This study was initiated by the need to develop change agent skills in a group of consultants from a large government organisation facing major challenge from a competitive market. In order to develop a program, a group of mature and experienced change agents, with around 20 years experience in a variety of different organisations in each case, was asked, through the medium of an unstructured interview, to tell the story of their own growth and development. A model of 12 factors was developed, based on recent studies of leadership, the researcher's own career experience and an analysis of a well known practitioner's biography. This model was used to analyse the content of the interview material. The study found that there were a small number of factors which distinguished the development of this group from that of leaders who had been the subject of earlier studies. These were, firstly, the primary influence of the mother as role model. for both men and women. Secondly, the influence of early confrontations with established systems of power being employed in abusive ways, which developed a commitment to preserve the freedom of individuals to participate in decisions which affect their lives. Finally, a belief in the critical part ethics, integrity and the continual practice of learning for self-awareness, plays in maintaining a sustainable career as a change agent. The conclusions for a program of development for change agents are, firstly, that prospective participants should self assess their personal experiences from childhood, their attitudes to learning and the maintenance of an integrated self as an essential for mediating between stakeholder groups. Secondly, the influence of practical experience far outweighs that of schooling or academic studies. Thirdly, change agents employ what Bateson describes as type III learning, more than any particular theoretical approach, when designing organisational interventions. The study concludes that further research into the nature of the attachment bonds formed by change agents in childhood is needed to better understand the psychological dynamics which support excellent and sustainable practice. / Master of Science (Hons)

The governance of Australian nonprofit voluntary sport organisations (VSOs) was once almost the exclusive domain of volunteers. However, changes in government policy and funding levels in recent years has led to the introduction of professional staff in these organisations. Rapid changes to the political, social and economic environment have created new complexities with which VSOs and their governing boards must grapple. Boards act as the main decision making body for these organisations, and as such have a significant impact on the governance of these organisations, and therefore their ability to deliver services. While the process of professionalisation within VSOs has been well documented, very little research has examined factors that may influence the ability of the boards of VSOs to perform effectively. The fields of nonprofit governance and sport management provided a theoretical and conceptual framework for the investigation of the board performance of VSOs. Two broad themes concerning research into board performance were identified in the nonprofit literature; the structural characteristics of the board, and board-executive relations. These two themes have also been addressed to a limited extent within the sport management literature, but not in relation to board performance. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between board performance, board structures and board-executive relations in Australian VSOs. The study investigated the differences in board structure between effective and ineffective boards, and the relationship between board performance and various elements of board structure, specifically complexity, formalisation and centralisation. The differences in the nature of board-executive relations between effective and ineffective boards, and the relationship of board performance to board-executive relations were also investigated. The sampling frame for the study was state governing bodies of sport in the state of Victoria, Australia. Seven case organisations were identified by a panel of experts; four exhibiting effective board performance and three exhibiting ineffective board performance. Data were collected through structured interviews with executives, from an examination of board documents, from a self-administered questionnaire of executives, board chairs and board members, and through semi-structured interviews with executives, board chairs and board members. Data were collected on board performance, the complexity, formalisation and centralisation of the boards, power patterns within the boards, and the nature of board-executive relations. Data analysis involved both quantitative and qualitative techniques. It was concluded that effective board performance was related to a higher level of board centralisation and associated with a higher level of board formalisation. Board performance was not related to board complexity. Board power patterns that were perceived to be powerless or fragmented were related to lower levels of board performance. Elements of the board-executive relationship that were related to effective board performance were identified as establishing trust between the board and executive, the control of information by the executive, shared board leadership and the responsibility for board performance. Importantly, the study identified the central role executives have in determining the ability of VSO boards to perform effectively. The study contributed to the body of knowledge concerning the governance of VSOs, specifically the measurement of board performance, and the investigation of its relationship with board structure and board-executive relations. A number of questions were advanced for the development of theory and empirical investigation through further research. The study also extended what is known about the models of nonprofit governance and their utility in explaining the workings of VSO boards. The findings of this study suggest that there is a need to adapt such models to the organisational context of member-based organisations such as VSOs.

