A Machiavellian analysis of organisational change

Abstract

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to undertake a Machiavellian analysis of the determinants of organisational change. It aims to present a model of how power, leaders and teams, rewards and discipline, and roles, norms and values, serve as drivers, enablers or inhibitors of organisational change. Design/methodology/approach -The paper adopts the sixteenth century Machiavellian text The Prince as a lens through which to examine organisational change. Findings -The paper concludes that Machiavellian thinking provides a valuable guide to the challenges and obstacles in negotiating organisational change and identifies the individual as occupying the central role in determining whether the change intervention will be accepted or rejected. Originality/value -The longevity of Machiavellian thinking underlines the constancy of human behaviour and the relevance of age-old thinking in understanding and negotiating change in a complex fast-paced business environment.

Amoeba Management System Transformation in the Light of Organisational Change Literature

“…McGuire and Hutchings highlight the primary meaning of individuals' motivation, change of the existing quality of the working life of employees, and change of received benefits as particularly important in the organisational changes process [19]. The AMS implementation in all of its stages, starting from preparation and to the culture transformation and the accompanying changes of principles, should carefully consider these issues.…”

“…As Emiliani warns those implementing the Lean Management approach: not keeping real respect for people eventually leads to fake Lean in a company [34]. Machiavelli argues that while the struggle for success is operationalised in terms of money, it should be expressed in terms of the soul [19]. This implies the continuous proclamation of the change vision during the whole changing process as indispensable.…”

“…When the teams (amoebas) are formally established, they should gradually achieve more and more independence and responsibility. McGuire and Hutchings underline the detrimental nature of uncertainty, which undermines confidence and support for organisational leaders as facilitators of change [19]. They suggest careful assessment of the impact of change on the existing norms, values, and the quality of working life of employees.…”

Comparing Work-Related Values of US, Canadian, Chinese, Iranian, and Moroccan Business Students: Multi-Theory Perspective

“…It was purposely designed that way in order to avoid response bias. Machiavellianism is an opinion about the quest to gain a competitive advantage in interpersonal competition (Walter et al, 2005) that gives one an immoral reputation for accomplishing one's own objectives (McGuire and Hutchings, 2006). People with high Mach IV scores are said to be more likely to manipulate others, win more, and are less able to be persuaded than those scoring low on the scale.…”

Do All Roads Lead to Rome? The Moderating Role of Culture and Age in Predicting Construal Level on Machiavellianism / Bütün Yollar Roma’ya Mı Çıkar? Makyavelizmde Yorumlama Seviyesinin Belirlenmesinde Kültür ve Çağın Aracı Rolü

“…Narcissism is considered a normal personality disorder integrated with dominance, feelings of superiority and entitlement (Raskin and Terry, 1988). Machiavellianism is an opinion about the quest to gain competitive advantage in interpersonal competition (Walter et al, 2005) that gives one an immoral reputation to accomplish one's own objectives (McGuire and Hutchings, 2006). These traits are subclinical, socially aversive where there is a positive correlation among them (Paulhus and Williams, 2002) and with other personality constructs such as self-enhancement, Big Five, etc (Lee and Ashton, 2005;Paulhus and Williams, 2002;Veselka et al, 2010).…”