Managerial Grid Model

Grid management model was created from studies done in universities in Ohio and
Michigan, this is a matrix of nine by nine, which outlines 81 different styles o
f leadership, describing explicitly the four extreme types (1.9 - 9,11,9 and 9.9
) and the style half (5.5) The Grid is a way to graphically represent all the po
ssibilities of leadership style and see how it compares with another style ...
Lawrence and Lorsch, chief counsel of the contingency, do not specify a better w
ay to diagnose or a particular meaning for change. However, they emphasize certa
in dimensions of the organization, particularly in its structure and relations b
etween groups. Consider other dimensions, but these two are the priority enjoyed
by their view of organizations. Lawrence and Lorsch not have a model of organiz
ations as such, and so they can be properly classified as theoretical contingenc
y. Argue (or adjudication by the hypothesis) that there is a causal link between
how well the internal structure of the organization coupled with environmental
demands and how well does the organization, ie how to achieve your goals and obj
ectives. His research of the 1960s provided a support for this argument) Lawrenc
e and Lorsch, 1967). To this end, we want to understand the use of contingency t
heory in diagnosis. Please note that the essential concepts of the contingency t
heory of Lawrence and Lorsch are differentiation and integration, representing t
he paradox of any organizational design, that employment must be at once divided
and coordinated or integrated. Therefore, within the framework of Lawrence and
Lorsch and for diagnostic purposes, we examine a client organization in the dime
nsions that the customer deems important. The methodological appendix of his boo
k provides a wealth of details concerning these dimensions, as well as questions
to be formulated to obtain relevant information (Lawrence and Lorsch, 1967). Th
e following list summarizes these dimensions and some related questions. Environ
mental Claims 1. On what basis the customer evaluates and selects suppliers to t
he industry (price, quality, delivery, service, etc.)? 2. What are the main prob
lems facing the organization to compete in the industry?. 3. "In recent years th
ere have been significant changes in the market or technical conditions of the i
ndustry?. Differentiation 1. What is the average interval of control in relation
to the structure? How important is to have formal rules to route
procedures and operations?. 2. With regard to the time of feedback, How long do
employees appreciate the results of its actions? (For example, the length is usu
ally short sales, while research and development may take years). 3. With regard
to interpersonal relationships, how important they are and how much interaction
is necessary?. 4. Regarding the certainty of the goal, How clear are the goals?
How to measure?. Integration 1. How interdependent are any two units, much (eac
h needs the other to some extent) average (each needs the other to some degree),
low (each one works quite autonomously)?. 2. What is the quality of relations b
etween units?. Conflict Management 1. What is the mode that is used in conflict
resolution: by taxation (the edicts of the supreme command), for appeasement (to
be kind and shrinking) or confrontation (explaining the differences and solving
problems)? 2. How much influence employees in the hierarchy, to solve problems
and make decisions?. Employee-management contract in January. To what extent emp
loyees feel that what they expected of them is right?. 2. To what extent employe
es feel they are fairly remunerated and rewarded for their work)?. Summary These
five dimensions represent organizational domains Lawrence and Lorsch believe ar
e most important for an efficient diagnosis. Based on the findings of her resear
ch, organizational diagnostician seek the degree of concordance between the dema
nds and complexities of environmental and internal organizational structure. The
higher is the environmental complexity, the more complex will be the complex pr
ocedure. If the markets of the organization is changing rapidly and are difficul
t to forecast and predict, and if the environment fluctuates quite general, the
internal structure of the organization must be relatively
decentralized€so are many employees who are in contact with the environment and
can act quickly as changes occur. Under these conditions, can remain high diffe
rentiation, but allocates a prize to integration. There must be enough integrati
on mechanism, so that communication flows properly through the many subunits and
between them, and that the upper area of the hierarchy is kept well informed. T
he plastics industry this type of organization represented in the study and rese
arch of Lawrence and Lorsch. When the environment is relatively stable and not v
ery complex, what happens in their study of the container industry, an internal
structure very simple and straightforward can be the best, with functional divis
ions of labor and centralized authority. The issue is not the fact that an organ
ization is highly differentiated and highly integrated one, but that the two are
both attributes. The high integration appears to be important regardless of the
environment, and differentiation may be lower in organizations where the enviro
nment is stable. In all cases there remains the paradox: you need both, but are