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This thesis investigates the experiences of 21 women in leadership and management who chose to leave their positions in the central office of a large state education department in Australia between 1991 and 2001, despite a record of high achievement and, for most, many years of loyal service. In particular, I identified why the women left and elements of the organisational culture that altered their career directions. The study adds to existing knowledge about women in management in Australia and the phenomenon of ‘the glass ceiling’ (generally understood to refer to an invisible barrier which prevents women, because they are women, from advancing beyond low to middle levels of organisational management). It demonstrates that the few women who do make it into senior management positions often encounter resistance to their acceptance at that level where the predominantly male managers exclude those who are different. Using a qualitative research approach with in-depth, open-ended interviewing techniques drawn from a critical feminist perspective, I worked with the interviewees to explore their experiences as women in organisational management. In combining a phenomenological approach with critical reflection I aimed to create a dialogue on lived experiences while at the same time using theory to inform and reflect on those experiences. My focus shifts back and forth from the women’s stories, related in their own voices, to my critical interpretation through a feminist lens, of their life-worlds. The sample ranged from women leading projects and special programs to directors, executive directors and chief executives. All, with one or two exceptions , encountered barriers and described gendered micropolitical processes at work. The loss of talent is central to the research. The findings suggest that more could be done to retain women of high potential and, more broadly, to value talented and ‘different’ individuals who may disrupt the traditional understanding of ‘manager’ or ‘leader’. In a profound questioning of the corporate culture the research participants identified the micropolitical processes at work that often blocked career progress. They questioned political game playing, factional politics, unwritten rules, gatekeeping, the exclusiveness of the boys’ club, positional power, and the hierarchical and bureaucratic management structure. They observed that relational, inclusive and interactive management styles were not valued in a corporate culture that defined merit in masculinist terms. Many challenged excessive self-promotion and careerist politics; recognised techniques that excluded and marginalised women; and asked why men with mediocre performance records got promotions, often ahead of more qualified, experienced and talented women who worked passionately for ‘the good of education’. Yet these female leaders recognised that behaviours cannot be divided neatly along gender lines. Many of the interviewees cited examples of a new wave of women they considered had become honorary males, responsible for perpetuating rather than resisting deeply entrenched practices, and not supportive of other women. One experienced CEO, who had worked in a wide range of public sector positions, distanced herself from gender debates and rejected feminist arguments that identified leadership as gendered. Adding to the complexity of the stories, other women at executive level talked of survival, the exhaustion of the lone female, the overwhelming weight of expectations from others (both male and female) and the ethical dimension of working in an ‘alien’ environment. As the ’90s progressed, social justice discourses were lost in the neoliberal agendas of managerialism and economic rationalism and feminist voices were submerged.

The research reported in this thesis examines the various factors which influence the role of NGOs in development in India. Despite the centrality of NGOs to the development process in the projects examined, little effort has been made to look at existing experience in terms of what works and what does not work in actual practice. This study attempts to analyse the importance and effectiveness of NGOs through the documentation and analysis of the experiences of five NGOs. The five NGOs are: CERTH India and RDI, in the union territory of Pondicherry; ASHA and GRAM, in Krishna and Adilabad districts respectively in the state of Andra Pradesh; and PMDS, in the South Arcot district of the state of Tamil Nadu. These five organisations have spent the five to 15 years organising their respective client communities. The local organisations that have come into existence through their efforts have reached a stage at which village units have federated and are displaying self-management skills to varying degrees. Specific dimensions of the NGOs examined in this study/ include: influencing factors related to their communities and environments; objectives, strategies, structure and functioning, focusing on community participation, vulnerable groups, empowerment, sustainability, the importance of participatory evaluation and participatory research in an NGO; administration and accountability of NGOs; and enabling relations and collaborations which have to be fostered between government and NGOs on the one hand, and global institutions and NGOs on the other. The main approach used in this study was the use of In-depth, openended, informal interviews and discussions based on pre-planned questions, with a range of NGO staff and members of the organisations. Direct contact with some of the beneficiaries, a literature review, and project reports and records also aided the study. The results showed that strategies and techniques used by the NGOs are valuable for attaining self-reliant development. Holistic development is best achieved when the organisation aims at transforming all the important dimensions of people's lives through the process of collective reflection and action on the forces that presently prevent them from developing.

