Fusion Leadership : Unlocking the Subtle Forces That Change People & Organizations - Hardcover

Daft, Richard L; Lengel, Robert H; Lengel, Robert H.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 157675023X ISBN 13: 9781576750230

Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 1998

Synopsis

Fusion Leadership describes a new way of leading based on "fusion," a coming together of whole individuals to accomplish mutual goals based on shared vision and values. Fusion leaders are those who engage not only the bodies and minds of their employees, but also their hearts and souls. Unlike the traditional, hierarchical "fission" management style used for centuries in business, fusion leadership supports personal growth and ingenuity, qualities that facilitate change.

Building on the New Science assumptions that organizations can act as living systems and evolve with changing conditions, Fusion Leadership shows, in practical terms, how individuals and organizations can grow together. Fusion, the authors reveal, unleashes subtle forces-mindfulness, vision, heart, courage, communication, and integrity-which can fundamentally transform organizations.

Mindfulness, they say, represents independent thinking, personal creativity, and an open mind. Vision encompasses the higher purpose toward which people work. Heart represents caring and compassion--positive feelings that underlie workplace relationships. Communication influences vision, values, and emotions; it also involves listening and discerning. Courage motivates people to take risks. Integrity involves honesty, trust, and service--going beyond self-interest to give something to the organization. Through stories, parables, and probing questions, the book helps readers begin to revive these qualities within themselves. It also shows the value and applications of social technologies based on conversation-including dialogue, future search, and whole-scale change--which leaders can use to create organizational fusion, unleashing new synergies among people and achieving far-reaching results.

About this title

About the Author

Richard L. Daft is the Ralph Owen Professor of Management, Director of the Center for Change Leadership in the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University, and author of two bestselling textbooks, Organization Theory and Design and Management.
Robert H. Lengel is Associate Dean for Executive Education at the University of Texas at San Antonio and consults with government agencies, the military, an aerospace company, theme parks, oil and gas companies, financial institutions, and health care providers.

From the Back Cover

Fusion Leadership shows leaders how to use ""fusion"" to create personal ownership and commitment for change projects, thereby overcoming resistance that thwarts efforts to achieve real change in organizations. Fusion Leadership lays the groundwork for moving the new science paradigm into application and practice. Daft and Lengel explore six subtle forces they feel have a direct bearing on organizational effectiveness. Mindfulness, they say, represents independent thinking, personal creativity, and an open mind. Vision encompasses the higher purpose toward which people work. Heart represents caring and compassion - positive feelings that underlie workplace relationships. Communication influences vision, values, and emotions; it also involves listening and discerning. Courage motivates people to take risks. Integrity involves honesty, trust, and service - going beyond self-interest to give something to the team and organization. This book also shows the value and practical applications of social technologies based on conversation - including dialogue, future search, and whole-scale change - which leaders can use to create organizational fusion, unleashing new synergies among people and achieving far-reaching results.

Reviews

In the "out-of-kilter" world that Daft and Lengel take as their framework, old management styles do not work. Instead of top-down, "fission" management that splits organizations into independent units and hierarchies, they propose a "fusion" style in which empowering leaders create a corporate vision and all employees use their creative powers to cope with constant change and achieve common goals. Empowerment and leadership both are popular current topics; Daft and Lengel offer user-friendly spin heavy on inspiration and personal growth. Both authors have taught managers. Daft (director, Ctr. for Leadership and Organizational Transitions, Owen Sch. of Management at Vanderbilt Univ.) and Lengel (Ctr. for Professional Excellence and the Executive MBA program at the Univ. of Texas at San Antonio) aim much of the book at showing leaders, through parables and anecdotes, why they need to change and how to develop new approaches to managing, but the concluding chapters provide ideas of how to institute changes throughout an organization.
A.J. Sobczak, formerly with California State Univ., Northridge
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The so-called new science of chaos theory has been applied to organizational management in such works as Irene Sanders' Strategic Thinking and the New Science (1998) and Margaret Wheatley's Leadership and the New Science (1992). Daft and Lengel, who cite Wheatley's work, consider a different model, one from the field of science. Daft, who teaches at Vanderbilt University, has written numerous scientific articles and is the author of two major textbooks in the fields of management and organizational theory; Lengel teaches at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Here the two look at the concept of fusion theory. Although proponents of chaos theory argue that its principles actually apply to organized systems, Daft and Lengel seem to be using the theory of fusion more metaphorically. They argue that chaos theory and other systems models overlook the person and such aspects as individuality and personal growth. Contrasting hierarchical models that they say create fission within the organization, they propose a leadership model based on "fusing" together personal traits such as mindfulness, vision, communication, and integrity. David Rouse

Edition details

• Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 157675023X
• ISBN 13: 9781576750230
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 312