Running head: THE POWER OF NEPOTISM

The Power of Nepotism: Organizational Issue in the Workplace

Debbie Wong
California State University, Fullerton

THE POWER OF NEPOTISM

2
Introduction

Organizational theory encompasses leadership, governance, organizational change,

resource allocation, human resource management, organizational design, restructuring, hiring,
teamwork, networking, and organizational culture (Kezar, 2001, pp. 226); all of which are
essential to roles that student affairs professionals hold. As many student affairs professionals
seek leadership roles to accomplish change where they see necessary, many may not understand
the key difference between a vision in contrast to achievement. To be an effective and successful
student affairs practitioner, I believe it is necessary to understand how to create change in various
environments through multiple perspectives. Research suggests that individuals who use
multiple lenses to conceptualize issues within an organization leads to successful and effective
leaders (Bolman & Deal, 2013). However, biases may form through the view of each lens and
not one perspective should be favored over another. In the examination of my workplace, I have
identified a situation through the structural frame as presented by Bolman and Deal (2013). With
the mindset that a single frame may hinder the efficiency of a leader to identify key concerns in
the organization, I continue my case study by presenting a multi-frame analyses to better
understand and address the concerns in my unit. Drawing from my educational leadership
philosophy, I propose possible solutions to remedy the organizational issue in my workplace.
Case Description
I currently work at UC Irvine Extension under the International Programs (IP) department
in the University Programs (UP) unit (see Appendix). In 2007, International Programs was
known as English and Certificates for Internationals (ECI) where I started as a general assistant
at the front desk. ECI had two main units at that time; ESL and Certificates, now known as
References

THE POWER OF NEPOTISM

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