antagonistic, how much difference the organization is the greater integration is
needed. The organizational assessment should also look for how to resolve confl
icts. Lawrence and Lorsch found that the more we face the members and units of t
he organization of their differences and work to resolve them, rather than mitig
ate and soften both tended to be more efficient organization. Finally, it is nec
essary to know the degree of employee satisfaction with their psychological cont
ract with the organization. Apparently there is a positive relationship between
the clarity of your understanding of employees about what is expected of them (h
is evident satisfaction with the remuneration they receive for their performance
) and general progress of the organization. Although Lawrence and Lorsch are con
tingency theorists, particularly in regard to the structure of the organization,
also have their preferences. They highlight the interfaces between the organiza
tion and its environment, between two and all units within the organization, and
between employees and the organization, represented by management. Normative Th
eory Unlike contingency theorists, theorists argue that policy with respect to o
rganizational development is a better way for change and for his leadership. The
main exponents of normative theory are Likert (1967) and Black and Mounton (196
8 ª, 1978). Likert PROFILES
Categorized Likert or organizations, he said, the systems in four different type
s: System 1. Management autocratic imperative operator. System 2. Benevolent aut
ocracy, even imperative, but not exploitative. System 3. Management Advisory (th
e employees are consulted on issues and decisions, but management is who is maki
ng the decisions). System 4. Participative management (key policy decisions are
taken in groups, by consensus). Likert's approach to organizational assessment i
s uniform. The questionnaire used is a so called "profile of organizational char
acteristics", which comprises six sections: leadership, motivation, communicatio
n, decisions, goals and control. (The latest version is referred to study of org
anizations). The members of the organization answer questions of each of these s
ections by placing the letter A in place of a twenty-point scale that best repre
sents current looks like a P (for previous, above), in the place indicated in it
s prior opinion , what they thought of organizing one or two years ago. There ar
e times when the consultant asked the members of the organization employing an I
instead of P, to indicate they would consider ideal for each of the questions.
It is common for organizational profiles are within 2 or 3 systems. If we make u
se of the ideal, its profile generally be in the right of the current profile, o
r tend to the system in April or situated therein. In these cases, establishing
the direction of change: to the system 4. When someone says there is a better wa
y, in this case management system in April, often there are others who ask for p
roof. Does management system 4 is a better way to lead the organization that the
three systems, two o1?. Contingency theorists of course will say no, that will
depend on the spin of the organization, the nature of the environment that we fa
ce and the technology involved. Lickert argues that whatever these contingencies
, the system 4 is the best.€Likert's own research (1967) supports his claim, an
d the same applies to research done by others. A noteworthy example is a longitu
dinal study of change, perhaps the most systematic management system 4, held in
the Harwood-Weldon Company, which manufactures sleepwear (Marrow, Bowers and Sea
shore, 1967). Changes were made in all dimensions of the Likert profile and in t
he workflow and organizational structure. The permanence of these changes was co
nfirmed by a subsequent study by Seashore and Bowrs (1970). We also used a syste
m approach 4 as a target for change in an assembly plant of General Motors (Dowl
ing, 1975). As a result
of these tasks deliberate shift to a system 4, significant improvements were ach
ieved in various indices, even in operating efficiency, costs and complaints. In
summary, the approach used in Likert organizational diagnosis is structured and
directional. It is structured by the use of his questionnaire, "Profile of orga
nizational characteristics", and later versions of your profile (Taylor and Bowe
rs, 1972), and is directional because the data that are captured are compared wi
th the system 4. The survey feedback method (to be discussed in Chapter 6) is us
ed as the main intervention, ie the data from the questionnaire (survey) are pre
sented again to the members of the organization as a whole. For using the Likert
approach, the consultant should feel comfortable using the questionnaire method
as a primary tool for data collection and management system with four goal for
change. Although the constitution of a participative management may be an approp
riate target for change for many consultants and clients, perhaps not so much th
e relatively limited diagnosis is obtained only by the characteristics of the pr
ofile. GRID METHOD OF BLAKE AND MOUTON Organizational Development OD Another reg
ulatory approach is based on the Grid management model created by Balke and Mout
on (1964.1978). As the focus of four Likert system, the method Grid (Grid) of DO
is structured and involves a high degree of conjuntación. Blake and Mouton als
o argue that there is a better method of running an organization. His name is 9.