An original project for a taxonomy of organisation-technology became over time an exploration of some of the meanings and contexts of technology. The exploration began with the critique of selected instances of landmark theorising and empirical research on the technology concept. The critique raised issues in epistemology and methodology which caused this writer to address the philosophy of the social sciences and the philosophy of technology at certain points: the question of technological determinism; language and metaphor; ideology; construct validity. Chapters One and Two of this thesis reflect the quest for connections in meta-theory, as the remaining chapters reflect the quest for meanings and contexts of technology in organisation and society. The case studies of landmark theory and research on technology led into more of a generic enquiry into the nature and claims of a contingency theory of organisation and management. An analysis of landmark cases and of contingency theory suggested that a formalist or empiricist approach to technology and organisation had produced no clear conceptualisation of technology, nor of any other contextual or performance factors. No panacea for organisation-design has emerged from this quarter. A rather broader arena of the division and re-combination of labour was then approached. Analysis suggested that technology and the division of labour are not mere surrogates of managerial control but arenas continually contested by organisation and society participants. They are not givens with resident characteristics to be read out but occasions of choice ongoingly negotiated. Whereas the thesis began with notions of a static and cognitivist taxonomy it developed into a study of certain images of technology, with the valencies of technology deriving from its various contexts of meanings and matrices of values. The thesis concludes with the view that formalism of much contemporary organisation-theory needs to be amplified by a broadly phenomenological understanding.

This thesis explores the impact that small training organisations expect as a result of the introduction of quality assurance. It also explores how the culture of small training organisations affects, and is affected by, quality assurance. The current requirement for small training organisations to undertake quality assurance processes represents challenges and opportunities. However, there is little information available on the relationship between organisation culture and quality assurance in small training organisations, and therefore little guidance on implementing quality assurance in such organisations. The relationship between organisational culture and quality assurance in small organisations was examined from an interpretive approach that used both quantitative and qualitative techniques. 78 respondents from 34 separate training organisations responded to a survey comprising a questionnaire developed by the author concerning the expected impact of quality assurance, and an organisational culture instrument. The organisation culture instrument, which was adapted by the author from the Organisational Culture Diagnostic Instrument (Cameron and Ettington 1988), aimed to assess both current organisational culture, and expected organisational culture after the introduction of quality assurance. Further in-depth data were gained in focus groups held with two of training organisations surveyed. Results were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics, and content analyses. For most small training organisations, the opportunities provided by quality assurance, especially in providing consistency through devolved responsibility for management tasks, were perceived to outweigh the short-term problems, especially resource issues and frustration with inconsistent external requirements. Change for the most part was perceived to be at the level of procedure and formal policy, rather than at the level of underlying values or philosophy. The organisations tended to have flexible cultures ('Clans' and 'Adhocracies' - Cameron and Ellington 1988), and expected to become more predictable ('Hierarchies' and 'Markets' - ibid) after the introduction of quality assurance. However, there were variable paradoxical effects in relation to the impact of quality assurance on organisational culture. The study identifies some key issues for those implementing and/or designing quality assurance systems in small training organisations and suggests that, in comparison with large organisations, more attention needs to be given to technical and resource issues than to changes in orientation or values. The study identifies a number of complexities in the relationships between different aspects of organisational culture, between organisational profile and expected impact, and between expected and actual impact. Further research on these complexities is suggested.

Dissertation--Philosophische Fakultät, Fachbereich Soziologie--Bonn--Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität, 2004. / Bibliogr. p. 145-159.

Diss.--Augsburg. / Bibliogr. p. 210-222.

Texte remanié de: Mémoire de DEA--Science politique--Aix-en-provence--IEP, 2003. / Bibliogr. p. 108-111. CEDEJ = Centre d'études et de documentation économiques, juridiques et sociales.