Club together with fellow employees
Well that either means conspire together in secret to catch the boss in his
way to his car on some dark night or,...Oh no! Not a labor union!
and leave a 'Theory X vs Theory Y' management book on his desk. Or even
cheaper still, print off the previously cited Wikipedia article on the
topic
Theory X and Theory Y
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_X_and_theory_Y
I've been trying to have a little fun with the thread rather than just
getting ticked off, which was the first reaction in the first couple of
posts. The whole X/Y thing isn't anything new and it isn't leading to any
solutions either. The two sides of the X & Y are just conclusions or
symtoms resulting from two conflicting world views particularly in the area
of anthropology as it pertains to the origin and condition of man.
Now I really did drop out of high school at 16 after 3 sememsters and the
big building in the middle of out town really is the jail, and it really
does have more people in it than the library. But I'm a little bit more
educated than I let on. I hope Bob isn't too disappointed
To get back on topic (if that's possible), how does this apply to IT?
1. Education is ill defined in todays world. I became IT manager of an NBC
Affiliated TV Station after being a truck driver for 10 years without any
college degrees. It was my first IT job and I have lasted for 10 years and
counting which is almost unheard of now-a-days. Then I followed that up
with being the 8th person *worldwide* to be brought into the MVP Program for
MS ISA Server that I retained for three years,...good thing they didn't ask
for my diploma. After three years there were still only about 23 of us
*worldwide*
2. The very fact that the Internet is practically a sewer of Viruses, worms,
trojans, hyjacks, phishing, porn, scams, shams, and few hundred other things
that I can't think of so fast off the top of my head,...and behind every one
of those evil worthless things is a *human* to blame,... who works
*somewhere*,.........indicates that the basic presuppositions of Theory-X
are standing on much more solid ground. And in case anyone wonders what
those presuppositions really are,...here you go,...right from the Wiki link
you gave:
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In this theory, which many managers practice, management assumes employees
are inherently lazy and will avoid work if they can. They inherently dislike
work. Because of this, workers need to be closely supervised and
comprehensive systems of controls developed. A hierarchical structure is
needed with narrow span of control at each and every level. According to
this theory, employees will show little ambition without an enticing
incentive program and will avoid responsibility whenever they can. According
to Michael J. Papa, if the organizational goals are to be met, theory X
managers rely heavily on threat and coercion to gain their employee's
compliance. Beliefs of this theory lead to mistrust, highly restrictive
supervision, and a punitive atmosphere. The Theory X manager tends to
believe that everything must end in blaming someone. He or she thinks all
prospective employees are only out for themselves. Usually these managers
feel the sole purpose of the employee's interest in the job is money. They
will blame the person first in most situations, without questioning whether
it may be the system, policy, or lack of training that deserves the blame. A
Theory X manager believes that his or her employees do not really want to
work, that they would rather avoid responsibility and that it is the
manager's job to structure the work and energize the employee. One major
flaw of this management style is it is much more likely to cause
Diseconomies of Scale in large businesses.
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Now,...I think this thread has gone on plenty long enough. It needs to die
off,...and I have grass to mow, cats to feed, and a whole host of other
things that don't require electricity, a PC, or an Ivy League PHD.
C-ya's all tomorrow!
--
Phillip Windell
The views expressed, are my own and not those of my employer, or Microsoft,
or anyone else associated with me, including my cats.
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