Revolution at Oticon A/S: The Spaghetti Organization

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Revolution at Oticon A/S: The Spaghetti Organization

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Abstract

Lars Kolind, who was recruited in order to assume the tough task of implementing a new management in Oticon, set a real revolution. He arrived in a crisis context so; his first task was to readjust the company to an acceptable financial situation. He achieved this quite
shortly and everybody looked happy with that, but he wasn't satisfied yet. His dream was to forget about the traditional management of the company and create a total brand new system based on transparency of the information and flexibility of job positions in order to emulate creativity and allow every Oticon employee to give the best of them for the company.
Even if we know about the company situation today, which is thriving, the beginning was not
that easy.

Through this paper, we will try to analyze different areas in which Oticon stands for today.
We will try to determine in which aspects of the company new organizations are designed to
foster creativity.
Then we will try to define leadership in an organization like Oticon. Some human resources
dynamics are emerging, we will try to identify them.
After all of this, we will give our personal point of view about working or not working for Oticon.

From the perspective of a learning organization, please identify which aspects of Oticon's new organization are designed to foster creativity?
How would you define leadership in an organization like Oticon?
What human resource development dynamics do you see emerging at Oticon?
If you had the choice to work for Oticon, would you do so? Explain

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Extract

[...] This case helped me to understand the radical changes from a traditional organization to a totally different one. And it is not that easy because people don't like change especially in the corporate world (of course it depends on culture). Plus, all along this case study, we feel that every little point and process of the Oticon operation has been made in order to fit with Kolind's vision. I know that this case was granted in 1994 as the Best Overall Case in the European Case Writing Competition Award, but still I can't get something. [...]

[...] IMD (1994) Revolution at Oticon the Spaghetti Organization (Condensed) p9, retrieved December 7th HRMT Oticon What human resource development dynamics do you see emerging at Oticon? 'Human Resource Development also known as Talent Development, is the process of changing an organization, its employees, its stakeholders, and groups of people within it, using planned and unplanned learning, in order to achieve and maintain a competitive advantage for the organization.1' When we take a look at every element of this definition, we could wonder if it was not written for Oticon. [...]

[...] Finally, he becomes more concerned and more motivated because he knows that his personal work has direct consequences on the organization. Anyway, what really challenges me on this case is the way employees are identified. Even if some show reluctance and refusal to Kolind's plan, they all end up accepting revolution. That means that everybody has to be in the same state of mind, and I think that definitely is quite impossible in a lambda company. You could find some consensus or areas of agreements on some points, but in the global extent it is very difficult. [...]

[...] To listen to his employees and adjust the decisions to their feelings and their expectations is very important in order to set up an operating management Retrieved December 7th from http://www.leadership-studies.com/lsw/definitions.htm HRMT Oticon 11 Kolind is also respecting its commitments. Even if he accepted to postpone the relocation of Oticon's headquarters, he remained inflexible in the reorganization of the firm. Because he knows that it was the key and the starting point for regaining success. gave in on where Oticon is going to relocate, but I insisted on carrying through with this reorganization plan. [...]

[...] HRMT Oticon From the perspective of a learning organization, please identify which aspects of Oticon's new organization are designed to foster creativity? Several definitions have been given for a learning organization. According to Argyris and Schön (1978), it refers to the 'detection and errors correction'. Fiol and Lyles say that it is ' the process which allows improving actions with better knowledge and comprehension'. A learning organization is a company which sets up structures and strategies advisedly, as to increase and maximize organizational learning (Dodgson, 1993). [...]

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