high added value.
The cycle of this mechanism is closed by allowing a greater degree of commitment to exist between the different parties involved.
Definitely, one of the aspects that Chris Argyris privileges in his work as a consultant, has to do with how it is possible to transform executives and managers who operate under model I (inefficient), so that they can from there to function more under the model II.
And this is particularly difficult since the organization as a whole - and even its own organizational culture - usually operates under model I.
Argyris's attempts under this situation are oriented here to investigate all those defensive routines that limit the learning processes and for this he cites cases in government organizations, education and within the business world, and for this, from the very beginning of The intervention should pay special attention to the processes of "interview and observation of the players".
Some of the actions that a Consultant can develop have been described in detail by Chris Argyris in his work “Knowledge for action: a guide to overcoming barriers to organizational change”; Jossey - Bass - 1993).
In this book, the author describes his work methodology step by step and the consultants have to benefit greatly.
Taking into account that as participants they have already become familiar with the concepts and ideas of Argyris, from some examples and specific cases regarding their particular experiences, we are going to ask them to work individually highlighting:
I. Chris Argyris's basic hypotheses;
II. what is Chris Argyris doing in his diagnosis stage in front of his Client;
III. who would be the Client for this author;
IV. how you would develop the consulting work; and
V. How do you visualize that Chris Argyris conceives to terminate his consulting work.
Every consultant who prides himself on the excellence of his professional consulting services must be able - at a minimum - to satisfy the four points indicated above.
And please. In the process of responding, try to operate - if possible - within Model II.
