Talking About Organizations Podcast

In the final part of our discussion on organizational routines we continue examining how routines relate to the internal/external organization, what are the external stimuli and how valid is it to postulate them as catalysts for the routines, and why the more contemporary term 'routines' can be a misleading way to refer to the 'performance programmes' that the authors wrote about. Join us for this super-informative discussion as Katharina tells us everything we wanted to know about routines but were afraid to ask (well, not really - we did ask!).

In Episode 4 we are discussing the origins of organizational routines with the help of our special guest Dr Katharina Dittrich. Organizational routines are ways to reduce complexity and distribute learning throughout the organization. The idea is simple - once a problem occurred often enough and a solution has been found, the solving of this problem can become routinised so that employees no longer have to 'reinvent the wheel'. Corporate procedures such as hiring and firing and order processing are some of the examples.Join us for part 1 of this fascinating discussion as Dmitrijs inadvertently finds himself playing a role of devil's advocate as Katharina delivers a stunning amount of knowledge about routines.

Our first special guest, Dr Katharina Dittrich explains what organizational routines are, where they came from and why and talks about how the readings she helped us pick for Episode 4 - Behavioral Theory of the Firm (1963) by Cyert and March, and Organization (1958) by March and Simon - relate to one another. To learn more about Episode 4 and why (as well as how) it is different, check out Carnegie Mellon School Series: An Introduction from last week!

Upcoming Episode 4 is going to be focused on the “Carnegie Mellon School” with a special emphasis on organizational routines. You will note that the structure of Episode 4, and the episodes on this subject that follow, is slightly different because we have chosen to explore the ‘entire’ school by focusing on single key topics, which are identified across texts and authors. This is mostly because the authors within this tradition are not famous for just one work but have given rise to a series of what are considered to be seminal works. In this sense the Carnegie Mellon School resembles a small community of scholars in, what was at that time, a minor institution from which fundamental intellectual cornerstones emerged and which still have a great influence over management and organization studies (and many other fields as well!).Listen to this short introduction to find our more about how such episodes are going to work and about why we decided to pay such close attention to Carnegie Mellon School in particular.

In Episode 3 we discuss what is, perhaps, one of the most famous theories in management - the pyramid of human motivation by A.H. Maslow. Maslow's name has become synonymous with achieving motivation through gradual satisfaction of five categories of physio-psychological needs. In Part 1 we discuss the significance of Maslow's actual contribution, discover key but neglected aspects of his theory, and contemplate the extent to which this framework applies to different kinds of organizations. Join the discussion as we take a fresh look at the Theory of Human Motivation, unencumbered by decades of reinterpretation!Also, check out this video on Maslow by our friends and colleagues from The New History of Management: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dFboMWMafo

In Episode 2 we convene to discuss Chapter 4 of General and Industrial Management by Henri Fayol. This work was composed only a few years after The Principles of Scientific Management by F.W. Taylor (Episode 1) and yet it remained virtually unknown to the English-speaking world until 1949. Never the less, Fayol's ideas have been, and still are, central to management theory and practice. Join us for part one to learn what is it that makes this French mining engineer turned CEO a noteworthy figure and how his contributions still matter today.

We are proud to inaugurate the podcast with a discussion of the theory of Scientific Management by F.W. Taylor. Join Dmitrijs, Ralph, Pedro and Miranda as they talk about Taylor's views on human motivation, knowledge and expertise, role in the development of commercial bureaucracy and why he advocated management based on systematic measurement and tasks in favor of anything else.