During the next term of my studies, I will be studying Organizational Theory and Design. Many of my posts over the next twelve weeks will concern organizational communication. I'll try to leave out the boring bits, but if you want to know what today's doctoral student in Organizational Leadership is learning about organizational communication, stay tuned!
One of the texts recommended to the class is Organizational Communication: Balancing Creativity and Constraint, 5th Ed. [Eisenberg, E. M., Goodall, H. L. Jr., Trethewey, A. (2007). Bedford/St. Martins: Boston, MA.] The book costs $73 and is not required, but I was attracted to the title, so I bought it used. There were pages marked with post-it tabs, and on those pages were highlighted text. I thought I'd share one of those tabbed, highlighted sections that applies to this blog's purpose, creative communication in the church.
"All leadership has a communicative component and involves the purposeful exercise of influence over others" (p. 286). Organizational communication focuses on the leader effectively communicating with employees, which requires openness, supportiveness, motivation, and empowerment.
No one communicates the lack of effective organizational communication better than Scott Adams through Dilbert. Sunday's strip celebrated this: http://www.dilbert.com/strips/2010-12-19/
As we begin to discover what it means to creatively communicate in the organization, have you had many Eisenberg et al moments, where there is a purposeful influence that was open, supportive, motivating, and empowering? Or have your organizational communication experiences been better reflected by Dilbert cartoons? When you communicate, which are you?
Priscilla - I love Eisenberg's works, and even wonder if he is a believer...
ReplyDeleteThanks for the Dilbert link; that is all to often what is really going on in organizations.
KOKO,
SLD