9, which also represents a participatory management style. Blake and Mouton also
rely on questionnaires, but the OJ Grid (Blake and Mouton, 1968) goes far beyon
d a diagnosis with a questionnaire, they are based on an initial general diagnos
is. In a cross-cultural study of what managers consider the most common barriers
that hamper the efficiency of business and the excellence of companies, Blake a
nd Mouton (1968) found that the communication was contained in top of a list of
10 barriers and In the second place was the lack of planning. Managers chose the
se two barriers with greater frequency. The other eight (74% said communication,
62% mentioned planning), for example, the moral and coordination, barriers that
were followed more often, signs for less than 50%. Blake and Mouton also noted
that communication and planning the two most often mentioned, regardless of the
country, the company or the characteristics of managers surveyed. According to B
lake and Mouton, the two main barriers and other less prevalent are symptoms, no
t causes of organizational problems. The causes
found deeper in the system. For example, poor planning is the result that the or
ganization does not have any strategy or have a reasoning strategy based on an i
ll-advised. From the nature of the supervision that is practiced in the organiza
tion resulting communication problems. Correcting these underlying causes, Blake
and Mouton have developed an organizational development approach consisting of
six stages and that considers both the organization's strategic plan and the lac
k thereof, as well as style or approach to the supervision or administration. Th
ey argue that to achieve excellence model should create a strategic organization
al and management will change the style to a participative management supervisor
. The members of the organization shall look first at the behavior and managemen
t style, and then move towards the development and implementation of an ideal st
rategic model for the organization. Before offering a more detailed explanation
of the six stages of the OD approach, we examine the model of the management sty
le of Blake and Mouton Managerial Grid, since most legal reasoning is based on t
his model.€Based on a first research about leadership, in which the dual functi
ons of different denominations were leading the initiation and consideration of
the structure, and maintenance tasks, and task and socioemotional behaviors, Bla
ke and Mouton (1964) simplified language using expressions attached to the under
standing of managers: production and people. However, they did even more, the cr
eative aspect of his work was to conceptualize the two major functions in a cont
inuum-one for the degree of interest by the production managers and the other fo
r your interest in people, and blend in two-dimensional model in graphical form.
Blake and Mouton (1981) claim to have done more to simplify the language and cr
eate a nine-point scales. They argue that the original dimensions (initiation an
d consideration of the structure) and those that followed, especially the situat
ional leadership model of Hersey and Blanchard, were conceptualized as independe
nt dimensions. The dimensions of Blake and Mouton (production and people) are in
terdependent and represent attitudes rather than behaviors. They stress that the
liderzgo not possible without having as many tasks as individuals. We will now
examine in more detail the model of Blake and Mouton. All managers feel some int
erest in achieving the goals of the organization regarding the acquisition of pr
oducts, results or earnings; experience some interest in people to help achieve
the goals of the organization. The managers can differ in their interest in each
of the managerial functions, but how these two concerns are intertwined in the
minds of a manager because his style or approach determines management and defin
es the use of power does the manager.
Blake and Mouton picked nine-point scales to describe their model and to rate th
e degree of interest by the production manager and persons, one representing a m
inimum interest rate and 9 indicates a strong interest. Although there are 81 po
ssible combinations, Blake and Mouton, realistically, they decided to consider o
nly the four more or less extreme positions represented by the four corners of t
he grid, and style-position intermediate 5.5 from the center of it. Figure 5.3 i
llustrates the grid management. Figure 5.3 The Managerial Grid <!--[ endif] ->
9 I N T E R E S P O R June 5 4 8 7
1.9 MANAGEMENT OF COUNTRY CLUB Careful attention to the needs of people to have
satisfying relationships has an atmosphere and pace of work pleasant and friendl
y. 5.5
9.9 MANAGEMENT TEAM Work carried out by people is committed, the interdependence
, due to "a common occurrence at stake" in the purposes of the organization is a
relationship of trust and respect
MAN MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION The organization right gear is possible in a satisfa
ctory balance the need to do the work and morale of people
L A S
3 February 1
1.1 MANAGEMENT deplete the dedication of a minimum of effort in doing the necess
ary work to be just enough to maintain adequate as a member of the organization
12 3 4 5
9.1 The operational efficiencies have resulted from working conditions so that h
uman elements interfere minimally 6 7 8 9
P E R S O N A S B aja
Interest in the production <!--[ if! SupportMisalignedColumns] ->
High Source: Figure of Grid management is taken from The Managerial Grid III: Th
e Key to Leadership Excellence, Roberts R. Blake and Jane Srygley Mouton. Housto
n: Gulf Publishing Company, Copyright 1985, pp. 12 Reprinted by permission. Moun
ton Blake described the five styles as follows: 9.1. In the lower right corner o
f the grid is representing a maximum interest (9) production, coupled with (a) a
t least by people. E l manager who acts in accordance with these assumptions is
focused on bringing the production to exercise full authority and power and keep
ing control of people through submission. 1.9. There, the minimum interest (1) p
roduction is paired with the maximum (9) people. Exempting primary care to promo
