Peter Totterdill

DirectorWorkplace Innovation Limited

Joint Chief ExecutiveUK Work Organisation Network

Visiting ProfessorKingston University London

peter.totterdill@ukwon.net

Leadership challenges in a volatile world

The UK Work Organisation Network

A not-for-profit coalition committed to shared knowledge, collaborative action and policy advocacy

• The future of work and organisations

• Closing the gap between leading-edge practice and common practice

www.workplaceinnovation.eu

A distinctive approach

• Evidence-based

• Diverse backgrounds, common values

• Stimulating “employee voice”

• Committed to win-win outcomes

• Sustainable change, not quick fixes

Innovation in work organisation:

an under-utilised resource?

• Competitiveness and innovation• Quality of working life• Employee engagement• Healthy working• Talent wars• Active ageing• Social inclusion

The past is an increasingly unreliable guide to the future

Survival is not compulsoryOf the Fortune 500 firms listed in any year from 1975,

over a third disappeared ten years later. Only one firm remains from the 1900 list. For smaller firms the odds are much worse.

Put simply, change is imperative.

Anticipating the future is tricky

“It will be years – not in my time – before a woman will become Prime Minister.”

Margaret Thatcher, 1974

Anticipating the future is tricky

But thinking about the future is essential

‘In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.’

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Future Quiz When was the phrase “nothing is

permanent but change” written?

Answer

Between 540BC-480BC by Heraclitus

According to former USAccording to former USSecretary of EducationSecretary of EducationRichard Riley…Richard Riley…

Times of economic downturn are Times of economic downturn are times to invest in people and times to invest in people and

workplace innovation. workplace innovation. Now is the time to engage people in Now is the time to engage people in

finding creative solutions.finding creative solutions.

The Future of WorkClichés and false predictions:• The end of work• Jobs for life and careers are dead• The office is history• The paperless office is on the way• The death of hierarchy

Are our organisations becoming obsolete?

• Technologies

• Technologies• Globalisation

Are our organisations becoming obsolete?

CHINA AND THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY

CHINA AND THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY• 2000 higher education institutions in 2002

CHINA AND THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY• 2000 higher education institutions in 2002

• 4000 higher education institutions by 2005

CHINA AND THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY• 2000 higher education institutions in 2002

• 4000 higher education institutions by 2005

• 16 million students enrolled by 2008

• Technologies• Globalisation• Global Resources

Are our organisations becoming obsolete?

SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, 24th March 2008

• Technologies• Globalisation• Global Resources• Politics

Are our organisations becoming obsolete?

• Technologies• Globalisation• Global Resources• Politics• Climate change

Are our organisations becoming obsolete?

• Technologies• Globalisation• Global Resources• Politics• Climate change• Consumers

Are our organisations becoming obsolete?

• Technologies• Globalisation• Global Resources• Politics• Climate change• Consumers• Demographics

Are our organisations becoming obsolete?

• Technologies• Globalisation• Global Resources• Politics• Climate change• Consumers• Demographics• The workforce

Are our organisations becoming obsolete?

Is it a good job?

To join or not to join? Will the job . . .• Enhance my career capital?• Offer personal development?• Engage my talents and creativity?• Be fun?• Conflict with my values?

‘Work is getting better’

For many, work is how we identify ourselves, where we learn and make friends. Work is our community.

More and more employers are recognising that a high quality of working life offers real competitive advantage.

• Work is becoming more intense and demanding• ICT developments allow work to pervade more

of the week and every location• Stress and absenteeism as headline issues• Death of loyalty and growth of insecurity• 22.5 million (17%) “actively disengaged” US

workers cost business $300 billion a year in productivity

‘Hard Times’

Active disengagement

Globalisation bites

• Polarisation of the labour market, creating winner take all dynamics at the top of the labour market, and dislocation at the bottom

• Globalisation + flexible labour markets = increased insecurity

Organisations under pressure• There will be winners and losers at the end of the

current crisis• The business environment is less predictable• Product ranges and services change more quickly• Constant imperative to offer more differentiation and

choice• Customers expect high quality service at speed, when

and where it suits them best• Companies expected to be environment friendly and

ethical

Scenarios for the future of work

“Built to Last”• multiple stakeholders• investment in employee and organisational

development• large companies absorb the majority of talent

Scenarios for the future of work

“The Network Economy”• Italian successes• Phycomp• VC 2010• Soho• The Hub

Scenarios for the future of work

“Stagnation”Apparent stability but . . .• high casualty rates• dependency culture• perpetual cost driven restructuring and wage

squeezes• restricted quality of working life

Scenarios for the future of work

“McJobs”• high levels of employment• little security• low skill/low wage economy

Scenarios for the future of work

“It’s a jungle out there”• highly entrepreneurial• high casualty rates• limited regulation• poor quality jobs• increasing social division

Scenarios for the future of work

The Matrix . . .

