Agency Theory was highlighted in Part 1 of this two-part series, along with personal and organisational agency, but this offers only an economic perspective on how we use agency in governance and management. Across the fields of economics, psychology, sociology, law, and political science, five distinct agency theories can be identified – each with relevance… Continue reading Agents, Proxies, & Servants – Agency Part 2
Tag: governance
Promoting Personal & Organisational Agency – Agency Part 1
In its simplest form, ‘agency‘ can be defined as the ability to take action. We refer to a person’s agency in terms of their capacity to influence the course of events that shape their lives. By extension, we describe organisational agency in terms of the collective capacity of its people and resources to effect changes… Continue reading Promoting Personal & Organisational Agency – Agency Part 1
Good Change: Bad Change
Selected change propositions Not all change is good.Whether a change is good or bad is both a moral and a practical judgment.Not all good change overcomes resistance.Successful change requires more than a good idea. Reflections related to these propositions are offered below as a catalyst for your own reflection on how change decisions are taken… Continue reading Good Change: Bad Change
Are We Managing Human Resources or Human Beings?
Some of the fatalistic and dystopian predictions of recent years about robotic futures and the elimination of the need for human workers were overblown. On the other hand, there remains a strong imperative in some quarters to push forward with workforce substitution using a range of technologies. It would be hyperbolic to call this a… Continue reading Are We Managing Human Resources or Human Beings?
Slips of the ear & tongue: eggcorns, mondegreens, & malapropisms
A ‘slip of the tongue’ is one way we refer to an error in our speech, but a ‘slip of the ear’ can catch us out as well. Directors or executives who have spent long hours in board meetings over many years are likely to recall numerous incidents where a speaker used the wrong word.… Continue reading Slips of the ear & tongue: eggcorns, mondegreens, & malapropisms
Making the seconds count – rather than counting the seconds
We sometimes speak of our need for split-second timing, where a decision or action must be taken very rapidly, and at precisely the right moment. We also occasionally refer to something happening in an instant, usually unexpectedly. Few nonprofit organisations, however, would see themselves depending on super-fast timing such as might be required for emergency… Continue reading Making the seconds count – rather than counting the seconds
Hurry Up and Slow Down
Tempo – yet another dimension of temporality Many years ago my piano teacher introduced me to the metronome, and its use as an aid to practicing. I started slowly at first, and then sped up as I grew more confident with either my sight reading or my familiarity with the particular piece of music I… Continue reading Hurry Up and Slow Down
Temporal Sensemaking and Reflective Governance
Upon launching this blog a few years ago, I suggested that the purpose of these reflections was to help not-for-profit professionals ‘take care of the present’. See the header image above. Many thought leaders have drawn attention to the central importance of the present moment. These observations have emphasised that the present moment is the… Continue reading Temporal Sensemaking and Reflective Governance
Temperament and Temporality
I became ‘a morning person’ (a lark) when I was juggling an executive role, family commitments, and post-grad study. For me, the best time to concentrate on complex thinking and writing was before the household stirred. Others find that they are night owls, and their best thinking is after 8.00 pm. Whether we identify as… Continue reading Temperament and Temporality
‘Time is of the essence’: temporal factors in NFP productivity & efficiency
The phrase ‘time is of the essence‘ is usually employed to indicate that timely performance is an essential obligation under a contract. In the context of our thinking about temporal factors in nonprofit governance and management though, we can apply the phrase more broadly to productivity, efficiency, and effectiveness concerns. Temporal language pervades our discourse.… Continue reading ‘Time is of the essence’: temporal factors in NFP productivity & efficiency