te good feelings among colleagues and subordinates. 1.1. In the lower left corne
r is represented both by the minimum production by the people (1,1). This manage
r only makes the minimum required to remain within the organization. 5.5. This i
s the theory of middle or "Go going forward", two assumptions that are manifeste
d by conformity with the current state. 9.9. The concern for production and peop
le is integrated into a high level ... This is the team approach.€It is oriente
d toward a goal and seeks results in large quantity and high quality through par
ticipation, understanding, commitment and conflict resolution. (Blake and Mouton
, 1978, p. 12..). As I noted, Blake and Mouton argue that the communication prob
lems of the organization stem from the nature of supervision. The predominant st
yle among supervisors of U.S. organizations today can be classified as 5.5 (Blak
e and Mouton, 1978). The popular book The gamesman (Maccoby, 1976) is a manager'
s description of Blake and Mouton 5.5. An unpublished study of a colleague, Barr
y Render, found, like me, the style prevalent among middle managers of a major g
overnment agency was 5.5 (N = 400). According to Blake
and Mouton, this style is bureaucratic and mechanical, and therefore less effect
ive. Therefore argue that the communication problems that arise unless effective
monitoring and management focus. The styles for 9.1, 1.9 and 1.1 are even more
deficient and cause similar problems, if not worse communication. If put into pr
actice consistently, the style 9.9 ensures less problems in communication. There
fore, teaching style managers 9.9 adoption will lead to fewer barriers opposed t
o organizational effectiveness. The six phases of OD Grid start with a one week
seminar in which participants evaluate their current style and learn the behavio
rs associated with 9.9 style. Participants also receive information from their r
etro styles, provided by his bandmates. Phase 2 of OJ Grid is the development of
teamwork: Again we proceed to an assessment to identify the rules and character
istics of work of all the management teams of the organization, starting with th
e highest authority team and traveling in descending the hierarchy to include ot
hers. The teams work on real problems and the behavior of team practice on the m
odel of participatory management. This will encourage candor, confidence rises,
the emphasis is on exposing and dealing with conflicts and practiced making deci
sions by consensus. Phase 3 is to develop intergroup. The objective of this phas
e is to reduce win-lose patterns of behavior among groups of organization. Thus,
we examine the behaviors associated with competition. Ideal models are generate
d, each group independently develops a model or ideal relationship, and these mo
dels are exchanged between the groups. Finally, are planned action steps to faci
litate progress toward the groups that have jointly decided that it is an ideal
relationship. Phase 4 is to develop an ideal strategic model for the entity, is
essentially what is called corporate strategic planning. It begins with the deve
lopment of a strategic organization ideal, usually consisting of the higher mana
gement team. This team practices and Mounton what Blake called the "strict logic
of business" because: a) specifies the minimum and optimum financial objectives
, 2) describes the business activities to be undertaken in the future, 3) define
markets for penetration; 4) creates an internal structure for synergistic resul
ts, 5) outlines policies that will guide future decisions, and 6) identifies the
development needs for sustaining the model. Stage 5 is the ideal strategic mode
l execution. This phase, similar to what Beckhard and Harris (1977) later called
transition management is to move towards the ideal model in evolutionary and ca
reful way, the
While the organization continues to operate as before. This ongoing process is c
hanging gradually, so that the organization began to operate increasingly within
the procedures and policies of the ideal model. Phase 6 is a systematic critiqu
e. During this final phase, we evaluate the work of change and identifies the fa
ctors called hindrance (hindrance factors are specific barriers that remain and
which must now be deleted.) Thus, the phases 1,2 and 3 are designed to deal with
communication barriers that oppose the effectiveness of the organization, and t
he phases 4, 5, 6 deal with the barriers to planning. Interestingly, it is not u
ntil Phase 6 Mounton Blake and begin to treat an organization for diagnostic pur
poses is identical terms to those of other diagnostic models we have examined. M
ounton Blake and clearly decided that all organizations or so large that they ar
e not related to organizational development, face high barriers to communication
and planning that will reduce the efficiency.€First, we must reduce these two
main barriers and OJ Grid will be what it accomplishes. In step 6 we will see wh
at they have made real progress in particular and in detail the first five stage
s and what are the barriers that are now attacking. Blake and Mounton never down
, but clearly imply that unless the organization to learn to communicate more ef
fectively (management practices 9.9) and planning of more logical and systematic
way (to build an ideal strategic model and begin to put into practice) its mana
gement will never be able to deal optimally with specific factors to run a busin
ess. Phase 6 of the sequence of grid OJ takes specific factors. Blake and qualif
y Mounton six-volume book, How to Assess the Strengths and Weaknesses of a Busin
ess Enterprise (1972) as "Instrument of Phase 6." The work is based on diagnosti
c model "Corporate Excellence Rubric" and consists of 72 sights (elements that a
re used to diagnose the behavior, actions and performance of the company). Blake
's book and Mounton (1968b) has more than 400 pages of questions and different s
cales, phase 6 time-consuming and detailed, structured and tedious, but very com
plete and thorough. Although this very structured, contains some flexibility bec
ause the respondents can articulate the issues of your choice to go according to
their own situation.