Scenarios for the future of work

The Matrix we want

24th January 2022

24th January 2022

What will I be doing?

24th January 2022

The Economy

The Workplace

The Workforce

Technology

24th January 2022: Global Threats and Exciting Opportunities

Micro Global

Control

Influence

Adapt to things that cannot be changed

Traditional ways of organising Traditional ways of organising work and traditional work and traditional approaches to management approaches to management are inadequate in an are inadequate in an increasingly volatile world.increasingly volatile world.

Work and CapitalThen

Work Anonymous and replaceable

Capital Personal and unique

Svenskt Näringsliv – Confederation of Swedish Enterprise

Work and CapitalThen Now

Work Anonymous and replaceable

Capital Personal and unique

Svenskt Näringsliv – Confederation of Swedish Enterprise

Work and CapitalThen Now

Work Anonymous and replaceable

Personal and unique

Capital Personal and unique

More and more anonymous and replaceable

Svenskt Näringsliv – Confederation of Swedish Enterprise

“. . . a clear concentration on those factors in the work environment which determine the extent to which employees can develop and use their competencies and creative potential to the fullest extent, thereby enhancing the company’s capacity for innovation and competitiveness while enhancing quality of working life.”

Hi-Res Study (available at www.ukwon.net)

The critical importance of employee voice

Towards the High RoadTowards the High Road

• Beyond the Low Road of cost-driven Beyond the Low Road of cost-driven restructuringrestructuring

• Innovation: the ability to do things Innovation: the ability to do things differentlydifferently

• Convergence between enhanced Convergence between enhanced performance and quality of working lifeperformance and quality of working life

High Road:Quality

Low Road:Costs

StrategyWork

Organisation

HRWO

Neo-Taylorism

Total QualityManagement

Team Work

Project Groups

Total QualityManagement

Team Work

Project Groups

Quality Culture

Quality Control

semi autonomous

holistic tasks

continous improvement

co-operation over hie-rarchical boundaries

Multiskilling

Job Rotation

Short Work Cycles

taylorist product development

High Road:Quality

Low Road:Costs

StrategyWork

Organisation

HRWO

Neo-Taylorism

Total QualityManagement

Team Work

Project Groups

Total QualityManagement

Team Work

Project Groups

Quality Culture

Quality Control

semi autonomous

holistic tasks

continous improvement

co-operation over hie-rarchical boundaries

Multiskilling

Job Rotation

Short Work Cycles

taylorist product development

How do you interpret history?

• Histoire evénémentielle

• La longue durée

Fernand Braudel (1949)

Leadership theory is a mixed blessing

‘If the characteristics of successful leadership were easy to identify, quantify and replicate, organisations would look very different and a lot of consultants would lose their jobs.’

DON’T worry about:CharismaPersonalityStrategy

Quick Guide to Leadership Theory

DON’T worry about:CharismaPersonalityStrategy

DO worry about:Self-directed teamsDeliveryReflectionLearningTrustEntrepreneurship

Quick Guide to Leadership Theory

Vision?Vision?

“People are proud to work here. Proud of colleagues, proud of the company and proud of themselves.”

David, Managing Director

“I wonder if David knows how people are treated? I’m sure he wouldn’t want his company to be run like that”.

Trish, Shopfloor Worker

Active disengagement

Dialogue,Reflection,Negotiated Action

Dialogue,Reflection,Negotiated Action

SharedKnowledge &Intelligence

People shape organisations but organisations shape people

Entrepreneurial Organisations and Entrepreneurial Individuals

IN

DIV

IDU

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ORGANISATIONS

Con

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Entr

epre

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Conforming Entrepreneurial

Entrepreneurial Organisations and Entrepreneurial Individuals

IN

DIV

IDU

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ORGANISATIONS

Con

form

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Entr

epre

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rial

Conforming Entrepreneurial

Sally

Entrepreneurial Organisations and Entrepreneurial Individuals

IN

DIV

IDU

ALS

ORGANISATIONS

Con

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Entr

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Conforming Entrepreneurial

CONFORMITY

Entrepreneurial Organisations and Entrepreneurial Individuals

IN

DIV

IDU

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ORGANISATIONS

Con

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Entr

epre

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Conforming Entrepreneurial

SYMBOLIC ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Entrepreneurial Organisations and Entrepreneurial Individuals

