Fighting the corporate immune system.

One of the most exciting things to come out of biology over the last century is the Gaia hypothesis.  The theory says that living things interact with non-living things, so a whole ecosystem behaves like a living organism.  It has a lot of criticism in the scientific community and, if correct, could upset our ideas of natural selection. It conforms with our notions of belonging to an organic whole of life and having a purpose on the planet.

If you could apply the Gaia hypothesis to an entire planet, in theory, you could narrow the focus to a workplace.  This week, I want to talk about the immune systems that organizations develop when they are trying to lead change.  I assert that the modern corporation is the last vestige of feudalism in contemporary society.  The petty power games of executives quickly subsume notions of human dignity, intellectual growth, and making a difference. The demands of shareholders and the peer pressure of the others who share your cubical space are overwhelming.

This challenges agile professionals because continuous improvement and accountability are significant threats to executives who see their command and control structures threatened by people in Taupe Blazers. The modern business has four primary defense mechanisms.

Quid Pro Quo Behavior – 

This phrase means tit for tat.  It is often used during sexual harassment training to describe a sexual favor being traded for a bit of career advancement.  For the agilest, this means that people in the organization do favors for each other and, in doing so, create a currency.  This currency is bartered around the organization, and it is used to get work done and cover up malfeasance or laziness.  As long as the Quid Pro Quo behavior is not discussed or exposed it will continue.

Social Networks – 

Spending time with people develops bonds.  Friendships develop and become a kind of armor against people who want to change things.  A project manager with a close friendship with a department head can get away with plenty of bad behavior toward subordinates.  The relationship cultivated will trump the duty of the department head to hold that individual accountable.  So, pointing out the misconduct is threatening your credibility as a person to that department head.

Not invented here – 

Plenty of organizations consider their processes to be unique to their businesses, so anyone who suggests that accounting behaves the same way regardless of the product produced will be treated like a heretic.  These people might be treated like someone “…who isn’t being a team player.”  To suggest that methods of doing things have been tested and confirmed in other organizations undermines the uniqueness and authority of your organization.  The change agent will be cut off and eventually removed.

Tenure –

In some organizations, the only way to get ahead is to stick around and put up with nonsense until someone retires and you are promoted in that person’s place.  This encourages groupthink and lack of risk-taking because the way you move up the organization ladder is to avoid calling attention to yourself.  Thus, the least innovative, curious, and creative people make decisions.  It is the reward of the bland.

So this week, think about these four pieces of an organization’s immune system and how, as a change agent, you can work around them.

Until next time.