Reflections on Presentations  

Reframing Organizations

By: Mary Rule

          This reflection will focus on the presentation made by Mary Rule on Reframing Organizations.  The focus will include what is meant by reframing and the four frames of change. These include the structural frame, the human resource frame, the political frame, and the symbolic frame.

          Many organizations are extremely successful and often that success is attributed to the way they have functioned in the past.  Often their success is a result of those past actions.  However, as situations change, organizations must find ways to restructure in order to keep up to date in terms of what customers now want and what their competition is doing to attempt to acquire those customers.  When organizations are willing to change in order to meet the needs of their constituents, they may be solidifying their place in the marketplace.

          The structural frame deals with structures that enable organizations to increase efficiency through specialization.  This frame appears to me to be one that does not adequately address customer's needs.  I believe the failure to address these needs can lead to the downfall of even a large corporation.

          The human resource frame places the focus on the human aspect of the organization.  The premise is that organizations exist to facilitate human interaction so that the interaction that takes place may benefit everyone.  I believe that this frame addresses an important point.  The human side of business is the most important side of business.

          The focus of the political frame seems to be very competitive.  The organization consists of various groups that attempt to gain and hold the power within the organization.  I believe that this type of competition is destructive and leads to a deterioration in morale and can lead individuals within an organization to sabotage others within their own organization.

          When reflecting on the symbolic frame, I was interested in the material within this frame dealing with ambiguity.  According to this frame, high levels of ambiguity undercut rational problem solving and decision-making.  The book that I am reading, Leading at the Edge of Chaos, would (I believe) challenge this notion.  Although ambiguity may make problem solving more difficult from the point that more must be considered, it is also the process by which a situation comes about in which a decision can be made that will facilitate change.

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