IN

DIV

IDU

ALS

ORGANISATIONS

Con

form

ing

Entr

epre

neu

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Conforming Entrepreneurial

Jess

Entrepreneurial Organisations and Entrepreneurial Individuals

IN

DIV

IDU

ALS

ORGANISATIONS

Con

form

ing

Entr

epre

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Conforming Entrepreneurial

RESISTED

Entrepreneurial Organisations and Entrepreneurial Individuals

IN

DIV

IDU

ALS

ORGANISATIONS

Con

form

ing

Entr

epre

neu

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Conforming Entrepreneurial

Sonya

Entrepreneurial Organisations and Entrepreneurial Individuals

IN

DIV

IDU

ALS

ORGANISATIONS

Con

form

ing

Entr

epre

neu

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Conforming Entrepreneurial

ENTREPRENEURIAL ORGANISATION

FORMAL, RIGHTS-BASED

REFLECTIVE AND KNOWLEDGE-BASED

TEAM-BASED PROBLEM SOLVING

INFORMAL

Self-organised teamworking

Empowering job design and individuals engaged in dialogue

Employees participating as experts in improvement and innovation

Partnership involving Trade Union or Workplace Representatives

FORMAL, RIGHTS-BASED

REFLECTIVE AND KNOWLEDGE-BASED

TEAM-BASED PROBLEM SOLVING

INFORMAL

Self-organised teamworking

Empowering job design and individuals engaged in dialogue

Knowledge Sharing

Partnership involving Trade Union or Workplace Representatives

Employees participating as experts in improvement and innovation

FORMAL, RIGHTS-BASED

REFLECTIVE AND KNOWLEDGE-BASED

TEAM-BASED PROBLEM SOLVING

INFORMAL

Self-organised teamworking

Empowering job design and individuals engaged in dialogue

Knowledge SharingTACIT KNOWLEDGE INTO STRATEGY

STRATEGY INTO PRACTICE

Partnership involving Trade Union or Workplace Representatives

Employees participating as experts in improvement and innovation

FORMAL, RIGHTS-BASED

REFLECTIVE AND KNOWLEDGE-BASED

TEAM-BASED PROBLEM SOLVING

INFORMAL

Self-organised teamworking

Empowering job design and individuals engaged in dialogue

Knowledge SharingTACIT KNOWLEDGE INTO STRATEGY

STRATEGY INTO PRACTICE

Ensuring quality of dialoguePartnership involving Trade Union or Workplace Representatives

Employees participating as experts in improvement and innovation

FORMAL, RIGHTS-BASED

REFLECTIVE AND KNOWLEDGE-BASED

TEAM-BASED PROBLEM SOLVING

INFORMAL

Self-organised teamworking

Empowering job design and individuals engaged in dialogue

Knowledge SharingTACIT KNOWLEDGE INTO STRATEGY

STRATEGY INTO PRACTICE

Ensuring quality of dialogueMANAGEMENT

SYSTEMS & PROCEDURES

PRODUCTIVE REFLECTION

Partnership involving Trade Union or Workplace Representatives

Employees participating as experts in improvement and innovation

Productive Reflection and Transformation

Individual creativity

Team effectiveness

Organisational innovation and transformation

Productive Reflection

ERICSSON RADIO SYSTEMS, GÄVLE

The Green Room

Towards the High RoadTowards the High Road

• Beyond the Low Road of cost-driven Beyond the Low Road of cost-driven restructuringrestructuring

• Innovation: the ability to do things Innovation: the ability to do things differentlydifferently

• Convergence between enhanced Convergence between enhanced performance and quality of working lifeperformance and quality of working life

Sustainable innovation requires:

• Open dialogue and partnership within the organisation

• Widespread learning from outside the organisation

REGULATORY& POLICYFRAMEWORKS• National• European

GLOBALINNOVATION

GLOBALSTRATEGIC ALLIANCES

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR MARKETS

THE REGION

Intermediate Institutions

Regional Strategy

Regional Labour Markets

Supply Chains

Advanced Business Services Knowledge Networks Technology Transfer Innovation

ICTsSkills

Innovation Entrepreneurship Technology TransferKnowledge Networks

THE ENTERPRISE Global MarketsGlobal Mobility

THE ENTERPRISE Competitive StrategyOrganisational Competence Networks People

People at the centre of change

• Change is unpredictable

• It often fails

• There is no blueprint

• Experimentation and learning are unavoidable

• You need everyone’s help

• Space for reflection and dialogue is essential

 

www.ukwon.net

www.workplaceinnovation.eu